#ScrumMaster
The Future of Agile
10 April 2023
Agile Workflows
A Brief Overview of Agile
Organizations are increasingly adopting Agile approaches — such as Scrum, Kanban, SAFe, and others — to develop products and services. Some of the top reasons are:
- Flexibility: Agile approaches prioritize flexibility and the ability to adapt to changing requirements and circumstances easily. That’s advantageous in today's fast-paced business environment.
- Faster Time-to-Market: Agile approaches emphasize quick delivery of working products or services, which enables businesses to rapidly respond to market demands and gain a competitive edge.
- Customer-centric: Agile approaches focus on delivering value to customers, which helps businesses to better understand their needs and deliver products or services that meet those needs.
- Collaboration: Agile approaches encourage collaboration and communication between team members, which helps to create a more cohesive and productive team.
- Continuous improvement: Agile approaches prioritize continuous improvement, allowing teams to reflect on their performance and adjust their approach as needed to improve productivity and efficiency.
The Future of Agile
As technology advances and business environments become more complex, Agile remains a powerful approach for organizations to stay competitive and deliver value to their customers. This article explores trends shaping the future of Agile and the key factors that contribute to its success.
Scaling Agile
One of the key trends shaping the future of Agile is scaling. Many organizations are looking for ways to scale Agile across teams, departments, and even the entire organization. Doing so involves adopting frameworks like the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe), Large-Scale Scrum (LeSS), Disciplined Agile (DA), and others to coordinate and align multiple Agile teams to achieve common goals. Scaling Agile is essential to ensure that Agile practices are consistent across the organization, and that teams are working towards the same objectives.
Agile and DevOps
DevOps is another trend shaping the future of Agile. DevOps is a natural extension of Agile principles and values. DevOps aims to integrate development and operations teams to improve collaboration, streamline processes, and accelerate software delivery. As organizations increasingly embrace DevOps, Agile teams will need to incorporate DevOps practices into their workflow. This means that Agile teams will need to work more closely with operations teams and adopt new tools and practices to manage infrastructure and deployment.
Agile for Non-Tech Projects
Agile approaches were initially developed for software development projects. However, Agile principles and values can be applied to non-tech projects as well, such as marketing, HR, and finance. As organizations look for ways to improve their processes and adapt to change quickly, Agile will continue to gain traction in non-tech areas.
Agile with AI
Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the way businesses operate. Agile teams can leverage AI tools and techniques to improve software quality, automate testing, and optimize project management. As AI continues to evolve, Agile teams will need to adapt their processes and practices to best incorporate AI. Agile teams will need to work closely with data scientists and machine learning experts to identify opportunities to use AI in their projects.
Agile for Remote Teams
The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the trend of remote work. Agile teams need to adapt their processes to work effectively in a remote environment. This includes adopting new collaboration tools, establishing clear communication channels, and adapting Agile events (previously referred to as ceremonies) to work in a virtual setting.
Conclusion
The future of Agile is bright. Organizations are increasingly adopting Agile approaches to the development of products and services. By embracing trends — such as Scaling Agile, Agile and DevOps, Agile for non-tech, Agile with AI, and Agile for remote teams — and advances in technology, organizations can improve their Agile implementations and competitive advantage.
About Scott M. Graffius
Scott M. Graffius, PMP, SA, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, SFE, ITIL, LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, multi-award-winning author, and international keynote speaker. He is the Founder of Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary Exceptional Agility™. He has generated over $1.9 billion of business value in aggregate for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he has served. Graffius and content from his books (Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions and Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change), talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by businesses, professional associations, governments, and universities. Examples include Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Project Management Institute, IEEE, Qantas, National Academy of Sciences, United States Department of Energy, New Zealand Ministry of Education, Yale University, Tufts University, and others. He has delighted audiences with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops on agile, project management, and technology leadership at 84 conferences and other events across 25 countries. Visit https://ScottGraffius.com to learn more.
Connect with Scott on:
About Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions
Shifting customer needs are common in today's marketplace. Businesses must be adaptive and responsive to change while delivering an exceptional customer experience to be competitive.
