Agile Transformations and Organizational Change Talks

Getting to Better Problems - An Approach to Continuous Improvement

Ever feel discouraged by the impediments, setbacks, and struggles that come from leading change? If you created a backlog to address each challenge, would it seem a mile long? The improvement kata model can help you lead groups in focusing on the next problem to solve and owning change for themselves. Continuous improvement is a journey rather than a destination.

This session was co-developed with Tim Haagenson. It has been presented at:

  • North Texas Scaled Agile Framework user group

  • Agile Shift conference

Ever feel discouraged by the impediments, setbacks, and struggles that come from leading change? If you created a backlog to address each challenge, would it...

Aspirations of Agility and Truths of Transformation

It seems that Agile is the way of the world–but that popularity hasn’t been without its problems. Companies spend a lot of time and money on agile transformations, and leaders worry they’re not getting the results that they should. Why are investments in Agile not delivering the full benefits promised?

This session was co-developed with Noreen Emanuel. It has been presented at:

  • DFW Alliance of Technology and Women

  • Agile for Humanity Tucson

Agile by the Numbers: How to Develop Useful KPI's

How long will it take? How much will it cost? How are we progressing? Common questions leaders ask of their teams, regardless of the project management framework used. There are a multitude of ways to measure projects that aren’t particularly reliable or useful. In this session, we’ll unravel the mystery of agile metrics with a primer on what to measure, how to measure, and how to use those metrics to make informed business decisions.

This session was co-developed with Ken Howard and presented at AgileShift 2019 and private client events; slides can be found at http://www.agileintrovert.com/

Changing Organizational Mindset

When adopting new frameworks and practices that challenge old habits or beliefs, individuals often get stuck. And when individuals are stuck, it can lead to entire teams or organizations getting stuck. How do you move beyond what’s worked in the past? Can you reinvigorate people to combat complacency and apathy? What does it mean to change the mindset of an entire organization? In this session, we’ll talk about what we’ve done as Scrum Masters and Agile Coaches to change hearts and minds to embrace change and continuous improvement. Find out how we’ve helped people get un-stuck and fostered an agile organizational mindset at the individual, team, and organization levels through training, mentoring, and coaching.

This workshop has been presented at:

  • Dallas TechFest

  • Dallas Agile Leadership Network

  • Thomson Reuters Beyond the Edge - Technology conference

Participation is NOT a Choice - Techniques to Amplify Your Partnerships

Wondering how to help organizational leaders become more comfortable with change? Struggling to get their buy-in to adopt agile practices in an agile manner? Workforce shifts, market demands and technology emergence–each represent a substantial challenge, and experienced in combination are a real threat to survival. We’re often asked to “go faster” and rollout organizational changes as if we’re installing an updated software version on a product. Yet our expertise informs us that organizations are complex systems, and change is a continuous experience. We accept that and work with uncertainty daily as agilists.

Pressures mounting, the overwhelming challenge of complex change moves leaders to want more certainty. There’s a moment where the world of possibilities shifts to The Solution Point. And our inability to promise certainty to leaders can make it difficult to work together.

In this workshop, Jason and Allison will lead activities to explore uncertainty and share their experiences stretching leaders’ outside their comfort zones to facilitate organizational change. If you are a change agent working with leaders who are struggling to be agile, learn techniques to meet them where they are and form a stronger partnership.

This talk was co-developed with Jason Knight. It has been presented at:

  • Organizational Design Forum

Transforming, Not Transformations

As agilists, how are we affected by our relationships with transforming organizations? Organizations treat an agile transformation as a singular event. A budgetary line item, a noun, a one-time metamorphosis from caterpillar to butterfly. The danger is that we expect people to transform in a particular way or on a schedule.

We believe organizations benefit when we transform the way we assist organizations. In this interactive workshop, Allison and Barry will facilitate discussion on experiences with transformations and what might happen within an organization if we more actively transform ourselves.

Join us as we explore who and what is transforming through agile transformations.

This talk was co-developed with Barry Forrest. It has been presented at:

  • Audacious Salon at Agile 2018

  • dsmAgile