Podcast appearances and mentions of richard cheng

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 23, 2024 38:29

Can Agile tools really teach you Agile practices, or are they just supporting players? Join Brian and Steve Spearman as they unpack the myths surrounding tools like Jira and discover why the process should always come before the tool. Overview In this episode of the Agile Mentors Podcast, Brian Milner and Steve Spearman debunk common myths about Agile tools, with a special focus on Jira. They stress that tools are not a replacement for Agile principles, and the process should guide the choice of tools, not the reverse. The conversation dives into how Agile tools can enhance transparency, why communication is key to effective Agile practices, and the importance of adapting tools to fit unique team workflows. References and resources mentioned in the show: Steve Spearman #43: Cultivating Agile Team Culture in a Virtual World with Richard Cheng #29: Influencing Up with Scott Dunn #71: The World of DevOps with Carlos Nunez Jira Miro Mural Trello SAFe LeSS Certified ScrumMaster® Training and Scrum Certification Certified Scrum Product Owner® Training Mountain Goat Software Certified Scrum and Agile Training Schedule Join the Agile Mentors Community Subscribe to the Agile Mentors Podcast Want to get involved? This show is designed for you, and we’d love your input. Enjoyed what you heard today? Please leave a rating and a review. It really helps, and we read every single one. Got an Agile subject you’d like us to discuss or a question that needs an answer? Share your thoughts with us at podcast@mountaingoatsoftware.com This episode’s presenters are: Brian Milner is SVP of coaching and training at Mountain Goat Software. He's passionate about making a difference in people's day-to-day work, influenced by his own experience of transitioning to Scrum and seeing improvements in work/life balance, honesty, respect, and the quality of work. Steve Spearman is a Certified Scrum Trainer® and Agile coach, passionate about helping teams thrive, drive business improvements, and master the art of managing change. With expertise in Agile training, scaled Agile, and leadership, Steve empowers organizations to navigate their Agile journeys smoothly and effectively. Auto-generated Transcript: Brian (00:00) Welcome in Agile Mentors. We're back for another episode of the Agile Mentors Podcast. I'm with you as always, Brian Milner. And today I have a very good friend of mine, a mentor of mine, Mr. Steve Spearman is with me. Welcome to the podcast, Steve. Steve (00:14) Thank you, Brian. It's great to be here with you. Nice to see you. Brian (00:17) Nice to see you as well. Yeah, Steve helped me out when I was trying to become a CST and I got to learn a lot from him, watching him teach his classes. So he's a pro. He's a CST, he's a coach and trainer and if you're interested, I recommend his classes. I think he's an excellent trainer and would have no hesitation sending anyone to one of Steve's classes. We wanted to have Steve on because we had this topic that got, actually, this is a listener suggestion. So we're always happy to take listener suggestions. And this is one that one of you sent in saying that you wanted us to kind of dive into and discuss a little bit about myths that are out there about Agile tools. So Steve, what does that mean to you? are some of the, is there a main kind of myth that you? you've heard more often than others about Agile tools. Steve (01:16) I think, Brian, the one we hear all the time, right, is this one that essentially Jira is Agile, right? And we're like, well, Jira is a very popular tool for people to use with Agile. It's might or might not be like most of us who do this. That may not be our favorite, honestly, but it is very popular for some pretty good reasons. So that's, I think, the most common one. And then just the idea that somehow it gets to the confusion people have about being a methodology and stuff, right? That essentially, if you just would implement the tool, then you'd be doing Scrum well, right? And that would be the important thing when in fact, I think most of our recommendations would be a little bit the opposite of that, right? Which is to come up with your own approach to doing things in Scrum and then maybe figure out a tool that helps you with that. Brian (02:06) Yeah, I agree. I've heard that quite often. And I've encountered organizations in my career where I'll ask them if they're Agile or if they are familiar with or no Agile. yeah, we have JIRA. OK, well, not quite what I was asking, but I appreciate the sentiment. But yeah, I mean, I agree. There's probably some mixed reviews on that as a tool. Steve (02:24) Yeah. Brian (02:36) I mean, personally, I'll say I've used it to run, you know, Agile organizations before. I'm not a hater of it. I think it's fine. I think it works. I mean, I don't know what your opinion here is, Steve, but people often ask me if there's a tool I recommend to kind of run projects and. You know, my standard answer is there's not one that I think is better and outshines all the rest. I think they all have their strengths and weaknesses and you just kind of have to tweak and adjust them to make them match, you know, your process. But that's the key, right? Is that process over the tool. Steve (03:17) Yeah. I've, you know, Jira I think is popular for a lot of reasons. One is, usually it's about half the per seat cost of a lot of the other ones. And so that for a lot of companies right there, that's that's a pretty big factor thing. I liked about it. Maybe similar to your experience, Brian was that if you're a little bit more of a techie, it's pretty programmable. You can go in and you could tweak it and you can make it do all kinds of things. And so that's maybe it's strength and it's weakness that it takes a little more investment, but you can do quite a bit with. Brian (03:47) Yeah, I agree. It is pretty flexible. The main thing I try to tell people who use it and are asking about, this going to be viable? Will it work for our purposes? The main thing I think they have to understand is the history of it. The Jira is really a bug tracking software. Well, let me be clear. It was created as a bug tracking software, right? Right. Steve (04:12) Yeah, ticketing system in general, yeah. Brian (04:15) Right, a ticket system. And when you know that, and then you get into the nomenclature and you look at the layout of how everything is within it, that makes sense. can see, cause you know, like the standard thing there is an issue, right? There's different issue types, but the standard thing is an issue. Well, that's because it was meant to handle support issues. Steve (04:35) Yeah. And also the, you know, we commonly use the word tasks, of course, in Scrum, not an official thing, but a very common thing we talk about. And Jira speak is subtasks. And that's just history again, of, know, where it came from. And, you know, a long, long time ago, you had to have a plugin to Jira to do Agile. It was originally called, I believe, Grasshopper many, many years ago. And then they ended up just calling it like Jira Agile for a very long time. And then as... Brian (04:57) Yep. Steve (05:04) it became a bigger and bigger piece of their market, they just kind of wrapped it all up in JIRA now, I think. Brian (05:09) Yeah, we both been around long enough to have been part of those days. So I remember those very well. Yeah, I mean, like I said, I think JIRA will do a fine job for you if that's what you're with. wouldn't, you some organizations using it, I wouldn't say, by all means stop and use something else. I think you can make it work. I think you just have to look at it and say, all right, I understand this is based on this. So now I just need to configure it and adapt it. really for the process we want to do. And I know from my standpoint, I've used it multiple times where when you configure it the right way, it will handle things the way that you, at least from my perspective, the way I usually think is the right way to implement it with a team or an organization. So it works. I can make it work. It just takes some tweaking. I guess for mine, but yeah, it's not Agile. It's not being Agile just because you're using Jira. Steve (06:11) Yeah, and it's kind of the good and the bad thing about tools. think people like them because, you know, I can assign people tickets and things like that, you know, and so like, you know, people, it's clear who's got things and stuff. That's also a weakness though, too, because it, you might say, all I have to do is assign it in the tool and I don't have to talk to you now. I just say, look, you, I signed you this ticket or something. And that's not great from my perspective. And then the other one is that when you, when you, change states and things in the tool. That lets everybody know where things are, and that's good, and it gives you tons of reports and things, and people like those. But it's also less visual than a lot of us are, which back in the day, we liked sticky notes on a board. I that was the thing. That was the thing. And so what I'm leaning toward myself a little more these days is tools like Muro and Mural and so forth that are very visual, and they're often sticky note-based kind of things. Brian (06:55) Yeah. Steve (07:09) And that allows you to do a lot of the stuff we used to do physically, but they don't have the same reporting capabilities. And so that's where we get these trade-offs that I think we're going to see with these tools. Brian (07:22) Yeah, I agree. I agree. Yeah. I'm, I'm, I'm the same way. And in fact, you know, when I said that earlier, someone asked me what my favorite tool is, you know, I said, my default answer is usually I don't have a favorite, but, if they push me, what I'll tell them is my favorite is just no cards or post-it notes, you know, like that's really, that's really what I, I have found works best. But, yeah, something like Miro or mural, I think is a, is a great, kind of virtual replacement for that. Cause it's just so open. and you can configure it however you want. It's not going to pull a report for you. You have to understand that. But it is the equivalent of having a virtual wipe. Steve (08:05) Exactly. And that's just, it's kind of a halfway physical feeling thing for our virtual world, which I think is helpful. Another interesting thing that I haven't played with a lot myself is that I know now in Miro, a sticky note in Miro can now be tied directly to a ticket in Jira. And so effectively you could have like the backend framework of Jira with a pretty front end on top of it or something is kind of how that looks like to me. So Brian (08:23) wow. Steve (08:32) I think that's got some promise maybe to give us both that physical thing that some of us miss while still having that reporting structure that a lot of our companies kind of want. Brian (08:41) Yeah, that's awesome. Yeah, that speaks to what you were saying earlier about that it's highly configurable. can make it do a lot of things. You just have to get into the guts of it a little bit. Steve (08:52) You know, another thing about the tool market here, know, Brian, I was just looking this up, not like I knew this, but apparently it's a $5 billion market this year, Agile tool, and it is projected to go up to 13 in the next 10 or 12 years. So it's serious money. And this is why there are so many players now, right? I mean, the number of tools out there now is just, I've lost track of them. I know it's easily 20 plus tools out there. Now there are... Brian (08:57) Haha. Steve (09:19) Certainly the most common ones that we think about, Jira is probably number one. Asana comes up a lot. Rally is a long time one that comes up quite a bit. Interestingly, one of our biggest ones from years ago that did such great reporting out on the network for us and great Agile materials was version one. It was a super, super popular one. Brian (09:43) Yeah. Steve (09:45) And when you look now, they are a fairly small player percentage-wise in the market. So there's been a lot of shifting here. And of course, Microsoft shops tend to go toward Microsoft tools. And so there's that factor that goes on here, too. So it's not trivial to figure out which tool you would want to use here. Brian (10:02) Yeah, that often drives a lot of even discussion in the classes, I know, from people who say, what do you, you know, they'll bring up a term like feature and say, what's, how does Scrum define? Well, Scrum doesn't define what a feature is, you know, like that's, that's a term that comes from your tool. And, know, that your tool might have a definition for it, but you know, Scrum doesn't. So, yeah. Steve (10:23) One of the challenges I think is also that because scaled Agile has become such a big factor these days, almost all the tools have adopted their terminology. so terms like epics and features and things, most of these come from scaled Agile. And if you're doing scaled Agile, that's great, right? If you're not, it can be a little confusing. So for example, I think it was, Mike Cohn maybe, who said that epic, he famously defined as being a story too big to fit into a script. That was sort of the definition of an epic. And now in most of the tools, an epic is something giant that you have a handful of in three months or something. So yeah, there is some terminology confusion out there now as well. Brian (11:16) Yeah, which may have all come from just the tools. You hit on something a little bit earlier that I had as one of my kind of common myths here around tools. And that was that these Agile tools replace the need for just the typical communication that we have. Because as you said, I can assign something to someone else. that way, I don't have to talk to them. I just put it in their queue. And it's there. And I think that's a huge myth here with the Agile tools is, you know, my, my, my goal with any kind of tool, whether it's a software tool or whether it's a, a template or something that I'm using for a specific thing, like story mapping or whatever, my, my goal for any of those things is that it drives conversation, right? That it is an encourager of conversation, not that it is something that takes away from or detracts. from conversation and communication. So I think that's a big myth sometimes is that people, even if it's unspoken, right, there's just sort of with some people an assumption that because the tool communicates and because the tool can communicate between people, I don't have to actually talk to anyone. And that's that couldn't be further from the truth to do Scrum well. Steve (12:33) I think it gets us to another subtle thing in the scrum that you know scrum that could say more clearly maybe than it does. But that is shown as a good pattern in our pattern site, you know, the one called scrumplop.org. The idea that we should swarm as teams, you know, is something that I think a lot of us feel is a really important concept. And swarming is this kind of strange idea that says you know, don't give everybody their own work item and then just say disappear, go do it, you know, good luck. Instead, we try to work more closely like teams on the same items, divided up, work together closely. And this of course involves a lot of communication, a lot of needing to talk to each other. And so sometimes people say, well, can we just send out a Slack message or something, you know, every now and then and say, hey, you know, I'm done with mine. You can, but I think it's sort of missing the the really cool back and forth of a true swarming culture where it's like, hey, is anybody ready to pick up a piece of code and run the testing on this one? I'm gonna move on to the next one. Swarming was this idea of doing things in short cycles and gets into issues of test-driven development and things like this. so none of the tools really help you with that concept at all. And they may even hurt you with it little bit, in my opinion. Brian (13:49) Yeah, absolutely agree. And I'm absolutely on board with you. I think that's such a vital component of it. I tell people in classes, you know, I know sometimes people get a little frustrated with sports analogies, but I tell them, you know, Scrum is a sports analogy at its core. You know, it's a rugby thing. the other thing I kind of think about is if you've ever gone to see, and I know lots of us have done this in our life, but you've ever seen a kid sport kind of team sport. If you ever stand on the sidelines of a kid's soccer or most of you out there, most of the world would say football. But you know, if you ever stand on a side of a field like that, what the coaches are constantly yelling at the kids is talk to each other, right? Communicate, talk to each other. And they recognize, you you recognize in that kind of a team sport how important it is to, you know, call for the ball or or just let people know where you are or where you're going. And that same thing is what we want with our Scrum teams. We want people to be able to just constantly talk to each other. So you're right. I think sometimes the tool might actually get in the way of that communication and just could create some communication problems. Which tool are we talking on? Which tool do I look for for that kind of a conversation or whatever? And it just can get lost in the shuffle sometimes. Steve (15:13) You know, the rugby analogy is such a core one for us, but it's getting to be kind of old history now because the whole rugby analogy came out of this original lean paper, right? Long, long time ago. And the reason they chose rugby, you know, is one of the reasons they chose rugby. Rugby is such an interactive thing. So unlike American football where, you know, you run down the field and you can, you know, you can only throw the ball once and then you run and try not to get tackled. In rugby, you throw the ball back and forth constantly. Continuous interaction and basically the guys from Toyota said look we got to learn to treat our teams like rugby teams When they're on the field don't be on the sideline yelling throw it to Brian You know let them figure it out themselves, and that's the whole concept of a self-managing team Which you know is a really big concept for us in scrum and one that a lot of companies struggle with Brian (15:54) You By the way, if there was anything being yelled with my name on it from the sideline, would not be throw it to Brian. It would be don't throw it to Brian. That would be the response. Yeah, absolutely agree. What else, Steve? What other kind of myths have you heard or do you commonly hear about Agile tools? Steve (16:24) I think one of them is the idea that there is a right tool because there are real pros and cons to all the tools and some of them are much more advanced than others and yet some of them are a lot more expensive than others. Some of them are tuned for people who work in