There are a variety of frameworks supporting the development of products and services, and most approaches fall into one of two broad categories: traditional or agile. Traditional practices such as waterfall engage sequential development, while agile involves iterative and incremental deliverables. Organizations are increasingly embracing agile to manage projects, and best meet their business needs of rapid response to change, fast delivery speed, and more.
With clear and easy to follow step-by-step instructions, Scott M. Graffius's award-winning Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions helps the reader:
- Implement and use the most popular agile framework―Scrum;
- Deliver products in short cycles with rapid adaptation to change, fast time-to-market, and continuous improvement; and
- Support innovation and drive competitive advantage.
Hailed by Literary Titan as “the book highlights the versatility of Scrum beautifully.”
Winner of 17 first place awards.
Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle worldwide. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇪 Belgium
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇭🇺 Hungary
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇮🇱 Israel
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇳🇴 Norway
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 UAE
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
- 🌏 More countries
About Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change
Thriving in today's marketplace frequently depends on making a transformation to become more agile. Those successful in the transition enjoy faster delivery speed and ROI, higher satisfaction, continuous improvement, and additional benefits.
Based on actual events, Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change provides a quick (60-90 minute) read about a successful agile transformation at a multinational entertainment and media company, told from the author's perspective as an agile coach.
The award-winning book by Scott M. Graffius is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle worldwide. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
- 🌏 More countries
Let's Connect
Connect with AgileScrumGuide.com on:
And connect with agile project management practitioner, consultant, award-winning author, and international speaker Scott M. Graffius on:
This article was first published at https://ScottGraffius.com.
The short link for this article is: https://bit.ly/asg-future
© Copyright 2023 Scott M. Graffius, AgileScrumGuide.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius/AgileScrumGuide.com.
"Top Agile Certifications: 2023 Report" by AgileScrumGuide.com
15 April 2023
Agile Workflows
Introduction
There's no substitute for experience. However, certifications can be a valuable tool for propelling one's career. Employers want candidates and employees with up-to-date knowledge and skills, and certifications demonstrate a person’s mastery of the respective subject. This article takes a look at Agile related certifications.
Top Agile Certifications
We compiled and analyzed data from multiple sources — including CIO¹, Forbes², Indeed³, Monday.com⁴, LogicMonitor⁵, BMC⁶, and LeanWisdom⁷ — to determine the general consensus on the top Agile certifications. Seven emerged. Here they are:
- Certified ScrumMaster (CSM)
- Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO)
- Certified SAFe Agilist (SA)
- Certified SAFe Product Owner and Product Manager (SAFe POPM)
- PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP)
- Certified Professional Scrum Master (PSM 1)
- Certified Professional Scrum Product Owner (PSPO 1)
Details follow. Note: Prerequisites, costs, and other data are subject to change by the governing organizations.
Profile of Each Certification
Certified ScrumMaster (CSM)
- Certification: Certified ScrumMaster
- Abbreviation for certification: CSM
- Governing organization – name: Scrum Alliance
- Governing organization – website: https://www.scrumalliance.org
- Short description of certification: Validates a solid understanding of Scrum including practical ways to apply it on one’s team and organization
- Exam – prerequisites: Completion of a two-day course by an authorized trainer
- Exam – cost: Course (referenced above) includes the cost of the exam. Cost ranges from about $500 to $1,200 depending on the location, delivery format (in-person or online), provider, and other factors
- Exam – delivery: Online
- Exam – number of questions: 50
- Exam – time to complete: 1 hour
- Exam – pass rate (minimum % that must be correct to pass exam): 74%
- Credential expiration: 2 years
- Credential renewal – required continuing education units (CEUs) or professional development units (PDUs) or Scrum educational units (SEUs): 20 SEUs
- Credential renewal – cost: $100
Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO)
- Certification: Certified Scrum Product Owner
- Abbreviation for certification: CSPO
- Governing organization – name: Scrum Alliance
- Governing organization – website: https://www.scrumalliance.org
- Short description of certification: Demonstrates a deep understanding of Scrum principles and practices, as well as the role and responsibilities of a Product Owner in the Scrum framework
