Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast

Kirsi Sahlstén: A Great Product Owner who Encouraged Experimentation and Built an Inspired Team Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. The Great Product Owner: Encouraging Experimentation and Building an Inspired Team, How Great POs work! Kirsi highlights the qualities of an exemplary Product Owner who inspires and guides their team effectively. This PO was modest yet visionary, capable of simplifying complex requirements and fostering a collaborative environment. Kirsi shares how this PO encouraged experimentation and learning, creating an inspired and productive team. Discover the traits that make a Product Owner truly great and how they can positively impact their team's performance. The Bad Product Owner: The Indecisive Product Owner Kirsi discusses the anti-pattern of an indecisive Product Owner who lacks direction and decision-making skills. She explains h

Kirsi Sahlstén: The Role of Psychological Safety in Scrum Mastery Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. In this episode, Kirsi defines success for Scrum Masters through her experience. She discusses the joy of seeing teams achieve their goals independently and the importance of psychological safety. Kirsi shares a story of how practicing prioritization techniques with Product Owners led to improved collaboration and decision-making. She emphasizes the need for Scrum Masters to create a safe environment for teams to practice and grow, ultimately leading to their success. Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: Start/Stop/Continue Kirsi shares her favorite Agile retrospective format, "Start/Stop/Continue." She explains how its simplicity leads to actionable results, especially when time is limited. Kirsi also highlights an anti-pattern where retrospectives run

Kirsi Sahlstén: Understanding the Complexities of Driving A Large Scale Agile Transformation Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. In this episode, Kirsi helps us understand the complexities of leading change in a large organization. She shares how a change team with representatives from various roles and a virtual setup facilitated a smooth transition to new teams. The use of pulse surveys, questionnaires, and a transparent Kanban board helped maintain alignment and trust throughout the process. Kirsi offers practical tips, such as starting with a common cadence and allowing teams to adjust later, and the importance of self-reflection surveys for continuous improvement. Discover the techniques that made this reorganization a success.   [IMAGE HERE] As Scrum Master we work with change continuously! Do you have your own change framework that provides the guidance,

Kirsi Sahlstén: When Protection Hinders Progress, A Guide to Tackling Psychological Safety in Agile Teams Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. In this episode, Kirsi shares an insightful story about a large team working on regulatory reporting that struggled with psychological safety. Even if the team tried to shut out Agile coaches, leadership noticed alarming employee satisfaction scores and helped the change get started. Kirsi reveals how the Product Owner's protective approach stifled team growth and collaboration. She explains the anti-patterns observed and offers tips on how to address such challenges by taking a more directive stance and encouraging continuous improvement. Learn how small changes can make a big difference in a team's dynamics and success. Featured Book of the Week: Extraordinarily Badass Agile Coaching by Bob Galen Kirsi discusses Bob Ga

Kirsi Sahlstén: The Power of Collective Change in Agile Transformation Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. In this episode, Kirsi shares a story about an organization struggling with large, complex teams and numerous dependencies. As an Agile Coach, she facilitated a reorganization around the customer journey. With half the team based on another continent created a big stress for Kirsi and her colleagues. Attempting to manage everything herself, she faced burnout. Through this challenge, Kirsi learned the importance of teamwork in driving change. She discusses creating a change team, leveraging eager participants, and establishing a change agent network to maintain engagement and representation. Discover the key steps Kirsi took to facilitate a successful reorganization and the valuable lessons she learned.   [IMAGE HERE] Recovering from failure, or difficult mo

Rebecca Cyr: Motivating Scrum Teams with User-Centric Approaches, Product Owner Best Practices Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. The Great Product Owner: Motivating Teams with User-Centric Approaches, PO Best Practices In this segment, Rebecca shares an inspiring example of a Product Owner (PO) who excelled by focusing on the end-users' needs and facilitating direct communication between the team and users. Through live interviews and feedback sessions, the PO enabled the team to achieve quick wins and foster innovation. This approach created a motivated and empowered team.  The Bad Product Owner: Directive POs and Team Demotivation In this segment, Rebecca discusses common anti-patterns of Product Owners (POs), such as being overly technical or directive, which can demotivate and disempower teams. She shares a story of a friction-filled relationship betwee

Rebecca Cyr: Evaluating Product Value, Metrics for Scrum Masters and Product Owners Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. In this success episode, Rebecca emphasizes the importance of driving positive change both within the team and the organization. She discusses metrics such as fun, trust, and motivation, and the challenges of ensuring the Product Owner (PO) helps the team deliver value. Rebecca shares tips on evaluating value and focusing on product-related metrics. What does success mean for Scrum Masters, and how can you measure it effectively? Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: I Like/I Wish/I Wonder In this segment, Rebecca shares her favorite retrospective format: "I Like/I Wish/I Wonder." This simple, non-confrontational format encourages team members to provide feedback in a positive and constructive way. Rebecca highlights the importance of