Microsoft shops. Some of them are tied to particular tools like GitHub or something like that. So figuring out the right tool is a non-trivial exercise, I guess is what I would say. And especially if you're going to wedge yourself to a tool, I think doing some prototyping, some research. The good news is the vast majority of them have free versions. You can go out and try. I often get asked things like, are you going to teach us Jira in this class or something? And the answer is no. No, I'm not. It's just one of 20 plus tools. But the other thing is that The good news is tools are a lot simpler than Scrum and Agile are. Scrum and Agile are tricky, they're subtle, they're hard to understand. They're a lot about humans and interactions and patterns and these tricky things. Tools are relatively straightforward and there are free videos on how to use Jira out there. There's a public version of it you can go get and it's true for the others too. So anybody who's really looking for a tool, that'd be my recommendation. Go out and... Find a few of popular ones, go check them out, get a free version, watch some videos. I don't think you'll probably find you a class for that. Brian (17:54) Yeah, I agree. I mean, and if you do, know, you know, again, don't want to make this sound like we're only talking about Jira, but I know for things like that, I've seen, you know, meetup groups that are dedicated to those purposes that you can find on like meetup.com or other things where you can, you know, maybe go once a month or so and learn something about it for free. So there's lots of stuff like that that's out there. But yeah, I absolutely agree that, you know, As I said, I don't recommend one specific tool. And I think the thing that's kind of really important there when you're selecting a tool is to know what your process is first. Don't get the tool to set your process, find what your process should be, and then find the tool that's going to fit with that. It's the whole individuals and interactions over processes and tools. We don't want the tool to drive what we do. And unfortunately, I've been a part of several organizations where, hey, we use this tool and the tool only works this way. So that's the way we work, whether it's right or wrong for us. And that's just a terrible way going about it. Steve (19:03) Yeah. And unfortunately, most of the tools do force you to some degree into their approach, right? Because there is a struggle, I'm sure, for toolmakers between you could make it completely general, like here's some sticky notes, just go do whatever with them, you know, which is kind of what you do with a Miro or a Miro board. But most of them have tried to make it more, you know, you do this and then you do this and then you do this and it kind of leads you through it. And that seems like it would be helpful, right? But at the same time, it means they've already decided that the right sequence is to do this and to do this and to do this. And so just got to watch out for when is the tool prescribing your approach and when is it there to facilitate your approach. Brian (19:50) Yeah, I agree. I'll tell you another one that I've heard quite often that I always kind of makes the hair on my spine kind of stand on end is when people seem to take this approach that the Agile tool itself is going to teach them how to become Agile. You know, it's kind of akin to the idea of because we have Jira, we're Agile or some, you know, fill in the blank or whatever tool it is that you would be using. But yeah, I've seen different teams or organizations that take that approach of, well, we're buying this software. And so we'll learn by using this software how to be Agile because it's an Agile tool. It's an Agile software. So everything we need will just be, we'll come by osmosis because we have this tool in place. yeah, I found that to be just a terrible approach. If you don't have some kind of a some guide, right? If you don't have somebody to guide you through that in any way, shape or form, then you're lost in the wilderness. You just don't have anyone to help you find your way. And the fact that you have a tool that could be useful doesn't mean it's going to teach you how to be useful, right? You have to know, knowing Agile is not knowing the tool. Steve (21:11) It's like, imagine going to a Ferrari dealer and deciding you're going to buy a Ferrari. And you've driven a Honda Civic, so you feel pretty comfortable with driving. And they give you a 10-minute overview of the dashboard of the Ferrari that you just purchased. And they say, I hear you're planning on racing professionally next month. Good luck with that. Brian (21:17) Right. Steve (21:37) And because I can sort of drive the car, I can therefore win races, you know, at the, no, right? No. So now we both are going to be a little biased here as trainers, obviously, but I think we pretty strongly feel like without somebody to help guide you through the subtleties of things like Scrum and Agile thinking, you may let the tools dictate and that's not the intent at all. It should be your team comes up with what makes your team be amazing. Brian (21:48) Right. Steve (22:05) And we own our own processes in Scrum, right? That's a key concept is that Scrum tries not to dictate processes and it wants you to continually evolve them. And so even the thinking that says there's a right way to do it is actually incorrect Agile thinking. so, yeah, tools are not gonna be a lot of Brian (22:24) Yeah, I agree. We might be a little biased because of what we do, but you know, I like your analogy. I'll give you another one. if you are just because you buy a parachute doesn't mean you know how to skydive, right? And no one would would buy a parachute and think, I know everything. Just I'll just use it and I'll learn how to do it because I'll jump out the plane and you know, I'll learn how to skydive. Well, no, you go through training. figure it out, you probably do a lot of tests and things, so that by the time you get up there, you know exactly what you're doing. you've gone through all the safety checks and all those other kind of things. Nobody would see those things as being synonymous, but somehow we do that in the Agile community sometimes, as we see the tool as synonymous with knowing Agile. Steve (23:12) It's a really good example, though I like the parachute. I have never parachuted because I find it terrifying. But if you were going to be a skydiver, this is an area where there is a high cost of failure. It's like one of these things where a certain kind of failure you can only do once because you won't have a second opportunity. And so one of the things that is kind of an integral idea in Agile thinking is that we like to make Brian (23:18) Neither have I. You Steve (23:41) experimentation and failure inexpensive. And so one of the whole concepts of why we often encourage things like short sprints and scrum is the idea that we want you to feel free to experiment with your processes and to make mistakes. And I'm sure many of you out there have heard the fail fast thing we say all the time, right? And all of this comes out of this mindset of making failure affordable and learning part of the culture. And so all of that is very different than any of these kind of instruction-based follow a tool sheet, follow a standard methodology of Agile or something. None of that is really the right thinking according to the way the Agile Scrum people see the world. Brian (24:26) Yeah, I agree. Any others that have crossed your path that you would call out? Steve (24:33) You know, it's really hard to avoid the thousand pound gorilla here, which is safe, because safe has so dictated the tools and things that you just have to think through that. I don't want to get us off into scaling, because that's obviously another very large conversation of its own. I have come to think of safe this way. that scaled Agile is as Agile as many large companies can tolerate. Which is to say, it's not my favorite, but it is very prevalent out there. And so, you know, in some cases, you're not going to have a choice, right? Your company will have dictated a thing, whether it's safe or whether it's whatever it is. And just be aware that that decision is also reasonably tightly tied to these tools and things because... You know, you can get a really nice lightweight tool like say Trello, which is, you know, even free sometimes still. And that can be perfectly acceptable in, you know, nice small scrum team environments. But if you're going to do, you know, giant, you know, release train planning exercises, and you want the ability to put all this stuff into tools, then that will constrain you to a certain class of tools. Now it's a lot of them these days, but just be aware that how you choose to approach this and how heavy of a method you use. will also impact your tool choices. Brian (26:00) Yeah, I agree. I don't want to get, I know we're not going to dive off into the pros and cons of safe, but the kind of picture in my head that I always think about with safe is it's kind of like one of those Swiss Army knives that has a million different blades and attachments and things in there. It's designed to solve any possible problem. that you could encounter in that arena. you know, just like when you use a Swiss Army knife, you don't open all of them up and say, all right, well, I got to try to use them all at once. You find the one that you need and you use that one. So I don't think it's a problem to have the choice to use these various things. And when I've talked to really, you know, lifelong, safe trainers that really are successful with this, I find a similar attitude from them that it's not intended for you to have to implement every component. It's intended for you to find the things that fix the problems that you're encountering and then implement those things. And if you start to encounter other new problems, well, there's other parts of the framework that you can implement then that will help solve those issues for you. And I think that's one of the mistakes people make with SAFe sometimes is that they just You know, they take the whole, it's all or nothing. And while Scrum does say, hey, you have to implement all of this or you don't get the benefits of it, SAFe, I don't believe says that. At least I haven't heard trainers say that who teach it. So, yeah, yeah. Steve (27:43) It's more like a smorgasbord effectively, right? know, if you know different choices and maybe it's worth saying a word about why that is compared to because Scrum tries so hard to be a minimalist framework that it's sort of like saying, you know, I could choose not to eat vegetables and you know, that could be a good choice for me and the answer is no, that's not a good choice for you it turns out. You know, so Scrum, because it tries to tell you so little, it's basically telling you the stuff that is basically essential. You you just can't get along without it. So it's a super minimalist framework. Some of you, I'm sure, are familiar with what happened in the last version of the Scrum Guide, where, you know, typically, like with SAFe, when they add a new one, it gets bigger and bigger and bigger over time, right? And they add more and more details. And that's what people love about SAFe, right? You can go open up a page. and click on a keyword and open up another massive page of exactly how to do everything. And Scrum has taken the exact opposite philosophy to make it the most minimal framework they could. And they actually went from 18 pages to 13 pages in the last version of the Scrum Guide, taking all of the advice out, basically. And so we're just looking at two very different philosophies here. So Scrum is a minimalist framework. SAFe is the... I guess the Swiss army knife, if you will. I would like to say one comment about a Swiss army knife. I used to carry those many years ago, but essentially you have every tool in them and none of them are great, right? So every one of them is basically a tuned down version of the tool. So yeah, there's a corkscrew in there. It's not a very good corkscrew. And yes, there's a screwdriver in there. It's not a very good screwdriver. Brian (29:06) Ha ha ha. Steve (29:29) So I think sometimes over time we start to learn that you should have the right tool for the right job and not try to get by with the Swiss Army. Brian (29:38) Yeah, always whenever I saw, you know, whenever I would see a Swiss Army knife that would have the the kind of saw component of it, I always think, you know, it's it's it's it's, you know, two inches, three inches long. What kind of tree am I going to saw through? Steve (29:53) you have to be desperate, right? This would be like, I'm cutting my parachute cord or something, but. Brian (29:57) Right, exactly. Exactly. Well, I'll throw one more and then we'll we can call this. But there's one that I've heard that I just thought was I don't hear this as often, but I have started to hear it more. And that's just sort of it's kind of an attitude. It's this attitude of, hey, we're having a problem with and seems specifically around transparency. Right. The team is not being transparent. We're not having much transparency into how the work is going on. And so sometimes I've heard people kind of take this attitude of, well, you know, we're gonna implement this tool. And so by default, we're gonna increase our transparency, because now we're using this tool. And I would caution people on that as well, say that that's not true at all. You know, it's the old phrase we used in computers, you know, way, way back when I was in elementary school was garbage in garbage out. And I think that applies to our tools as well, you know. We can get greater transparency through a tool, but it takes the right input. It takes the right effort. And you could still have the attitude of, I'm going to obscure the way that the work is really happening and do that through any tool. So the tool itself, I don't think it's going to do that. The tool could help you with it, but you have to deliberately seek that out. Steve (31:21) You know, I, it's such a mindset for me, this concept of things like transparency and how that relates to how we work as a team and swarming concepts and all these things kind of come together to make scrum a really an effective thing. And the problem sometimes is when you try to force things, it has the opposite effect. I'm, don't disagree with the scrum authors very often, but I very much do with what they did with the daily scrum, you know, and the daily scrum. used to have the three questions, And the three questions, you know, what did you do yesterday? What am I going to do today? You know, do I have any impediments? And then they made it longer. They added more words to it to try to clarify things, which was just more structure effectively. And then finally, in the last version of the Scrum Guide, they threw out the three questions. And I was really happy to see those go. because they sounded like a status report. And so guess what was happening to most organizations? They think of the Daily Scrum as a status report, which developers hate. And now as soon as there's this status call, then the managers are talking and they say, hey, did you hear there's a daily status call we can come to? And now they start coming to another meeting. And now you have completely destroyed the concept of this really simple meeting, which was effectively just to let team members coordinate their plans for the day. It's kind of a swarming based thing. And so it makes beautiful sense once you understand that, but it's misunderstood 90 % of the time because it just sounded like status. Brian (32:55) Now, but hey, pass the plate, because I'm a member of that church. I agree with you on that wholeheartedly. I've always said that, you know, I think it's just one of the things I try to tell people to come through classes. Hey, Scrum Masters, if you don't remember anything else about these events, right? If you forget, you know, six months from now, what the exact time box is on something, I'm not as concerned with that. Make sure you understand the purpose of each one. Make sure that you embed that and print that in your memory. I know what each of these meetings is there for, why we are meeting in that situation. And if you know that, then I don't care about the format. The format will flow from that, but we're accomplishing this purpose and we're gonna figure out the best way to do it. Steve (33:42) Yep, and we can even take that back to the tools and say, can make most tools work, right? As long as you get the freedom to use it as you, as a team, see fit. You know, one of the guys, the guy who created the kind of the opposite end of the spectrum scaling approach, Craig Larmann with LESS, he says, why do you need more than just a shared Google Doc to do everything? You know, why couldn't you just have your, you know, all your stuff up there in a spreadsheet and, know, good enough for what you needed to have visible and you can generate a few reports and maybe that's all you need and maybe you don't need a heavy tool. that, you know, so there's a spectrum of possibilities. Brian (34:21) Yeah, I mean, when teams started out, there weren't any tools, and that's what everyone was using, was things like that. So, yes, it's entirely possible. Very cheap. And you don't have to be a big organization. You don't have to have a massive budget for software. can use the tools available to you and get by very well. Well, this has been great. I really appreciate you taking the time, Steve. I love this discussion, and I hope that... Steve (34:43) Absolutely. Brian (34:51) For our listener who suggested this, that we kind of hit the nail on the head and gave you what you were hoping for in this one. But yeah, when it comes to Agile tools, Agile should drive the tool, not the other way around. The tool shouldn't drive how you do Agile. And I think that's kind of where I would sum it up. Any last thoughts? Steve (35:10) So if I was going to quote Craig Larvin one more time here, less is more sometimes. And so the concept of minimalism and being more about how you and your team work together and how your meetings work and how you respect each other and how you learn how to work effectively together, way more important than your tools. ideally, let your approaches dictate the tool. Try not to let the tool dictate your approaches. Brian (35:40) Awesome, yeah, completely agree. If you've been listening to Steve and feel like, I really clicked with that guy, I really resonate with the ways he's speaking on this stuff, I encourage you check out his course schedule. You can find that at the Scrum Alliance website and see what courses he's teaching and sign up for one. Because as I said, Steve's an excellent instructor. So Steve, thank you so much for coming on the podcast. Steve (36:04) Thanks, Brian. It's been a pleasure to be here with you.