- Exam – prerequisites: Certification is awarded after the successful completion of the required two-day course delivered by an authorized trainer (there is not a separate exam)
- Exam – cost: Certification is awarded after the successful completion of the required two-day course delivered by an authorized trainer (there is not a separate exam); course cost ranges from about $500 to $1,200 depending on the location, delivery format (in-person or online), provider, and other factors
- Exam – delivery: Certification is awarded after the successful completion of the required two-day course delivered by an authorized trainer (there is not a separate exam)
- Exam – number of questions: Certification is awarded after the successful completion of the required two-day course delivered by an authorized trainer (there is not a separate exam)
- Exam – time to complete: Certification is awarded after the successful completion of the required two-day course delivered by an authorized trainer (there is not a separate exam)
- Exam – pass rate (minimum % that must be correct to pass exam): Certification is awarded after the successful completion of the required two-day course delivered by an authorized trainer (there is not a separate exam)
- Credential expiration: 2 years
- Credential renewal – required continuing education units (CEUs) or professional development units (PDUs) or Scrum educational units (SEUs): 20 SEUs
- Credential renewal – cost: $100
Certified SAFe Agilist (SA)
- Certification: Certified SAFe Agilist
- Abbreviation for certification: SA
- Governing organization – name: Scaled Agile
- Governing organization – website: https://scaledagile.com
- Short description of certification: Demonstrates knowledge of how to: establish Team and Technical Agility and organize around the flow of value; align organizations around clear, common objectives; participate successfully in SAFe events; and adopt a customer-centric mindset
- Exam – prerequisites: Completion of a two-day course by an authorized trainer
- Exam – cost: Course (referenced above) includes the cost of the exam. Cost ranges from about $500 to $1,200 depending on the location, delivery format (in-person or online), provider, and other factors
- Exam – delivery: Online
- Exam – number of questions: 45
- Exam – time to complete: 1.5 hours
- Exam – pass rate (minimum % that must be correct to pass exam): 80%
- Credential expiration: 1 year
- Credential renewal – required continuing education units (CEUs) or professional development units (PDUs) or Scrum educational units (SEUs): 10 PDUs
- Credential renewal – cost: $100
Certified SAFe Product Owner and Product Manager (SAFe POPM)
- Certification: Certified SAFe Product Owner and Product Manager
- Abbreviation for certification: SAFe POPM
- Governing organization – name: Scaled Agile
- Governing organization – website: https://scaledagile.com
- Short description of certification: Demonstrates knowledge of how to: perform the role of a Product Owner (PO) and a Product Manager (PM); put the customer at the center of the design, build, and test process; prepare for and lead Program Increment (PI) Planning; decompose Epics to Features, and Features to Stories; and collaborate with Agile teams to forecast work
- Exam – prerequisites: Completion of a two-day course by an authorized trainer
- Exam – cost: Course (referenced above) includes the cost of the exam. Cost ranges from about $500 to $1,200 depending on the location, delivery format (in-person or online), provider, and other factors
- Exam – delivery: Online
- Exam – number of questions: 45
- Exam – time to complete: 1.5 hours
- Exam – pass rate (minimum % that must be correct to pass exam): 80%
- Credential expiration: 1 year
- Credential renewal – required continuing education units (CEUs) or professional development units (PDUs) or Scrum educational units (SEUs): 10 PDUs
- Credential renewal – cost: $100
PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP)
- Certification: PMI Agile Certified Practitioner
- Abbreviation for certification: PMI-ACP
- Governing organization – name: Project Management Institute (PMI)
- Governing organization – website: https://www.pmi.org
- Short description of certification: Demonstrates knowledge of the PMI's standardization of Agile across multiple methodologies (such as Scrum, Kanban, Lean)
- Exam – prerequisites: 2,000 hours of project management experience; 1,500 hours of Agile experience; and 21 hours of training in Agile
- Exam – cost: $435 for members of the PMI, $495 for those not a member of the PMI
- Exam – delivery: In-person in an assessment center
- Exam – number of questions: 120
- Exam – time to complete: 3 hours
- Exam – pass rate (minimum % that must be correct to pass exam): Passing score is not disclosed (it is estimated to be 80%)
- Credential expiration: 3 years
- Credential renewal – required continuing education units (CEUs) or professional development units (PDUs) or Scrum educational units (SEUs): 30 PDUs
- Credential renewal – cost: $60 for PMI members, $150 for those not members of the PMI
Certified Professional Scrum Master (PSM 1)
- Certification: Certified Professional Scrum Master
- Abbreviation for certification: PSM 1