Rebecca Cyr: Engaging with the C-Suite, A Key Strategy in Change Leadership for Scrum Masters Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. In this episode, Rebecca discusses her experience leading a group of Scrum Masters through a difficult organizational change. Eight months into their agile journey, they realized the need for more influence and created an Executive Action Team (EAT). This gave them direct access to the CTO and enabled more significant changes in the organization. Rebecca emphasizes the importance of using data to support change initiatives and empowering teams to solve their own problems. How can you leverage executive support and data to drive agile transformations? Listen to find out!   [IMAGE HERE] As Scrum Master we work with change continuously! Do you have your own change framework that provides the guidance, and queues you need when working wit

Rebecca Cyr: Transforming Agile Team Dynamics with Structured Feedback, And The Critical Importance of Feedback Delivery Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. In this episode, Rebecca shares a story about a team that struggled with "terminal niceness," avoiding necessary feedback in an effort to maintain an artificial harmony. By introducing a feedback format learned from a seminar, Rebecca helped the team communicate more openly and effectively. The transformation led to better team dynamics and a more collaborative environment. Listen in to learn what was the format that helped Rebecca transform this team’s take on feedback. Featured Book of the Week: Radical Candor by Kim Scott Rebecca discusses how "Radical Candor" by Kim Scott transformed her perspective on feedback. Initially wary of feedback due to past negative experiences, Rebecca learned that feedback

Rebecca Cyr: The Penny Game Debacle, A Collaboration Change Gone Wrong And Other Lessons For Scrum Masters   Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. In this episode, Rebecca shares a story about working with a high-profile team struggling to finish their work within the sprint boundaries. Rebecca found out that the company had not provided sufficient agile training for the teams, which ultimately resulted in too much work-in-process, and other anti-patterns. Rebecca discusses her efforts to help the team focus and collaborate better, only to face resistance from the team's manager. She shares a failed attempt to use the Penny Game to help the team understand flow and collaboration, but this only resulted in conflict. Rebecca emphasizes the importance of understanding team dynamics and gaining consent before trying to build trust. Listen to this episode, and learn how

BONUS: Mastering Work Intake For Agile Teams with Tom Cagley and Jeremy Willets Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. In this BONUS episode, Tom and Jeremy discuss the main ideas from their latest book on agile transformation and work intake management: Mastering Work Intake: From Chaos to Predictable Delivery. They share some of the main the challenges teams face when trying to adopt agile practices and offer practical strategies for improving work intake processes. The Trigger for the Book "Most people who try to transform and be agile don't do it well. They fail multiple times because they say 'yes' to everything, which is a lack of control on work intake." Tom emphasizes that many teams struggle with agile transformation, often due to poor management of work intake. He has built a career helping teams that have attempted and failed at this multiple times.

Doug Rabow: Continuous Feedback As A Forcing Function For Focus, and Productivity in Agile Teams Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. The Great Product Owner: Continuous Feedback As A Forcing Function For Focus, and Productivity in Agile Teams Highlighting the characteristics of an extraordinary Product Owner, Doug shows the importance of questioning, transparency, and customer collaboration in that role. This episode also shows how great Product Owners manage to maintain clarity and progress amidst project uncertainty, and offers insights into practices that promote continuous feedback and adaptive project management. The Bad Product Owner: The Perils of Isolation, A Product Owner Anti-Pattern That Derails Agile Teams Doug shares what can happen when the  Product Owner works in isolation. Doug also explains how this approach can derail team progress. Learn ab

Doug Rabow: Daily Standups as a Success Barometer in Agile, And Other Lessons For Scrum Masters Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. In this segment, Doug discusses the dual aspects of success for Scrum Masters: defining it and demonstrating it to others. We also talk about how the quality of daily standups reflects the overall health of the Agile practices in the team. We also explore how fostering an environment of good-faith feedback and continuous improvement can lead to success for Scrum Masters and Agile Coaches. Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: Asking Questions In this segment about Agile Retrospectives, Doug highlights the importance of asking pointed, empathetic questions during retrospectives to uncover deep insights about team dynamics and challenges. We learn about the role that well-crafted questions play in driving continuous improvement