Being a Product Owner with No Direction From Above w Richard Cheng

All Things Cardio Oncology

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 13, 2024 31:42

In this conversation, Dave Prior and Richard Chang discuss the challenges that product owners face when they don't receive the support and direction they need from their leadership. They explore strategies for product owners to navigate these situations, including having open and honest conversations with leadership, running experiments to validate assumptions, and finding mentors or support networks. They also emphasize the importance of understanding the needs and perspectives of stakeholders and users, and the need for product owners to manage their space and hold their ground, even in the face of power dynamics. Overall, the conversation highlights the importance of effective communication, collaboration, and continuous learning in the role of a product owner. Takeaways * Product owners often struggle when they don't receive the support and direction they need from their leadership. * Having open and honest conversations with leadership can help product owners gain clarity and alignment on product strategy and goals. * Running experiments and validating assumptions can help product owners make informed decisions and mitigate risks. * Finding mentors or support networks can provide guidance and help product owners navigate challenging situations. * Understanding the needs and perspectives of stakeholders and users is crucial for product owners to make effective decisions. * Effective communication, collaboration, and continuous learning are key skills for product owners to succeed in their role. Chapters 04:55 Introduction and Background 07:12 Challenges of Product Ownership 11:49 Taking Initiative and Creating Strategic Direction 17:39 Validating Assumptions and Removing Bias 27:56 Coping Strategies and Social Engineering 31:01 Conclusion and Plug for Richard's Classes Contacting Richard Web: www.agilityprimesolutions.com Email: richard.cheng@agilityprimesolutions.com LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/richardcheng/ Twitter: twitter.com/richardkcheng Contacting Dave Linktree: https://linktr.ee/mrsungo LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrsungo/ Links from Dave's Intro The Agile Network* https://theagilenetwork.com/ *If you'd like a discount on an annual membership or want to try a month for free, send an email to dave@theageilnetwork.com and let me know. Agile 2024 Interviews: https://drunkenpm.blogspot.com/2024/07/agile-2024-all-interviews.html The Art of War for Collaboration Course https://modusinstitute.com/course/art-of-war-collaboration Guided Personal Kanban (September 2024) https://modusinstitute.com/course/guided-pk-sep-usa Public Scrum Training CSM/CSPO/A-CSPO https://www.scrumalliance.org/courses-events/search?tr=14153&cnty=US

interview running challenges war conclusion plug agile product owners coping strategies taking initiative no direction dave prior richard cheng

370. CardioOncology: Advanced Heart Failure in CardioOncology with Dr. Richard Cheng

Cardionerds

Play Episode Listen Later May 13, 2024 44:46

CardioNerds Co-Founder Dr. Daniel Ambinder, Episode Chair Dr. Dinu Balanescu, and FIT Lead Dr. Natalie Tapaskar discuss advanced heart failure in CardioOncology with expert Dr. Richard Cheng. Audio editing by CardioNerds Academy Intern, Dr. Akiva Rosenzveig. In this episode, we discuss the spectrum of advanced heart failure in patients with a history of cancer. We dissect cancer therapy-related cardiac dysfunction (CTRCD) cases and the imaging and biomarker tools available for risk stratification and disease monitoring. We delve into the data on the use of guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) and cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) in these patients. We discuss the risk of prior radiation and chemotherapy during cardiac surgery. Finally, we learn about the post-transplant risk of rejection, recurrent malignancy, and de-novo malignancies, as well as treatment strategies we can employ for these patients. This episode is supported by a grant from Pfizer Inc. This CardioNerds Cardio-Oncology series is a multi-institutional collaboration made possible by contributions of stellar fellow leads and expert faculty from several programs, led by series co-chairs, Dr. Giselle Suero Abreu, Dr. Dinu Balanescu, and Dr. Teodora Donisan. CardioNerds Cardio-Oncology PageCardioNerds Episode PageCardioNerds AcademyCardionerds Healy Honor Roll CardioNerds Journal ClubSubscribe to The Heartbeat Newsletter!Check out CardioNerds SWAG!Become a CardioNerds Patron! Pearls and Quotes - Advanced Heart Failure in CardioOncology Use the HFA-ICOS risk tool to understand the baseline risk of developing cancer therapy-related cardiac dysfunction (CTRCD). Key factors are type of cancer therapy, baseline CV risk factors, and age. A relative change in global longitudinal strain of more than 15% from baseline is a marker of early cardiac dysfunction and predicts the subsequent risk for systolic dysfunction in patients undergoing cardiotoxic chemotherapy. Statins may be useful in prevention of cardiovascular dysfunction in patients receiving anthracycline chemotherapy. There is limited data on the 4 pillars of GDMT in prevention of CTRCD, but should be started early once CRTCD is suspected or diagnosed! Mediastinal radiation causes adhesions and scarring which increase the risk of bleeding during cardiac surgery, lead to longer operative times, and can lead to RV failure and poor wound healing. Patients with a pre-transplant history of malignancy have a higher risk of mortality due to post-transplant malignancy. And patients with active cancer should not be considered for heart transplant. Post-transplant malignancy risk can be mitigated by utilizing an mTOR based, CNI free immunosuppression regimen. Show notes - Advanced Heart Failure in CardioOncology How do cardio-oncology and advanced heart failure intersect? There are 3 basic populations of patients to consider:Patients with advanced heart failure who develop cancer.Patients with pre-existing chemotherapy and radiation exposure for cancer treatment who later develop advanced heart failureHeart transplant recipients who, in the long term are at very high risk of developing cancer Cardio-oncologists must consider risk assessment and mitigation, long-term prognosis, and treatment strategies for each of these unique populations. How can we assess the risk of developing cardiovascular disease during cancer treatment (CTRCD)? There are many proposed risk tools. However, the majority are not well-validated. One of the most used tools is the HFA-ICOS risk tool.1You can select the planned cancer therapy for the patient (anthracyclines, HER-2, VEGF, RAF/MEK inhibitors, Kinase inhibitors, multiple myeloma therapies) and then calculate their risk of developing CV disease during cancer treatment based on baseline variables:1) previous history of CV disease,2) biomarkers – troponin and NT-proBNP3)age,4) CV risk factors -HTN, DM,