- Governing organization – name: Scrum.org
- Governing organization – website: https://www.scrum.org
- Short description of certification: Validates knowledge of the Scrum framework, the Scrum Master accountabilities, and how to apply Scrum
- Exam – prerequisites: A course is recommended but not required
- Exam – cost: $150
- Exam – delivery: Online
- Exam – number of questions: 80
- Exam – time to complete: 1 hour
- Exam – pass rate (minimum % that must be correct to pass exam): 85%
- Credential expiration: Certification does not expire
- Credential renewal – required continuing education units (CEUs) or professional development units (PDUs) or Scrum educational units (SEUs): Not applicable
- Credential renewal – cost: Not applicable as certification does not expire
Certified Professional Scrum Product Owner (PSPO 1)
- Certification: Certified Professional Scrum Product Owner
- Abbreviation for certification: PSPO 1
- Governing organization – name: Scrum.org
- Governing organization – website: https://www.scrum.org
- Short description of certification: Validates knowledge of the Scrum framework and one’s ability to support and enable value creation and delivery
- Exam – prerequisites: A course is recommended but not required
- Exam – cost: $200
- Exam – delivery: Online
- Exam – number of questions: 80
- Exam – time to complete: 1 hour
- Exam – pass rate (minimum % that must be correct to pass exam): 85%
- Credential expiration: Certification does not expire
- Credential renewal – required continuing education units (CEUs) or professional development units (PDUs) or Scrum educational units (SEUs): Not applicable
- Credential renewal – cost: Not applicable as certification does not expire
Conclusion
Certifications can provide significant value for professionals looking to enhance their skills and credibility in the marketplace. Employers often prefer to hire certified professionals, and those who invest in professional credentials typically enjoy larger salaries. Informed by data from multiple sources, this article identified and profiled the top Agile certifications: Certified ScrumMaster (CSM), Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO), Certified SAFe Agilist (SA), Certified SAFe Product Owner and Product Manager (SAFe POPM), PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP), Certified Professional Scrum Master (PSM 1), and Certified Professional Scrum Product Owner (PSPO 1). Those interested in securing one or more Agile certifications can leverage the information presented in this article to assist in their decision-making.
Select References/Sources:
- CIO (2022, October 4). Top 16 Agile Certifications Available Today. Available at: https://www.cio.com/article/230223/7-agile-certifications-to-take-your-career-to-the-next-level.html.
- Forbes (2023, March 22). Five Agile Certifications for Project Management Professionals. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/advisor/business/best-agile-certifications.
- Indeed (2022, December 12). Twelve Valuable Agile Certifications to Advance Your Career. Available at: https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/agile-certifications.
- Monday.com (2023, March 26). Agile Project Management Certification: A Complete Guide. Available at: https://monday.com/blog/project-management/agile-project-management-certification.
- LogicMonitor (2022, June 5). Best Agile Certifications for IT Professionals in 2022. Available at: https://www.logicmonitor.com/blog/best-agile-certifications-for-it-professionals-in-2022.
- BMC (2020, August 17). Top Agile Certifications. Available at: https://www.bmc.com/blogs/agile-certifications.
- LeanWisdom (2022, September 9). The List of Best Agile Certifications in 2022. Available at: https://www.leanwisdom.com/blog/the-list-of-best-agile-certification.
How to Cite this Article:
Graffius, Scott M. (2023, April 15). Top Agile Certifications: 2023 Report. Available at: https://AgileScrumGuide.com.
About Scott M. Graffius
Scott M. Graffius, PMP, SA, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, SFE, ITIL, LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, multi-award-winning author, and international keynote speaker. He is the Founder of Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary Exceptional Agility™. He has generated over $1.9 billion of business value in aggregate for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he has served. Graffius and content from his books (Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions and Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change), talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by businesses, professional associations, governments, and universities. Examples include Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Project Management Institute, IEEE, Qantas, National Academy of Sciences, United States Department of Energy, New Zealand Ministry of Education, Yale University, Tufts University, and others. He has delighted audiences with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops on agile, project management, and technology leadership at 84 conferences and other events across 25 countries. Visit https://ScottGraffius.com to learn more.
