© 2009 Mountain Goat Software © Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ADAPTing to Agile Mike Cohn [email protected] June 7, 2010 1 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Mike Cohn Founding member and director of Agile Alliance and Scrum Alliance Founder of Mountain Goat Software Doing Scrum since 1995 Started my career as a programmer 2 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Agenda Why transitioning to agile is hard ADAPTing to agile development Iterating toward agility The role of leadership Overcoming resistance 3 

© 2009 Mountain Goat Software © Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Two simplistic views of change: Top down: Powerful leader shares a vision Bottom-up: A team starts and everyone else sees the .1:1P@?
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© 2009 Mountain Goat Software © Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® It is tempting to codify things that work in a given context into best practices '45?
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© 2009 Mountain Goat Software © Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® The transition process must be congruent with the development process 3 Self-organize Write feature 1 Write feature 2 Part of the move to agile is a move to self-organizing teams Moving to self-organization requires self-organization! 6 

© 2009 Mountain Goat Software © Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Traditional view of the organization is as a machine *1
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® We need a different mental model The organization as a Complex Adaptive System (CAS) John Holland in Complexity: The Emerging Science at the Edge of Order and Chaos
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Closing the gap with the desired state Newtonian View of Success Achieving a good fit with the environment CAS View of Success 5221>5:3
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Traditional view CAS view 14-B5;>
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Traditional view CAS view %18-@5;:?451
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Agenda Why transitioning to agile is hard ADAPTing to agile development Iterating toward agility The role of leadership Overcoming resistance 14 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Awareness that there is room for improvement A Desire
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® MO9
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® :05B50A-8
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Tools for building... Awareness HCommunicate that there’s a problem HUse metrics HProvide exposure to new people and experiences HFocus attention on the most important reason or two for changing 18 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® On the following slides, identify &9
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Desire Ability 20 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Transfer Promote 21 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Stop! My thoughts on desire, ability, transfer and promote are on the following pages. You don’t want to see them before you think about your own. 22 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Tools for building... Desire HCommunicate that there’s a better way HCreate a sense of urgency HBuild momentum HGet the team to take agile for a test drive HAlign incentives (or, at least, remove disincentives) HFocus on addressing any fears HHelp people let go HDon’t discredit the past HEngage everyone in the transition 23 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Ability HProvide coaching and training HHold individuals accountable HShare information HSet reasonable targets HJust do it Promote HPublicize success stories HHost an agile safari HAttract attention 24 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Transfer HTransfer the effects of agile beyond the current group AA team transfers to its department AA department transfers to its division A1@/ HIf you don’t transfer, the transition will eventually and inevitably fail A';;
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Agenda Why transitioning to agile is hard ADAPTing to agile development Iterating toward agility The role of leadership Overcoming resistance 26 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Enterprise Transition Community (ETC) Improvement backlog Improvement Communities Improvement backlog Improvement backlog Improvement backlog Impediments Energy, suppport, resources, guidance, & direction (occasionally) Iterating toward agility 27 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Enterprise Transition Community (ETC) Creates a culture in which passion and desire to improve thrive Does not direct the transition effort #>;B501?
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® ETC members Sponsor >;9
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® ETC responsibilities >@5/A8-@1
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® :
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® 9<>;B191:@
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? Form around the passion of a small number of people Expand from there Do the real work of improving how the organization implements agile Focus on goals with practical relevance Examples: ScrumMaster, Testing, Product Owner, Continuous Integration 32 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Working with an IC An IC works with a project team Work is not done in an ivory tower Most ICs work in 2–4-week iterations Disband or refocus when goal has been achieved 33 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® ETC Improvement Backlog … Establish an internal program for developing &/>A9 -?@1>? … Not everything on an IC’s improvement backlog needs to tie back to the ETC’s backlog An IC Improvement Backlog Figure out how to identify good /-:050-@1?
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Improvement backlogs 1.Write some items that you would like an on your organization’s initial improvement backlogs. 2.What improvement communities would you like to see form that could help with some of these improvements? 3.What obstacles are in the way of making these improvements? 4.What obstacles are in the way of forming an ETC or improvement community to get started? 35 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Agenda Why transitioning to agile is hard ADAPTing to agile development Iterating toward agility The role of leadership Overcoming resistance 36 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Transition team and other formal leaders must lead the transition but cannot do so in the usual ways Self-organizing groups still require leadership Lead through example, questions, and focus “Nudge” the organization; Poke and prod; See how the organization responds Leading an agile transition 37 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Container H 
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Containers Enlarge or shrink teams Enlarge or shrink the responsibility boundary of teams Change team membership Create new teams or groups 40 

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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Jeff, a senior developer, is very domineering. During iteration planning the team defers to him on every 01/5?5;:
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® The self-organizing path Self-organization is not something that happens one time A team is never done doing it '41
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© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Agenda Why transitioning to agile is hard ADAPTing to agile development Iterating toward agility The role of leadership Overcoming resistance 54 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Why They Resist Like status quo Dislike agile Passive Active How They Resist Diehards Skeptics Saboteurs Followers 55 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® -:085:3
>1?5?@-:/1 HPick one type of resistor. (Or two if you have time.) HIdentify some underlying reasons for the behavior and some things you could try to overcome it. Why They Resist Like status quo Dislike agile Passive Active How They Resist Diehard Skeptic Saboteur Follower 56 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Why They Resist Like status quo Dislike agile Passive Active How They Resist Diehard Skeptic Saboteur Follower Skeptics H Let time run its course H Provide training H Solicit peer anecdotes H Appoint a champion skeptic H Push the issue H Build awareness 57 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Why They Resist Like status quo Dislike agile Passive Active How They Resist Diehard Skeptic Saboteur Follower Saboteurs H Success H Reiterate and reinforce the commitment H Move them H Fire them H Encourage a thriving set of communities 58 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Why They Resist Like status quo Dislike agile Passive Active How They Resist Diehard Skeptic Saboteur Follower Diehards H Align incentives H Create dissatisfaction with the status quo H Acknowledge and confront fear 59 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Why They Resist Like status quo Dislike agile Passive Active How They Resist Diehard Skeptic Saboteur Follower Followers H Change team composition H Praise the right behavior H Model the right behavior H Involve them H Identify the true barrier (awareness, desire, ability) 60 

© Copyright Mountain Goat Software® ® Mike Cohn 95719;A:@-5:3;-@?;2@C->1 /;9 CCC 9;A:@-5:3;-@?;2@C->1 /;9 @C5@@1>
9571C/;4: (720) 890−6110 61