dm patients rv cv pearls crt statins mtor cni vegf pfizer inc kinase htn advanced heart failure gdmt mediastinal richard cheng

Dr. Richard Cheng, Establishing Centres of Excellence in Cardiac Amyloidosis

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 29, 2024 27:52

Richard Cheng MD, MSc. is cardiology faculty at the University of Washington, Seattle, with a focus in cardiomyopathies, cardio-oncology and cardiac imaging. He is Program Director for the HF fellowship and the Director of the Cardio-oncology Program. He has formal training with a Masters-in-Science in clinical trial design and biostatistics. He has extensive editorial experience, including serving on the editorial boards for JACC, JACC: Cardio-oncology, JHLT, and is an associate editor for Heart (BMJ). Additionally, he is topic (section) editor for cardiomyopathies for ACC/HFSA HFSAP and an associate editor for ACC.org for heart failure and cardiomyopathies. His research focus over the last several years has been on risk stratification in heart failure, cardiac amyloidosis, and cardio-oncology cohorts. Read the full manuscript here: https://heart.bmj.com/content/early/2024/01/24/heartjnl-2023-323502 Donate to the Rachel Levine Amyloidosis Awareness Fund here: https://ic-os.info/RachelDaraLavineFund

director university science washington masters seattle establishing acc program directors msc cardio cardiac hf amyloidosis jacc richard cheng centres of excellence

The Psychedelics Boom in the Health Care Industry: Regulatory Considerations to Keep in Mind

AHLA's Speaking of Health Law

Play Episode Play 60 sec Highlight Listen Later Apr 9, 2024 44:51 Transcription Available

Lisa Gora, Partner, Epstein Becker Green, and Richard Cheng, Managing Member, Ritter Spencer Cheng, discuss the burgeoning area of psychedelics in the health care industry. They cover some of the driving forces behind the resurging interest in psychedelics, federal and state developments, the contravention between state and federal law, and the future of the psychedelics industry and potential regulatory and legal shifts. Sponsored by Stout.To learn more about AHLA and the educational resources available to the health law community, visit americanhealthlaw.org.

partner boom psychedelics considerations regulatory life sciences stout healthcare industry managing member keep in mind ahla epstein becker green richard cheng

JACC: CardioOncology Pulse - Top Takeaways on 'Surviving and Thriving: Promoting Cardiovascular Health in Adult Survivors of Childhood Cancers' at ACC Advancing the Cardiovascular Care of the Cancer Patient

JACC Speciality Journals

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 26, 2024 6:59

Richard Cheng, MD, and Stephanie Dixon, MD, provide a review on practical takeaways for cardio-oncologists who are caring for adult survivors of childhood cancer.

care surviving md thriving promoting pulse advancing cancer patients childhood cancer top takeaways cardiovascular health adult survivors jacc richard cheng

S2 Episode 3: From Diagnosis to Care: Demystifying Cardiac Sarcoidosis

Medscape InDiscussion: Heart Failure

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 14, 2024 21:36

Drs Michelle Kittleson and Richard Cheng do a deep dive into cardiac sarcoidosis, discussing everything from diagnosis to management. Relevant disclosures can be found with the episode show notes on Medscape (https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/997317). The topics and discussions are planned, produced, and reviewed independently of advertisers. This podcast is intended only for US healthcare professionals. Resources Debating the Definition and Incidence of Isolated Cardiac Sarcoidosis https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32972559/ Cardiac Sarcoidosis — State of the Art Review https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26885492/ HRS Expert Consensus Statement on the Diagnosis and Management of Arrhythmias Associated With Cardiac Sarcoidosis https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24819193/ Abstract 11937: Genetic Cardiomyopathies Misdiagnosed as Isolated Cardiac Sarcoidosis: High-Yield Results of a Systematic Screening Strategy https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/circ.146.suppl_1.11937 Cardiac Sarcoidosis Randomized Trial (CHASM-CS-RCT) https://classic.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03593759 Rituximab for the Treatment of Refractory Cardiac Sarcoidosis: A Single-Center Experience https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34320381/

care management treatments definition diagnosis relevant demystifying abstract cardiac incidence medscape sarcoidosis art review richard cheng

Richard Cheng, Ritter Spencer Cheng, PLLC | The Jeff Crilley Show

The Jeff Crilley Show

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 17, 2024 16:02

I started a podcast division some five years ago and the thing has taken off. We now host 190 different shows and Richard Cheng has one of our most popular shows called The Sativa Segment.

ritter pllc jeff crilley richard cheng

Cardio-Oncology Spotlight: World Experts Discuss AL Amyloidosis

All Things Cardio Oncology

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 29, 2023 18:21

Dr. Daniel Lenihan, Saint Francis Healthcare System, Cape Girardeau, US Dr. Giovanni Palladini, Associate Professor of Clinical Chemistry The University of Pavia, Pavia, IT Dr. Richard Cheng, Associate Professor of Medicine/Cardiology and Radiology, University of Washington, Seattle, US Dr. Ashutosh Wechalekar, senior lecturer and honorary consultant haematologist, University College London and the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, UK Discuss promising new therapies for AL Amyloidosis

university washington seattle associate professor cardio university college london oncology radiology cape girardeau amyloidosis medicine cardiology richard cheng

#49: Celebrating One Year: A look back at 50 Episodes of the “Agile Mentor” Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later May 24, 2023 17:31

Join Brian as he rediscovers and relives the most captivating topics, memorable guests, and impactful topics from the first year of the “Agile Mentors” podcast. Overview From deep dives into Agile methodologies and practical tips for using your knowledge to benefit others and foster change, the first 50 episodes of the “Agile Mentor” podcast have been filled with fascinating topics and memorable guests. In this episode, Brian Milner embarks on a retrospective journey through the inaugural year of the show. Listen in as he shares the real stars of the podcast, the moments that surprised him, those that took him out of his comfort zone, and the ones that inspired him to push to be better every day! Plus, what’s next for the show. Listen Now to Discover: [00:45] - Brian introduces the retrospective episode to celebrate one year and 50 episodes of the "Agile Mentors" podcast and share what's next. [01:54] - A thank you for YOUR role in the show. [02:17] - The role of marrying the right topic to the right guest. [02:56] - The format that allows listeners to choose the episodes that interest them the most. [04:03] - Pointing you toward the best of the best. Our first several episodes were focused on the Agile Framework and some core topics, including having Mike Cohn on to talk about the different roles and generally accepted practices. [05:13] - Sending out thanks to a few of our guests, including the trainers at Mountain Goat Software, including Lance Dacy. [05:45] - Kert Peterson joined us to share his knowledge, and Scott Dunn shared his insight from the product owner's perspective. [06:05] - On episode 16, Mitch Lacey joined us to discuss The Hidden Secret Ingredient And Julie Chickering brought a great perspective from a project management background and applying that to some of the stuff we've discussed here on the show. [06:39] - The time when one of my mentors joined us on the show to discuss transformation. [07:08] - Learning about coaching and marketing from the best! [07:27] - Roman Pitchler joined us to discuss product roadmaps and planning things from a product owner perspective. And John Miller shared about using Scrum in the education environment. [07:46] - On EP25, Henrik Nieberg came on and talked to us about scaling, and on EP27, Tricia Broderick walked us through leadership without blame. [08:18] - How Scrum can be applied outside of software development and mob programming. [08:42] - The key to working with humans. [09:03] - The episode that surprised Brian a little bit. [09:34] - Three episodes all about change: The first one was about how one organization uses Scrum to help impoverished micro-entrepreneurs succeed (and change their lives). The second featured Chris Li sharing his insight on how to know when it’s time to strike out on your own, and Karim Harbott walked us through the difficulty of transforming an organization's culture. [10:25] - The episode that inspired Brian to try to push in different ways to get better. And how to cultivate an Agile culture in a virtual world. [10:53] - Why transformations take people, how to assess a company’s culture before you accept their job offer, and lean thinking in Agile with Bob Payne. [11:49] - The real stars of the podcast. [12:30] - What’s ahead for the podcast? [13:02] - Stepping off the gas a bit. [13:45] - Virtual dial—targeted tips. [14:32] - The lifeblood of the “Agile Mentors” podcast. [15:06] - Mike Cohn and Brian are both presenting at Agile2023 in Orlando, July 24 through 28th. [15:39] - The most significant benefit of BIG conferences. [16:41] - Thank you for getting us to a year and 50 episodes! Join the Agile Mentors Community to continue the discussion. If you have topics for future episodes, email us by clicking here. And don’t forget to subscribe to the “Agile Mentors” Podcast on Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode. References and resources mentioned in the show: Agile2023 | Orlando, Florida | Agile Alliance #1: Scrum vs Agile & Keys to Success with Mike Cohn #3: What Makes a Great Product Owner? With Lance Dacy #9: Scrum Artifacts with Kert Peterson #10: Why User Stories are the Best Way to Capture Requirements with Mike Cohn #17: Getting There From Here: Agile Transformations with David Hawks #18 Coaching in an Agile World with Lyssa Adkins #21: Agile Marketing Teams with Stacey Ackerman #22: How to Create Helpful Product Roadmaps with Roman Pichler #23 How Agile Works in Education with John Miller #25: Scaling with Henrik Kniberg #27: Leading Without Blame with Tricia Broderick #29: Influencing Up with Scott Dunn #32: Scrum in High School Sports with Cort Sharp #33 Mob Programming with Woody Zuill #34: I'm Trained, Now What? with Julie Chickering #37: Servant Leadership, Not Spineless Leadership with Brad Swanson #38: Using Agile for Social and Societal Transformation with Kubair Shirazee #40: Is it Time to Go Out on Your Own? Tips and Insights with Chris Li #41: Cultural Transformation in Organizations with Karim Harbott #42: The Importance of Self-Mastery with Bob Galen #43: Cultivating Agile Team Culture in a Virtual World with Richard Cheng #44: Transformations Take People with Anu Smalley #46: How to Assess Company Culture Before Accepting a Job Offer with Christina Ambers #47: Exploring Lean Thinking in Agile Development with Bob Payne Mountain Good Software's Certified Product Owner course Mountain Goat Software Certified Scrum and Agile Training Schedule Join the Agile Mentors Community Subscribe to the Agile Mentors Podcast on Apple Podcasts Want to get involved? This show is designed for you, and we’d love your input. Enjoyed what you heard today? Please leave a rating and a review. It really helps, and we read every single one. Got an Agile subject you’d like us to discuss or a question that needs an answer? Share your thoughts with us at podcast@mountaingoatsoftware.com This episode’s presenters are: Brian Milner is SVP of coaching and training at Mountain Goat Software. He's passionate about making a difference in people's day-to-day work, influenced by his own experience of transitioning to Scrum and seeing improvements in work/life balance, honesty, respect, and the quality of work.