Connect with Scott on:
About Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions
Shifting customer needs are common in today's marketplace. Businesses must be adaptive and responsive to change while delivering an exceptional customer experience to be competitive.
There are a variety of frameworks supporting the development of products and services, and most approaches fall into one of two broad categories: traditional or agile. Traditional practices such as waterfall engage sequential development, while agile involves iterative and incremental deliverables. Organizations are increasingly embracing agile to manage projects, and best meet their business needs of rapid response to change, fast delivery speed, and more.
With clear and easy to follow step-by-step instructions, Scott M. Graffius's award-winning Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions helps the reader:
- Implement and use the most popular agile framework―Scrum;
- Deliver products in short cycles with rapid adaptation to change, fast time-to-market, and continuous improvement; and
- Support innovation and drive competitive advantage.
Hailed by Literary Titan as “the book highlights the versatility of Scrum beautifully.”
Winner of 17 first place awards.
Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle worldwide. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇪 Belgium
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇭🇺 Hungary
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇮🇱 Israel
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇳🇴 Norway
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 UAE
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
- 🌏 More countries
About Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change
Thriving in today's marketplace frequently depends on making a transformation to become more agile. Those successful in the transition enjoy faster delivery speed and ROI, higher satisfaction, continuous improvement, and additional benefits.
Based on actual events, Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change provides a quick (60-90 minute) read about a successful agile transformation at a multinational entertainment and media company, told from the author's perspective as an agile coach.
The award-winning book by Scott M. Graffius is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle worldwide. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
- 🌏 More countries
Let's Connect
Connect with AgileScrumGuide.com on:
This article was originally published at https://ExceptionalAgility.com.
The short link for this article is: https://bit.ly/top-certs
© Copyright 2023 Scott M. Graffius, AgileScrumGuide.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius/AgileScrumGuide.com.
Hochschule Zittau/Görlitz Features 'Phases of Team Development' Work by Agilist, Scott M. Graffius
26 April 2023
Agile Workflows
Businesses, professional associations, governments, and universities have used and featured Scott M. Graffius and content from his books (Agile Scrum and Agile Transformation), talks, workshops, and more. Examples of organizations include Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Project Management Institute, IEEE, National Academy of Sciences, United States Department of Energy, New Zealand Ministry of Education, Yale University, Tufts University, and many others.
This month, Hochschule Zittau/Görlitz (Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences) was added to the list of organizations. Dr. Ingo Cassack, Professor at the university, incorporated Graffius' Phases of Team Development work into Dr. Cassack's material on project management. Two excerpts follow.
Oksana Makovoz wrote about the presentation which included Graffius' work, among other details. She posted on:
About Hochschule Zittau/Görlitz
Hochschule Zittau/Görlitz (Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences) is a non-profit public higher-education institution located in Zittau — in the border triangle between Germany, the Czech Republic, and Poland . The institution also has a branch campus in Görlitz, Saxon, Germany. Officially recognized by the Sächsisches Staatsministerium für Wissenschaft und Kunst (Saxon State Ministry of Science and the Arts), Hochschule Zittau/Görlitz is a top tier coeducational German higher education institution with no tuition fees, state-of-the-art equipment, and intensive support. Visit https://www.hszg.de to learn more.
About Scott M. Graffius
Scott M. Graffius, PMP, SA, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, SFE, ITIL, LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, multi-award-winning author, and international keynote speaker. He is the Founder of Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary Exceptional Agility™. He has generated over $1.9 billion of business value in aggregate for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he has served. Graffius and content from his books (Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions and Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change), talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by businesses, professional associations, governments, and universities. Examples include Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Project Management Institute, IEEE, Qantas, National Academy of Sciences, United States Department of Energy, New Zealand Ministry of Education, Yale University, Tufts University, and others. He has delighted audiences with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops on agile, project management, and technology leadership at 85 conferences and other events across 25 countries. Visit https://ScottGraffius.com to learn more.
Connect with Scott on:
About Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions
Shifting customer needs are common in today's marketplace. Businesses must be adaptive and responsive to change while delivering an exceptional customer experience to be competitive.
