Self-organizing teams working together

Self-Organizing Teams vs. Self-Managing Teams

Are self-organizing teams better or the same as self-managing teams? What about self-directing teams? Working with teams can be challenging due to change and complexity. So, the idea that we could have self-organizing teams or self-managing teams can sound valuable, scary, or both!

What do these terms mean, and where can they be confusing? Let’s dig into each one.

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"Product? Project?"

Estimation Alternatives, Part 2: Products vs. Projects

"Product? Project?"“I don’t understand products vs. projects. What’s the difference?”

When I share some of my stories about working with product development teams, some people look at me as if I’m describing the impossible. They seem confused when I tell them about agile teams that didn’t have to provide story point estimates to management or normalize points across teams. What I’m talking about is so far outside of their experience, they can’t conceive of how it could work. One of the most challenging things for me to explain to people who haven’t experienced both is the difference between project- and product-based organizations.

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A Short History of Kanban (and Lean) (Part 3)

The history of lean and kanban is a challenge to boil down, so inevitably, I know there are aspects that are missing here. The title says “short” because, while there is a lot of information here, it is short in terms of how more is out there!  Additionally, there are often disagreements on certain aspects and points around the history, and we’ve sourced the various elements included in this outline.  A key part of understanding kanban is going beyond the principles and practices, to understand what is behind it work. The history points us to a critical key. 

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What is Kanban (看板)? [Part 1]

This is a common question, since Kanban can have several word uses and meanings in the agile space. The term gets thrown around a lot, making it even more confusing. In order to understand Kanban and where it comes from, let’s start with some basic definitions and the foundations. We start with the basics, because there is often confusion around what kanban is.

Simple definitions of kanban:

  • a signboard or billboard in Japanese
  • a just-in-time method of inventory control, originally developed in Japanese automobile factories
  • a Japanese lean manufacturing system in which the supply of components is regulated through the use of an instruction card sent along the production line
  • an agile approach or framework

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What to do when someone asks for an agile checklist or agile metrics checklist?

I hear these requests all the time. “What are the best agile metrics?”, “How can we measure an agile team?” and “I know we can’t just measure agile. . . but, what should be on an “organizational agility checklist?”

There are so many places you can go with these questions and there are even various companies selling ways to measure agile organizations and agile teams. When someone asks me about agility checklists or agile metrics, I tend to start with a few core themes of elements. I use these themes to have conversations with the people who want the measurements and the people who will be measured (before anyone starts using them).

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Agile Leadership Myth #3: Leaders & Managers will figure out what their agile role is magically

We have done a huge disservice to leaders and managers, as well as teams.  There are plenty of people that will say we don’t need managers and leaders. People can lead themselves. While there is an aspect of this that may be true, there are a lot of steps to get close to that idea.

This article will explore what leaders and managers need to do to succeed as they get started with agile or to help teams move from individuals to a team or even a high-performance team. It builds on Agile Leadership Myth #2: Self-Organizing Teams Don’t Need Any Help.

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