JACC: CardioOncology Pulse - Top Takeaways on LV Dysfunction and Heart Failure at ACC Advancing the Cardiovascular Care of the Oncology Patient

JACC Speciality Journals

Play Episode Listen Later May 2, 2023 16:45

Richard Cheng, MD, FACC and Matthew Ehrhardt, MD discuss the key takeaways from their session on LV Dysfunction and Heart Failure at the ACC Advancing the Cardiovascular Care of the Oncology Patient course.

care patients md pulse advancing dysfunction oncology cardiovascular heart failure top takeaways jacc richard cheng

#43: Cultivating Agile Team Culture in a Virtual World with Richard Cheng

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 12, 2023 35:03

In this episode of the Agile Mentors podcast, Brian and Richard Cheng discuss the challenges of working in a virtual environment, sharing insights and strategies for maintaining team collaboration and communication. Listen in for practical tips and expert advice on navigating the changing landscape of remote work. Overview In this episode of the "Agile Mentors" podcast, Brian and Richard Cheng discuss the challenges and opportunities of the ever-evolving world of remote work in Agile teams and the role of technology in supporting Agile practices. Listen in as they share their insights on the tools to use, how to maintain team cohesion and collaboration, and the importance of culture and personal connections. You'll find practical tips and inspiring ideas to help you navigate the virtual landscape and thrive in the new normal of work. Listen Now to Discover: [01:14] - Brian introduces Richard Cheng, founder of Agility Prime Solutions, trainer, teaching CSM, product owner, and combat classes. He is also working on a graphic novel about the adventures of a scrum master. He's here today to discuss the challenges of working.‌ [04:16] - Richard highlights the significant shift towards virtual work that was already happening before the pandemic and the adoption of virtual work tools such as Zoom, Miro, and Slack, which made the transition easier during the pandemic. [06:22] - Richard emphasizes the importance of using tools that foster better communication and collaboration rather than replacing them. The tools and policies around them should enable people to work better together rather than create more distance. [07:08] - Richard is relatively agnostic regarding specific tools, but he mentions that he is a huge fan of Zoom for instruction and prefers Miro or Mural for collaboration. [08:03] - Brian tends to use Mural but also acknowledges the benefits of Miro (and shares a fun fact about Miro). [09:42] - Brian advises against letting the tool drive the collaboration process and instead focusing on conversations and collaboration first, then finding tools that enhance that process. [11:00] - Richard agrees with the idea that tools should not drive the team's workflow, but rather the team should drive the tools using the example of Jira™. He advises teams to tailor their tools to support their evolving needs. [12:46] - Brian acknowledges the importance of standardization in big enterprises and advises teams to refer to items in their terms to better align with their workflow. [14:20] - Brian shares why tools that allow deep customization are enormously useful because you can implement a wealth of plugins. [15:01] - The key to keeping it simple—strip it down to the bare bones and then grow it. Richard shares an example from the best Agile shop he ever worked at, The Motley Fool, and their tools, including Bugzilla. [16:00] - Brian shares the sponsor for the podcast, Mountain Goat Software, and the team home software they use for their Agile and Scrum Training. [18:39] - Richard discusses the virtual challenges of creating culture and teamwork, including communication, collaboration, and cross-functionality. [19:15] - The new frontier for companies: experimenting with different methods is essential while adapting methods to make them more effective. [20:46] - Richard discusses the issue with the Scrum guide's statement that Scrum is immutable, stating that once you're an expert, you should take what works and tweak what doesn't, drawing on an analogy about CrossFit, where workouts can be scaled up or down, and suggest that Scrum should be approached similarly. [23:48] - Promoting conversation and collaboration between teams, which is a big issue for many teams in the virtual world. Brian points out that time zone differences can be a problem. People on the other side of the globe must experiment more with asynchronous tools to communicate and collaborate effectively. [24:49] - Collaboration is less about geography and more about times. He promotes time zone friendliness to enable teams to collaborate more effectively and independently. Richard recommends setting up time zone-aligned value streams to improve product and service delivery speed, particularly for organizations with teams in multiple time zones. [26:25] - Brian emphasizes the importance of maintaining company culture in a virtual environment. He recommends virtual show-and-tell sessions to build a deeper connection among team members. [27:51] - Richard suggests that events such as game nights and virtual chocolate tastings can help bring teams and organizations closer together, even in a virtual environment. At the same time, optional in-person events for geographically connected teams can also be a good way to foster a sense of togetherness and culture. [29:15] - To help improve communication and strengthen the team's dynamics, create user manuals for team members: that includes their background, contributions to the team, and [30:37] - As a Scrum Master and Coach, being there and having osmotic communication was a big part of the job. Without it, we have to engineer everything, which can be challenging. [31:30] - Brian acknowledges that technology is rapidly changing but emphasizes the importance of not letting the tool drive the conversation. Instead, he suggests promoting collaboration and enabling teams to work better through policies and practices that bring the team together and rethink those that separate them. [32:56] - You can learn more about Richard and his classes at Agility Prime Solutions or email him at richard.c@agilityprimesolutions.com. [34:24] -Join the Agile Mentors Community for further discussion, and if you have an idea for the show or feedback, we'd love to hear from you. Email Brian. References and resources mentioned in the show: Agility Prime Solutions Mountain Goat Software Certified Scrum and Agile Training Schedule Mural Miro Jira Bugzilla Private Virtual Chocolate Tastings– Bar & Cocoa You Don't Know Jack Party Packs Join the Agile Mentors Community Scrum Alliance Subscribe to the Agile Mentors Podcast on Apple Podcasts Want to get involved? This show is designed for you, and we’d love your input. Enjoyed what you heard today? Please leave a rating and a review. It really helps, and we read every single one. Got an agile subject you’d like us to discuss or a question that needs an answer? Share your thoughts with us at podcast@mountaingoatsoftware.com This episode’s presenters are: Brian Milner is SVP of coaching and training at Mountain Goat Software. He’s passionate about making a difference in people’s day-to-day work, influenced by his own experience of transitioning to Scrum and seeing improvements in work/life balance, honesty, respect, and the quality of work. Richard Cheng is the founder of Agility Prime Solutions, which provides training programs that focus on Agile, Scrum, Kanban, and Product Management. Richard is a founder and was an executive committee member of the Agile Delivery for Agencies, Programs, and Teams (ADAPT), an Agile government task force.

#43: Cultivating Agile Team Culture in a Virtual World with Richard Cheng

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 12, 2023 35:03

In this episode of the Agile Mentors podcast, Brian and Richard Cheng discuss the challenges of working in a virtual environment, sharing insights and strategies for maintaining team collaboration and communication. Listen in for practical tips and expert advice on navigating the changing landscape of remote work. Overview In this episode of the "Agile Mentors" podcast, Brian and Richard Cheng discuss the challenges and opportunities of the ever-evolving world of remote work in Agile teams and the role of technology in supporting Agile practices. Listen in as they share their insights on the tools to use, how to maintain team cohesion and collaboration, and the importance of culture and personal connections. You'll find practical tips and inspiring ideas to help you navigate the virtual landscape and thrive in the new normal of work. Listen Now to Discover: [01:14] - Brian introduces Richard Cheng, founder of Agility Prime Solutions, trainer, teaching CSM, product owner, and combat classes. He is also working on a graphic novel about the adventures of a scrum master. He's here today to discuss the challenges of working.‌ [04:16] - Richard highlights the significant shift towards virtual work that was already happening before the pandemic and the adoption of virtual work tools such as Zoom, Miro, and Slack, which made the transition easier during the pandemic. [06:22] - Richard emphasizes the importance of using tools that foster better communication and collaboration rather than replacing them. The tools and policies around them should enable people to work better together rather than create more distance. [07:08] - Richard is relatively agnostic regarding specific tools, but he mentions that he is a huge fan of Zoom for instruction and prefers Miro or Mural for collaboration. [08:03] - Brian tends to use Mural but also acknowledges the benefits of Miro (and shares a fun fact about Miro). [09:42] - Brian advises against letting the tool drive the collaboration process and instead focusing on conversations and collaboration first, then finding tools that enhance that process. [11:00] - Richard agrees with the idea that tools should not drive the team's workflow, but rather the team should drive the tools using the example of Jira™. He advises teams to tailor their tools to support their evolving needs. [12:46] - Brian acknowledges the importance of standardization in big enterprises and advises teams to refer to items in their terms to better align with their workflow. [14:20] - Brian shares why tools that allow deep customization are enormously useful because you can implement a wealth of plugins. [15:01] - The key to keeping it simple—strip it down to the bare bones and then grow it. Richard shares an example from the best Agile shop he ever worked at, The Motley Fool, and their tools, including Bugzilla. [16:00] - Brian shares the sponsor for the podcast, Mountain Goat Software, and the team home software they use for their Agile and Scrum Training. [18:39] - Richard discusses the virtual challenges of creating culture and teamwork, including communication, collaboration, and cross-functionality. [19:15] - The new frontier for companies: experimenting with different methods is essential while adapting methods to make them more effective. [20:46] - Richard discusses the issue with the Scrum guide's statement that Scrum is immutable, stating that once you're an expert, you should take what works and tweak what doesn't, drawing on an analogy about CrossFit, where workouts can be scaled up or down, and suggest that Scrum should be approached similarly. [23:48] - Promoting conversation and collaboration between teams, which is a big issue for many teams in the virtual world. Brian points out that time zone differences can be a problem. People on the other side of the globe must experiment more with asynchronous tools to communicate and collaborate effectively. [24:49] - Collaboration is less about geography and more about times. He promotes time zone friendliness to enable teams to collaborate more effectively and independently. Richard recommends setting up time zone-aligned value streams to improve product and service delivery speed, particularly for organizations with teams in multiple time zones. [26:25] - Brian emphasizes the importance of maintaining company culture in a virtual environment. He recommends virtual show-and-tell sessions to build a deeper connection among team members. [27:51] - Richard suggests that events such as game nights and virtual chocolate tastings can help bring teams and organizations closer together, even in a virtual environment. At the same time, optional in-person events for geographically connected teams can also be a good way to foster a sense of togetherness and culture. [29:15] - To help improve communication and strengthen the team's dynamics, create user manuals for team members: that includes their background, contributions to the team, and [30:37] - As a Scrum Master and Coach, being there and having osmotic communication was a big part of the job. Without it, we have to engineer everything, which can be challenging. [31:30] - Brian acknowledges that technology is rapidly changing but emphasizes the importance of not letting the tool drive the conversation. Instead, he suggests promoting collaboration and enabling teams to work better through policies and practices that bring the team together and rethink those that separate them. [32:56] - You can learn more about Richard and his classes at Agility Prime Solutions or email him at richard.c@agilityprimesolutions.com. [34:24] -Join the Agile Mentors Community for further discussion, and if you have an idea for the show or feedback, we'd love to hear from you. Email Brian. References and resources mentioned in the show: Agility Prime Solutions Mountain Goat Software Certified Scrum and Agile Training Schedule Mural Miro Jira Bugzilla Private Virtual Chocolate Tastings– Bar & Cocoa You Don't Know Jack Party Packs Join the Agile Mentors Community Scrum Alliance Subscribe to the Agile Mentors Podcast on Apple Podcasts Want to get involved? This show is designed for you, and we’d love your input. Enjoyed what you heard today? Please leave a rating and a review. It really helps, and we read every single one. Got an agile subject you’d like us to discuss or a question that needs an answer? Share your thoughts with us at podcast@mountaingoatsoftware.com This episode’s presenters are: Brian Milner is SVP of coaching and training at Mountain Goat Software. He’s passionate about making a difference in people’s day-to-day work, influenced by his own experience of transitioning to Scrum and seeing improvements in work/life balance, honesty, respect, and the quality of work. Richard Cheng is the founder of Agility Prime Solutions, which provides training programs that focus on Agile, Scrum, Kanban, and Product Management. Richard is a founder and was an executive committee member of the Agile Delivery for Agencies, Programs, and Teams (ADAPT), an Agile government task force.