There are a variety of frameworks supporting the development of products and services, and most approaches fall into one of two broad categories: traditional or agile. Traditional practices such as waterfall engage sequential development, while agile involves iterative and incremental deliverables. Organizations are increasingly embracing agile to manage projects, and best meet their business needs of rapid response to change, fast delivery speed, and more.
With clear and easy to follow step-by-step instructions, Scott M. Graffius's award-winning Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions helps the reader:
- Implement and use the most popular agile framework―Scrum;
- Deliver products in short cycles with rapid adaptation to change, fast time-to-market, and continuous improvement; and
- Support innovation and drive competitive advantage.
Hailed by Literary Titan as “the book highlights the versatility of Scrum beautifully.”
Winner of 17 first place awards.
Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle worldwide. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇪 Belgium
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇭🇺 Hungary
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇮🇱 Israel
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇳🇴 Norway
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 UAE
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
- 🌏 More countries
About Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change
Thriving in today's marketplace frequently depends on making a transformation to become more agile. Those successful in the transition enjoy faster delivery speed and ROI, higher satisfaction, continuous improvement, and additional benefits.
Based on actual events, Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change provides a quick (60-90 minute) read about a successful agile transformation at a multinational entertainment and media company, told from the author's perspective as an agile coach.
The award-winning book by Scott M. Graffius is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle worldwide. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
- 🌏 More countries
Let's Connect
Connect with AgileScrumGuide.com on:
The short link for this article is: https://bit.ly/asg-hszg
© Copyright 2023 Scott M. Graffius, AgileScrumGuide.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius/AgileScrumGuide.com.
Incorporate Minimum Viable Products (MVPs) in the Product Development Process to Improve the Probability of Launching Solutions that Meet Customers’ Needs and Succeed in the Marketplace
15 May 2023
Agile Workflows
Minimum viable products (MVPs)—coined by Frank Robinson in 2001, and subsequently popularized by Steve Blank and Eric Ries—can be advantageous tools for the development of products and services. This article is informed by Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions author Scott M. Graffius' first-hand experience with MVPs as well as research and coverage from the Harvard Business Review, IEEE, MIT Sloan Management Review, Product Development and Management Association, Product School, Project Management Institute, Scaled Agile, and others (all listed in the bibliography section of this article). This article was first published at https://scottgraffius.com with the title "Leverage the Power of the Minimum Viable Product (MVP)."
Introduction
Minimum Viable Products (MVPs) can be game changers. They can be used by businesses to validate ideas, reduce time to market, and minimize risks associated with building fully featured products from the outset. This article provides those involved or interested in Agile, Lean, Product Management, Product Development, Project Management, and entrepreneurship with information on the significance of MVPs and how to leverage them.
Defining MVPs
First, it's paramount to understand what constitutes an MVP and why it matters. A Minimum Viable Product is a version of a product (or service) that incorporates just the essential features to address core customer needs and validate the viability of the concept. By employing an MVP, companies can gather valuable user feedback early on, allowing them to iterate, refine, and pivot their offering—if needed—based on market demand. This process saves time and resources, and it advances the chances of building a successful and customer-centric offering.
Here's a succinct definition of the Minimum Viable Product (MVP):
"The MVP has just those features considered sufficient for it to be of value to customers and allow for it to be shipped or sold to early adopters. Customer feedback will inform future development of the product." — Scott M. Graffius, Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions
Next, examples of seven successful MVPs—Zappos, Spotify, Airbnb, Facebook, Amazon, Dropbox, and Groupon—will illustrate the power of MVPs.
MVP Success Stories
- Zappos: Zappos revolutionized the online shoe market by focusing on customer-centricity and rapid experimentation. Their MVP allowed them to validate their hypothesis, gather customer feedback, and iterate their offering to create a seamless and personalized shopping experience. Zappos is a prime example of the power of MVPs.
- Spotify: Global music streaming platform Spotify started as a simple streaming service MVP and they and continuously improved and expanded it based on customer feedback. By iterating their product, Spotify became a household name. Their MVP-driven approach ensured a product-market fit and helped them stay ahead in a competitive industry.