Doug Rabow: Agile Governance, Creating Transparency and Overhauling Project Management to Fit Agile Product Development Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. In this episode, Doug shares his strategies for improving visibility and governance in project management through tools like JIRA. He explains how creating transparency enhances governance and accountability in agile teams. This episode also offers a practical look at setting up light governance frameworks that enable real-time, pull-based reporting to facilitate better decision-making and project management.   [IMAGE HERE] As Scrum Master we work with change continuously! Do you have your own change framework that provides the guidance, and queues you need when working with change? The Lean Change Management framework is a fully defined, lean-startup inspired change framework that can be used as the backbon

Doug Rabow: Prioritize, Visualize, Execute, A Lean Approach to Work Management in Agile Teams Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. Doug explores some of the critical aspects of team management that ensure efficiency and clarity. Doug also shares how visual management is essential for maintaining focus on top priorities within teams. We learn about the Five S from Lean, and how simplifying and visually organizing work can prevent priority confusion and, in the end, improve productivity. Featured Book of the Week: The Toyota Way by Jeffrey Liker In this episode, we explore lessons from The Toyota Way by Jeffrey Liker beyond manufacturing. Doug describes how The Toyota Way applies to strategic management and software development, focusing on high-quality, small batches. Discover how continuous feedback drives continuous improvement, and what Agile learned from Le

Doug Rabow: The Delicate Dance of Driving Change, Learning How To Time Change Input in Agile Teams Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. When facilitating change, jumping in too quickly can be problematic. Doug shares a story of his experience stepping into a less competitive industry, eager to implement numerous improvements. However, the existing team was content with their workflow, which created resistance to Doug’s ideas. In this episode, we explore how Scrum Masters can help drive change without overwhelming their teams. And how facilitators can balance improvement enthusiasm with team readiness, and why involving the team in the change process is crucial.   [IMAGE HERE] Recovering from failure, or difficult moments is a critical skill for Scrum Masters. Not only because of us, but also because the teams, and stakeholders we work with will also face these mo

Patty Aluskewicz: Breaking Down Walls, Strategies for Collaborating with an External PO Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. The Great Product Owner: Courage, Empathy and Action, Qualities of Great PO’s In this segment, Patty discusses the qualities of courage, empathy, and active listening that define exceptional POs. How do these traits foster team equality and enhance performance? Gain insights into how a PO can act as a catalyst for team cohesion and why building strong relationships within the team is crucial for success. The Bad Product Owner: Breaking Down Walls, Strategies for Collaborating with an External PO In this segment, Patty explores the anti-pattern of the Product Owner that is external to the team, and the challenges it presents. How does a PO that sees themselves as external to the team impact team dynamics? Patty discusses her firsthand exp

Patty Aluskewicz: How Consistency Helps Building Trust as a Scrum Master Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. What does it mean to truly walk the walk of a Scrum Master? Patty shares her insights into the core qualities of a successful Scrum Master, from mindfulness to consistency in action. And how Scrum Masters can cultivate trust and demonstrate their reliability to their teams. Discover Patty's personal strategies for self-reflection, managing stress, and fostering team achievement. Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: The Sailboat Retrospective Patty chooses the Sailboat Retrospective as a favourite retro format. This is a dynamic tool for teams seeking to reflect and identify paths for improvement. Explore how this simple yet powerful visual metaphor can help teams navigate through their agile journey, focusing on both their anchors and winds—what

Patty Aluskewicz: The Listening Tour, Listening, Leading, and Learning to Inspire Change Adoption Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. In this episode, we address some of the essentials of change management. Patty shares her approach to fostering open communication and trust among teams. What does it really take to lead change effectively? Patty shares her experiences from a "listening tour" where discovering pain points led to transformative solutions. How can understanding diverse perspectives within a team lead to better problem-solving? Learn about the strategies Patty employed to encourage teams to identify and tackle their biggest challenges together.   [IMAGE HERE] As Scrum Master we work with change continuously! Do you have your own change framework that provides the guidance, and queues you need when working with change? The Lean Change Management fram

Patty Aluskewicz: Beyond the Blame Game, A Simple Technique That Transformed A Team Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. Have you ever wondered why some teams succeed while others stumble? Patty shares a compelling story of a team entrenched in blame and how she guided them towards accountability and success. What happens when a product's failure turns into a blame game? Explore how Patty used a simple flowchart to transform team interactions and process understanding, turning a negative environment into a collaborative success story. Featured Book of the Week: A Whole New Mind by Daniel H. Pink In this episode, Patty discusses how Daniel H. Pink's "A Whole New Mind" ignited a spark that drove her to action. What makes creative problem-solving an essential skill in today's world? Patty reflects on the transformative power of switching to focus on creativity ov