Getting your first Scrum Master Gig w Richard Cheng

Unstress with Dr Ron Ehrlich

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 14, 2022 47:59

So you've made the decision that you want to get a job as a Scrum Master. Maybe you're working on an agile team and want to switch roles, or maybe you're moving from a field where agile has no presence. If you don't already have experience working in an environment that has adopted Scrum, then the big question is… how do you land the gig. In this episode, I am joined by my good friend Richard Cheng to talk about how to get started working as a Scrum Master. We both run across a lot of people in our classes that are trying to find a way to transition into the Scrum Master role. We also meet a lot of people who have decided they want to make a career change and feel like being the Scrum Master for a Scrum Team might be a good fit. During the interview Richard and discuss what the role actually entails, some common misconceptions about it, key differences between being a Project Manager and being a Scrum Master, the pros and cons of the job, and ways you can how you get started on the path towards getting your first official job as Scrum Master. There have been a lot of dramatic changes in the technology space lately, and a lot of people have been making a decision to leave their company job and become an independent consultant working in Agile. Richard is a Certified Scrum Trainer and Agile Coach and he recently made this choice and has gone out on his own. Towards the end of the interview, he also shares what led him to make this choice to become an independent consultant and the steps he's taking to establish himself. If you are considering a similar move, his experience working through this transition could provide some valuable insights for you. Contacting Richard Web: https://www.agilityprimesolutions.com Email: richard.cheng@agilityprimesolutions.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richardcheng/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/richardkcheng

agile project managers scrum scrum masters agile coach scrum teams certified scrum trainer richard cheng

SPECIAL EDITION | Dr Richard Cheng: Evolution, Brain Size & Nutrients...Are We Getting Better or Worse?

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 13, 2022 74:24

Today's episode is a little different in that it started out as an invitation for me to be interviewed and turned into a chat that I thought you might enjoy. Let's all welcome back Dr Richard Cheng. Last year we had a conversation about the benefits of Vitamin C and the American & Chinese approaches to the pandemic. It was a great episode. This week, join us as Richard and I tackle evolution, brain size, orthomolecular medicine, and so much more. It was a worthwhile conversation to share with you. ----- CREDITS: Host: Dr Ron Ehrlich Guest: Dr Richard Cheng Producer: Amelia Navascues ---- You can also watch this episode at https://drronehrlich.com/ ----- TIME TO TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR HEALTH? Join me in my online health programs. ----- CONNECT WITH ME You can ask questions via social media using my Instagram or Facebook or TikTok or YouTube page. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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SUMMER SERIES | Dr Richard Cheng: Protected Population Immunity and Vitamin C

Unstress with Dr Ron Ehrlich

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 3, 2022 54:11

Hello and welcome to the Unstress Summer Series. For the next few weeks, I'll be sharing with you some of my favourite episodes from the archives. And for our first episode of our summer series, it feels appropriate to share my conversation from earlier this year with Dr Richard Cheng. A practising physician, public health educator and public speaker whose work integrates conventional medicine with anti-ageing medicine, orthomolecular medicine and functional medicine. Dr Richard offers unique perspectives on both the Chinese and American response to the pandemic, the benefits of Vitamin C, and the role of antioxidants in reducing oxidative stress and more. SHOW CREDITS: Host: Dr Ron Ehrlich Guests: Dr Richard Cheng Producer: Amelia Navascues You can also watch this episode at www.DrRonEhrlich.com. ----- TIME TO TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR HEALTH? Join me in my online health programs. ----- CONNECT WITH ME You can ask questions via social media using my Instagram or Facebook, or YouTube page. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

covid-19 american health chinese wellbeing population vitamins immunity protected vitamin c summer series richard cheng

Cannabis Law: What Health Lawyers Need to Know

AHLA's Speaking of Health Law

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 2, 2021 35:30 Transcription Available

Cannabis law is a relatively new and growing area of the law. Lisa Gora, Shareholder, Wilentz Goldman & Spitzer, speaks with Richard Cheng, Member, Weaver Johnston Nelson, and Alexander Malyshev, Partner, Carter Ledyard & Milburn, about this emerging area of the law and its implications for the health care industry. They discuss the patchwork of different cannabis laws among the states, the overlay between federal and state laws when it comes to prescribing, cultivating, and selling cannabis, and obstacles that businesses face from a banking and investment perspective. Lisa is one of the Editors-in-Chief and Richard and Alexander are authors of AHLA's new title, Health Care and the Business of Cannabis: Legal Questions and Answers. Watch the full conversation here.On November 11, 2021, AHLA will also offer a 90-minute live webinar on "Tax Issues Related to Medicinal Cannabis." For more information, please search for “cannabis” at educate.americanhealthlaw.org/catalog.

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Advanced Heart Failure in Cardio-Oncology

All Things Cardio Oncology

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 20, 2021 31:59

Dr. Dharini Ramu, Associate Professor of Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina, practicing advanced heart failure, leading the cardio-oncology program and serving as co-medical director of the Cardiac ICU.Richard Cheng, et al. “Implications of cancer prior to and after heart transplantation” Richard Cheng, Associate Professor of Medicine/Cardiology and Adjunct Associate Professor of Radiology at University of Washington/Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Program Director for the Advanced Heart Failure Fellowship, Director of the Cardio-oncology Program Related Articles: Richard Cheng, et al. “Implications of cancer prior to and after heart transplantation” https://heart.bmj.com/content/early/2021/06/30/heartjnl-2020-318139 Richard Cheng, et al. “Cardio-Oncology and the Intersection of Cancer and Cardiotoxicity: The Role of Palliative Care” https://www.jacc.org/doi/10.1016/j.jaccao.2019.10.003 Bhavadharini Ramu, et. al. “Heart Transplantation in Adriamycin-Associated Cardiomyopathy in the Contemporary Era of Advanced Heart Failure Therapies” https://www.jacc.org/doi/10.1016/j.jaccao.2021.02.010

director university medicine cancer south carolina associate professor implications intersection program directors cardio oncology palliative care radiology medical university adjunct associate professor advanced heart failure heart transplantation cardiac icu medicine cardiology richard cheng

Does Your Team Really Understand What Is Valuable? w Adam Weisbart

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 6, 2021 33:45

Adam Weisbart is back and this time we're taking on a tragically common problem. Teams who do not have clarity on how the organization defines value. This can happen for a variety of reasons. In some organizations it is simply an oversight… management has achieved clarity and alignment around what is valuable to the organization, but they have not communicated it to the team. In other organizations, there may be an individual or a small group of the leadership team who likes to “go with their gut”, or maybe there are just a lot of assumptions and no one has checked to see if there is agreement across different levels of the org. Whatever the reason, if you have teams that do not have clarity around how leadership defines value for the company, how can they be expected to make choices that align with that definition of value? In this episode of the podcast Adam Weisbart and I take on the topic of how you can get clarity on value, how can you make sure your backlog reflects that understanding of value and how can you ensure the team has awareness of what “value” means to the organization. During the interview, Adam also shares some details about his upcoming Agile Virtual Summit (Bite Size) which is taking place on October 14, 2021. The event is free and there are going to be some great speakers, including people like Jim Benson, Richard Cheng, and Melissa Boggs who have all been guests on the podcast. You can learn more about the Agile Virtual Summit (Bite-Size!) and sign up using the link below. Agile Virtual Summit (Bite-Size) https://agilevirtualsummit.com If you'd like to contact Adam: Web: https://weisbart.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weisbart/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/Weisbart

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Business Agility with Richard Cheng and Karim Harbott

Patrick Holford: Simple Wisdom for a Healthy Life

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 12, 2021 41:59

In this episode, I am joined by my friends Richard Cheng and Karim Harbott for a discussion about Business Agility. Business Agility is something people have been talking about for several years but it is one of those terms that can mean different things to different people. During my conversation with Karim and Richard, we discuss what Business Agility is, why nailing down a definition can be so tough, why it is so important and how you can get started with helping your organization take steps in enabling it. You can pre-order Karim’s upcoming book “The Six Enablers of Business Agility” here (https://amzn.to/3qb4jZO). It will be out on June 1, 2021. Richard will be giving a free webinar called “The Perfect Product Owner” on February 17, 2021. You can find more information here (http://bit.ly/39kNHbi). Contacting Richard Web: https://nextupsolutions.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/RichardKCheng LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richardcheng/ Email: richard.cheng@nextupsolutions.com Contacting Karim Web: https://www.karimharbott.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/KarimHarbott LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karimharbott/ Email: karim.harbott@agilecentre.com

karim business agility richard cheng

2020 - 「高爾球運動」介紹、鄭力齊教練專訪

fb新鮮事-全台最強廣播節目

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 22, 2020 29:33

本集主題：「高爾球運動」介紹訪問：鄭力齊教練鄭力齊先生（Richard Cheng)是一位熱忠高爾夫的教練與從業者。他在八零九零年代是獨家代理Arnold Palmer 球桿、衣服於紐西蘭跟澳洲。也在台灣經營過球王尼克勞斯的品牌。在紐澳教了12年，西班牙教兩年的高爾夫球。他發明專利的調整性球托，是幫助打球者開球的節奏感，讓球可以開的更順暢更穩定。

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HANDHELD BIOPRINTER TO TREAT SEVERE BURNS - ReverTome | Richard Cheng

Trends in Med Tech

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 14, 2020 56:54

While completing his PhD Richard worked to design and build a hand-held bioprinter – ReverTome - that can be used in real clinical settings to treat patients surviving severe burns. But what is bioprinting and how does it work? Can this unique bioprinter really regenerate skin? We answer these and a few other questions – stay tuned in! Richard also gives advice to biologists aspiring to broaden their pallet of research expertise with biomedical engineering. For anyone interested in translational research and commercialization of med tech this is a great listen and we hope you are inspired! Check out the episode video on YT -- includes a demo of ReverTome: https://youtu.be/B_QLGFTMUXM For more info about ReverTome: https://www.jamesdysonaward.org/en-CA/2018/project/revertome/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/revertome-bioprinter/about/

treat burns yt severe handheld richard cheng bioprinter

Flu Fighters Series Ep1 - Vitamin C trials in China

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 6, 2020 53:00

In the 1st episode of this 5-part series, join me and Dr Richard Cheng, MD, PHD, who is on the front-line with the latest trials for pandemic patients using intravenous Vitamin C. My new book FLU FIGHTERS, explains the latest research and how to build immunity - available NOW for pre-order go to www.flufighters.net

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Intravenous Vitamin C for Infection

The Art and Soul of Healing

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 2, 2020 15:22

There are people all around the world recommending and trying different interventions to fight the SARS-CoV-2 viral infection that has resulted in the COVID-19 pandemic. People are recommending and using everything from pharmaceuticals, to supplements, to animal byproducts. The news from China includes the use of intravenous vitamin C (abbreviated as IV C) for the sickest patients in the ICU and we are also hearing about the use of IV C in New York. IV C does seem to be helping patients with COVID-19. The March 2020 report from Dr Richard Cheng and Dr Enqiag Mao in Shanghai discussed IV C treatment in approximately 50 patients with moderate to severe cases of COVID-19. [1] The Chinese team used IV C dosing of 10 grams for 7 – 10 days for the moderate cases and used IV C dosing of 20 grams for 7 – 10 days for severe cases. They reported that all cases that used IV C as part of the treatment survived. They also reported that the length of hospitalization was shortened by 3 – 5 days. An additional patient who was deteriorating rapidly was given 50 grams of IV C infused over 4 hours and was reported to improve without side effect from the IV C dose.In New York City a March 24, 2020 news report quotes Dr Andrew G Weber, pulmonologist and critical-care specialist, as stating his hospital is giving 1.5 grams of IV C to hospitalized COVID-19 patients. [2] He was reported to say, “The patients who received vitamin C did significantly better than those who did not get the vitamin C.” However, Dr Weber did not give any supporting data to indicate how significant this improvement might be. He did correctly point out that the very sickest patients are known to have unmeasurable levels of vitamin C in their blood stream and it seemed logical to him to treat with vitamin C.With these positive, albeit small isolated case reports, it seems time to clear up some misunderstandings that are circulating about the use of IV C.Please fill out this brief survey to help our research. https://vitamincsurvey.wufoo.com/forms/q56lcp61msys3e/

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Can Vitamin C Prevent and Treat COVID 19?

Risk Roundup

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 23, 2020 45:47

Dr. Richard Cheng, M.D., Ph.D., the Founder and Director of Dr. Cheng Integrative Health Center and a retired United States Army Physician (Major) participated in Risk Roundup to discuss whether Vitamin C can Prevent and Treat COVID 19. Please note Risk Group is not giving medical advice and not recommending any preventive or therapeutic treatment […] The post Can Vitamin C Prevent and Treat COVID 19? appeared first on Risk Group.

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FOMO in the Federal Government

LeadingAgile SoundNotes: an Agile Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 5, 2019 29:48

Even government agencies experience FOMO. It took the turnaround from an 80-million-dollar big bang failure into an initiation of a couple successful, smaller pilot agile programs within the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) for other federal programs to realize that they were missing out. Richard Cheng has been working on helping the US Government understand and implement the value of Agile. In the many years of working with the government, he’s noticed that the conversation has gone past the point of if Agile is right for government and is on to how do they do Agile better to create more value. He shares his experience and insights with OPM and UCIS and the rest of the federal government. Accenture | SolutionsIQ’s Leslie Morse hosts at Agile2019 in Washington, D.C. The Agile Amped podcast is the shared voice of the Agile community, driven by compelling stories, passionate people, and innovative ideas. Together, we are advancing the impact of business agility. Podcast library: www.agileamped.com Connect with us on social media! Twitter: https://twitter.com/AgileAmped Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/agileamped Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/agileamped/

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Agile 2019 Day 2: Applying Agile to Government Agencies w/ Richard Cheng

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 20, 2019 10:48

Last week, the biggest conference in the Agile industry took place in Washington DC at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center. We were proud to be a sponsor of this event and we were even more excited about catching up with friends—both old and new. For those of you who couldn't make it to the conference, we wanted to give you a little taste of what it's all about, so we decided to live-stream our podcast out of our booth in the Prince George Exhibitor Hall. We had a chance to talk to a lot of really smart and interesting people while we were there; some who were speaking at the conference, others who were simply attending, and even a few who were involved in turning this event into a reality. Here are some of the highlights from day two. In this live talk with Richard Cheng, we’ll discuss how to apply Agile principles, values, and mindset in government agencies as well as the challenges that can get in the way.

washington dc agile government agencies richard cheng

12. The Most Important Stakeholder

Technology Leadership Podcast Review

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 7, 2019 16:21

Ash Maurya on Rocketship.FM, Richard Cheng on the Drunken PM, Jeff Gothelf on Boss Level, the mutual learning model on Troubleshooting Agile, and Amy Edmondson on Lead From The Heart. I’d love for you to email me with any comments about the show or any suggestions for podcasts I might want to feature. Email podcast@thekguy.com. This episode covers the five podcast episodes I found most interesting and wanted to share links to during the two week period starting May 27, 2019. These podcast episodes may have been released much earlier, but this was the fortnight when I started sharing links to them to my social network followers. ASH MAURYA ON ROCKETSHIP.FM The Rocketship.FM podcast featured Ash Maurya with hosts Michael Sacca and Mike Belsito. They started by talking about the lean canvas. Ash described the lean canvas as a one-page business planning tool that acts as an alternative to spending time writing a large document and exists because, when we start a new business, we know very little about it. The lean canvas was derived from Alex Osterwalder’s business model canvas and optimized for early-stage entrepreneurs. Ash says the lean canvas addresses the innovator’s bias of spending too much time thinking and talking about the solution. It asks questions like: Who are your customers? Who might be the early adopters? Why would they use your solution? How will you get your solution in front of those customers? How will you defend against competition? Where does the money come from? What is the revenue stream? Ash then described writing a follow-up book to Running Lean called Scaling Lean because readers of the first book wanted a better way to satisfy stakeholders looking for financial forecasts. He sees Running Lean as a book for the entrepreneur-to-customer conversation and Scaling Lean as a book for the conversation between the entrepreneur and other stakeholders. The usual way of sizing a market is by estimating revenue from what percentage of a market one thinks one can take, which Ash calls working top-down. Instead, Scaling Lean works bottom-up by modeling the inputs to customer value (such as a pricing model and a lifetime value model) and using this customer value model to produce a revenue estimate. Scaling Lean encourages a staged launch for your business. He compares this with Tesla’s rollout of the Model 3 by testing the riskiest assumptions of the business model by producing the Roadster, Model S, and Model X first. They talked about Fermi estimation and how you can use it to invalidate a model in as little as five minutes. Regarding inputs to such estimates, he says pricing is the most critical, followed by potential lifetime of a customer. He then says you test your estimate against the minimum success criteria, that is, the minimum number (revenue, impact, etc.) for the years invested in the startup to not have been a waste of time. You use this to build your traction model and, with each milestone, you think in terms of achieving ten times what you achieved in the previous milestone. Returning to the Tesla example, the Model S was intended be sold at ten times the quantity of the Roadster and the Model 3 is intended to sell at ten times the quantity of the Model S. Regarding the order in which to address risk, he says to think of the game Jenga (where you try to find where the stack is strongest and move pieces from there) and do the opposite. You want to build the riskiest parts first. He also shared a metaphor for preferring a focus on the customer’s problem over a solution-focus. He describes a solution-focus as building a key and then looking for a door it will open. Problem-focus, by contrast, is like finding a door that needs to be opened and trying to build a key for it. Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/interview-ash-maurya-of-lean-canvas-on-scaling-lean/id808014240?i=1000437174185 Website link: https://omny.fm/shows/rocketship-fm/interview-ash-maurya-of-lean-canvas-on-scaling-l-1 RICHARD CHENG ON THE DRUNKEN PM The Drunken PM podcast featured Richard Cheng with host Dave Prior. They talked about product ownership anti-patterns such as a product owner treating the dev team like they’re her vendor or like they report to her. This puts you in a situation where the team is incentivized to keep the PO happy rather than tell her the unvarnished truth all the time. In these situations, the dev teams don’t tell the PO about problems right away and the later the PO finds out, the fewer options she has for addressing them. Instead, Richard says we need a safe environment where the dev team and PO can be open and candid with each other. They talked about whether or not building prototypes is agile and Dave admitted that he is not a big subscriber to Henrik Kniberg’s “skateboard - bicycle - motorcycle - car” model of incremental development and, if he knows he’s going to have a car in the end, he would prefer you build a steering wheel so he can give feedback on it. Richard pointed out that the danger of this line of thinking is that you get a tendency to build vertical layers instead of horizontal slices. Richard doesn’t want a technical person as his product owner since he believes that technical people favor these vertical layers. I take issue with the idea that a “technical person” is automatically assumed to have no “product thinking” skills. I think a better way to put it is to say he doesn’t want someone who lacks the training in lean startup and product management skills in the PO role, regardless of their technical skills. Other than that, I’m in total agreement with Richard here, especially regarding how the same line of thinking that leads to software being delivered in vertical layers also leads to vertically-layered organizational design. Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-perfect-product-owner-w-richard-cheng-cst/id1121124593?i=1000436943035 Website link: https://soundcloud.com/drunkenpmradio/richard-cheng-the-perfect-product-owner-april-2019 JEFF GOTHELF ON THE BOSS LEVEL PODCAST The Boss Level podcast featured Jeff Gothelf with host Sami Honkonen. They started with a discussion of humility and the idea of having strong opinions, weakly held. Jeff says we need to admit that the ideas we put forward, even our strategic vision, are just our best guesses. When a leader puts out such a vision, she needs to open up room for her team to discuss and push back on those ideas. Sami added that this change in thinking coincides with a change in terminology to be a better fit for a world of uncertainty where words like roadmap get replaced with words like assumption, belief, bet, and experiment. They then addressed the topic of collaboration. For Jeff, organizing for collaboration means organizing in cross-functional teams and he says that even digital native organizations often get this wrong. He also says that these teams need to be empowered to make their own sprint-level decisions as they are closest to the information and, if they get it wrong, they can correct it in the next sprint. Jeff thinks the motto of every organization today should be to say that they are, in Astro Teller’s words, “enthusiastic skeptics,” excited to figure out the next improvement to their product or service. Sami asked about how organizations can change so that they begin to value continuous learning. Jeff says that we’re fighting a hundred years of manufacturing mindset that says, “The more stuff we make, the more value we deliver to our customers.” In this mindset, people see customer site visits and having engineers talk to customers as somehow less productive. He says that companies resist changing this mindset for two reasons: 1) it feels like it takes authority away from leaders; and 2) incentive structures: we don’t pay people for discovery work or collaboration or agility; we pay them for heroism and for delivery. Jeff says that this is the reason organizations fail to become agile or digitally transform: they buy all the books and training, change language and team structures, build tribes, chapters, guilds, and squads, but they don’t change the performance management system. They still measure people on the old way of working. Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/jeff-gothelf-on-sense-and-respond/id1041885043?i=1000437033229 Website link: https://www.bosslevelpodcast.com/jeff-gothelf-on-sense-and-respond/ THE MUTUAL LEARNING MODEL ON TROUBLESHOOTING AGILE The Troubleshooting Agile podcast, with hosts Jeffrey Fredrick and Douglas Squirrel, featured a three-part series on the mutual learning model. The first two episodes covered the first three values of the mutual learning model: informed choice, transparency, and curiosity. The third episode covered accountability and compassion. It started with a definition of accountability from the article “Eight Behaviours for Smarter Teams” and Squirrel told a story about the origin of the word “accountability” from the time of Henry II. Jeffrey described how his relationship of accountability was transformed when he watched a talk by Kent Beck called, “Ease At Work.” Kent talked about accountability as a personal obligation to render an account of his own thoughts and feelings and how this changed Kent’s experience at work. Jeffrey sees this kind of accountability as being important for having a learning culture at work and supporting the previous two values of transparency and curiosity. Jeffrey talked about the connection between accountability and compassion, saying that when people are accountable to one another, it is a lot easier to be compassionate because you start to understand more of what went into their actions and the positions they’re arguing for. Jeffrey then pointed out a place where he finds a lack of compassion for the people in power. They also included a discussion of having compassion for yourself. Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/mutual-learning-model-accountability-and-compassion/id1327456890?i=1000437494515 Website link: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/mutual-learning-model-accountability-and-compassion AMY EDMONDSON ON LEAD FROM THE HEART The Lead From The Heart podcast featured Amy Edmondson with host Mark Crowley. Amy defined a “psychologically safe workplace” as one in which people believe they can bring their full self to work, speak up, and have their ideas, questions, and concerns welcomed. She says workplaces with high psychological safety are uncommon and organizations often have pockets of both low and high psychological safety. They talked about Google’s use of Amy’s psychological safety research to figure out what makes for high team performance. Mark made a distinction between psychological safety and physical safety and Amy responded that the two kinds of safety actually have a strong relationship. She cited the airline industry discovering through the investigation of black boxes that the majority of crashes involved somebody recognizing a concern and not being heard. She then clarified a common misconception about psychological safety. She said that when she refers to a workplace as being psychologically safe, she doesn’t mean that those in such a workplace are free from criticism or pushback or always feel good about themselves. She actually means the opposite. Psychologically safe workplaces have a high degree of candor. She contrasted this with college campuses that hold “safe spaces” where you cannot say anything that may remotely hurt someone’s feelings. Mark asked why we hold back on candor. Amy says it is a combination of how we’re socialized and how our brains work. We are highly tuned in to other’s impressions of us, particularly in hierarchical contexts. She says that many managers don’t create the conditions for psychological safety because they tend to mimic the behavior of the managers they’ve had in the past and haven’t stopped to connect their own experience of when they’ve done their best work to their management or leadership style so that their employees can do their best work. She says this tendency is a reflex and the problem is that, every now and then, this reflex is given a faulty signal that it works. For example, managing through fear can work in the short term when the task is simple and prescribed, clearly measured, and done individually. But very little of our work today has those attributes: it is complex, collaborative, and requires ingenuity to do it well. Under those conditions, fear doesn’t work. They talked about what you would look for in a candidate for a management position to ensure you get someone who can create a psychologically safe environment. She says that you want to look for people with high emotional intelligence. They should care about other’s opinions and needs but have enough self-awareness to know that their own life doesn’t depend on approval from others. You’re looking instead for passion, curiosity, and drive. Mark brought up a Deloitte study that said that 70% of people choose not to speak up about a problem at work even when they believe that not addressing it will harm the company. Amy says this is not because people rationally weigh the odds but is an unconscious act of spontaneous sense-making and temporal discounting in which we overweight an immediate event and underweight future events. Managers can address this, she says, by being willing to name the challenges faced and by asking questions. Mark asked about what we can learn from the case studies she has written about: the Wells Fargo fraudulent accounts scandal and Volkswagen emissions scandal. Amy asks us to imagine that the goals that the Wells Fargo and Volkswagen executives set for their organizations were not understood to be ridiculous at the outset and may have been intended as stretch goals. She says that when you are eager to set stretch goals, you need to have open ears. Being able to sell eight financial services products per customer is a hypothesis. Being able to create a green diesel that passes emissions tests in the US is a hypothesis. There is nothing wrong with setting these as stretch goals as long as you also encourage the people selling and developing these products to report all of the data that is coming back from the field and you adjust the goals based on this data. Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/amy-edmondson-why-psychological-safety-breeds-exceptionally/id1365633369?i=1000431400656 Website link: https://www.blubrry.com/leadfromtheheartpodcast/42334779/amy-edmondson-why-psychological-safety-breeds-exceptionally-high-performing-teams/ FEEDBACK Ask questions, make comments, and let your voice be heard by emailing podcast@thekguy.com. Twitter: https://twitter.com/thekguy LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithmmcdonald/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thekguypage Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_k_guy/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheKGuy Website:

The Perfect Product Owner w/ Richard Cheng, CST

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 30, 2019 33:04

What does it take to be a great Product Owner? On Wednesday, May 22nd at the North American Global Scrum Gathering, Certified Scrum Trainer Richard Cheng will be leading a session called The Perfect Product Owner. In this interview Richard and I discuss some of the material he will be exploring in his session, some of the organizational conditions needed to enable a Product Owner to deliver value for the organization, and some Product Owner anti-patterns to watch out for. Towards the end of the podcast we also offer some tips for Scrum Gathering first-timers to help them get the most out of their experience in Austin. Here are the details for Richard’s session in Austin: The Perfect Product Owner 2019 North American Global Scrum Gathering - Austin Wednesday, May 22, 2019 2:45 PM - Room E To check out the full program for the Scrum Gathering, click here: https://www.scrumalliance.org/events/calendar/austin2019 If you’d like to contact Richard: Excella: https://www.excella.com/ LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/richardcheng/ Twitter https://twitter.com/RichardKCheng

product owners richard cheng scrum gathering

LeSS 2018 Conference - Karim Harbott, Dhaval Panchal, Richard Cheng

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 15, 2018 32:49

Karim Harbott led a session at the 2018 Large Scale Scrum (LeSS) Conference on Agility and Company Culture. In this episode, Karim shares some highlights from his session and then Dhaval Panchal, Richard Cheng and I talk through some of the challenges with trying to transform different aspects of company culture and the company value system in order to foster an environment that can support business agility. Contacting Karim https://www.agilecentre.com/ https://twitter.com/KarimHarbott Contacting Dhaval https://evolveagility.com/https://evolveagility.com/ https://twitter.com/dhavalpanchal Contacting Richard https://www.excella.com/ https://twitter.com/RichardKCheng

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Tips for New CSMs w/ Richard Cheng

State Bar of Texas Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 21, 2016 33:41

Richard and Dave Show Notes Podcast Topic - You’ve taken CSM Training and passed the Exam. Now what? In this podcast Certified Scrum Trainers Richard Cheng and Dave Prior share their thoughts on most important things that Certified Scrum Master students can do to be successful Scrum Masters once they have completed the training and passed the CSM Assessment Exam. The podcast includes an exploration of why each of the recommendations is critical to making Scrum work and both Richard and Dave share examples from their experiences in the field working with teams who did, and did not have these practices in play. Links Mentioned in the Podcast Geoffrey Moore Vision Statement https://www.joelonsoftware.com/2002/05/09/product-vision/ Crossing the Chasm by Geoffrey Moore http://amzn.to/2h3ruRS Roman Pichler’s website (where you can find the tools we mentioned) http://www.romanpichler.com Roman Pichler’s books https://www.amazon.com/Roman-Pichler/e/B00359XCV2/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1482305119&sr=8-1 Contact Info Richard Cheng Works for Excella Consulting https://www.excella.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/RichardKCheng Email: richard.cheng@excella.com Dave Prior Works for LeadingAgile http://www.leadingagile.com Twitter https://twitter.com/mrsungo Email: mrsungo@gmail.com Blog: http://drunkenpm.blogspot.com The music featured in the podcast was downloaded from The Free Music Archive http://freemusicarchive.org Intro Song Cash Rules by Ari de Niro. For more info: http://www.needledrop.co/wp/artists/ari-de-niro/ or http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Ari_de_Niro/ Outro Song Cherry Skies - The New Mystical Troubadours. Find them here: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/The_New_Mystikal_Troubadours/

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2016 Annual Meeting Episode 12: Richard Cheng

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 11, 2016 4:05

annual meetings richard cheng

Becoming a CST - a story from two perspectives with Karim Harbott and Richard Cheng

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 19, 2016 32:50

The journey to become a CST is a long and rewarding one. In this episode, I get to discuss Karim Harbott's journey to becoming a CST just 2 days after he found out he had received the certification. Richard Cheng is a CST and a volunteer on the Trainer Approval Committee ( TAC) . He shares his side of the journey and what the TAC is looking for, some tips, and encouragement. One story, two perspectives. It should be interesting. The Agile Amped podcast series connects the community through compelling stories, passionate people, shared knowledge, and innovative ideas. Fueled by inspiring conversations with industry thought leaders, Agile Amped offers valuable content – anytime, anywhere. To receive real-time updates, subscribe at YouTube, iTunes or SolutionsIQ.com. Subscribe: http://bit.ly/SIQ YouTube, http://bit.ly/ SIQiTunes, http://www.solutionsiq.com/agile-amped/ Follow: http://bit.ly/SIQTwitter Like: http://bit.ly/SIQFacebook

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Richard Cheng on Super Product Ownership in the Federal Government at Agile2016

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 17, 2016 12:08

Agile coach and trainer Richard Cheng shares his experience on a program for the US federal government called the USA Staffing program, which leveraged feature Scrum teams whose Product Owners formed a PO team guided by a Super Product Owner. Richard's Agile2016 session was called "Super Product Ownership - Creating and Scaling Product Ownership in the Federal Government" and was co-presented by Bridget Dongarra. Richard also served as Chair for the Government Track of Agile2016. SolutionsIQ's Howard Sublett hosts at Agile2016 in Atlanta, GA. About Agile Amped The Agile Amped podcast series connects the community through compelling stories, passionate people, shared knowledge, and innovative ideas. Fueled by inspiring conversations with industry thoughtleaders, Agile Amped offers valuable content – anytime, anywhere. To receive real-time updates, subscribe at YouTube, iTunes or SolutionsIQ.com. Subscribe: http://bit.ly/SIQYouTube, http://bit.ly/SIQiTunes, http://www.solutionsiq.com/agile-amped/ Follow: http://bit.ly/SIQTwitter Like: http://bit.ly/SIQFacebook

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Richard Cheng - "So you want to be a Scrum trainer" at the Global Scrum Gathering