- Airbnb: Airbnb's success story speaks to the effectiveness of MVPs in validating an idea and subsequently scaling it to a global marketplace. Airbnb's founders started by testing their marketplace concept using an MVP strategy. By leveraging existing resources and validating demand through early adopters, they gained critical insights that shaped their platform's evolution. Today, Airbnb is a household name, offering unique accommodations worldwide.
- Facebook: Facebook's journey from a simple MVP to the world's largest social network demonstrates the power of incremental growth and user feedback. Mark Zuckerberg and fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz, and Chris Hughes initially created a minimal profile-based social networking MVP (initially called "Thefacebook"), focusing on connecting people at Harvard. Through continuous iterations and the addition of features based on user needs and feedback, Facebook reshaped the social media landscape, connecting billions of people globally.
- Amazon: E-commerce giant Amazon is renowned for its relentless focus on customer experience. They started with an MVP approach, catering to customers' fundamental needs related to books, and subsequently expanded into new product categories incrementally. By prioritizing customer satisfaction, Amazon established itself as a trusted and innovative marketplace, continuously raising the bar for online shopping.
- Dropbox: Dropbox, a prominent player in the cloud storage market, kick-started its journey with a basic file-syncing MVP. By offering a simple yet essential solution to the problem of file synchronization across devices, Dropbox gained traction and valuable user insights. They leveraged this feedback to iterate and improve their product, eventually becoming a leader in the highly competitive cloud storage industry.
- Groupon: Popular online deals platform Groupon employed an MVP approach by testing deal offerings on a WordPress blog. That allowed them to validate market interest and adjust their strategy based on customer responses. By embracing the importance of market validation and adaptability, Groupon transformed into a global leader, providing users with discounted offers across various categories.
Key Principles and Best Practices for MVPs
Building a successful MVP requires adhering to key principles and best practices. It involves thoughtfully determining the relatively few features and limited scope to address core customer needs. Collecting and analyzing user feedback plays a pivotal role in making informed decisions and prioritizing enhancements. By embracing an iterative mindset and focusing on the most valuable aspects of the product, businesses can create an MVP that resonates with their target audience.
Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Challenges with MVPs
While MVPs offer significant advantages, they are not without challenges. Over-engineering the product, prematurely scaling, and failing to validate crucial assumptions are common pitfalls that can hinder success. It’s vital to strike a balance between building a viable product and avoiding unnecessary complexity. By remaining adaptable and open to change, businesses can navigate these challenges and increase the chances of achieving their goals.
Validating and Iterating via Lean and Agile Approaches
The MVP is particularly well-suited for Lean and Agile approaches and environments. Lean principles emphasize continuous learning, eliminating waste, and rapid experimentation. Agile (such as Scrum, Kanban, and SAFe) involve iterative development, frequent feedback loops, and continuous improvement. Utilizing Lean/Agile can help maximize the value of MVPs and increase chances of success.
Beyond the MVP
Once an MVP proves its viability, the focus shifts to scaling and launching the product. This stage requires a broad and deep understanding of the target market, competition, and customer preferences. It involves adapting the product based on user feedback, exploring different marketing strategies, and leveraging data-driven insights. Staying agile, continuously learning, and adapting to market dynamics are crucial for sustained growth and long-term success.
Conclusion
MVPs are powerful tools for innovation and the successful development of products/services. The examples of Zappos, Spotify, Airbnb, Facebook, Amazon, Dropbox, and Groupon highlight the transformative impact of MVPs across diverse industries. By embracing the core principles, avoiding common pitfalls, and leveraging Lean and Agile approaches, businesses can unlock the full potential of their MVPs and pave the way for sustained growth, customer satisfaction, and market leadership with their offerings. Which makes MVPs game changers.
Bibliography
- Airbnb (n.d.). About Airbnb. Available at: https://news.airbnb.com/about-us.
- Blank, Steve (2020). The Startup Owner's Manual: The Step-By-Step Guide for Building a Great Company. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons.
- Cagan, Marty (2012, March 7). Viable Product vs. Minimal Product. Silicon Valley Product Group (SVPG). Available at: https://www.svpg.com/viable-product-vs-minimal-product.
- CB Insights (2021, August 3). The Top 12 Reasons Startups Fail. CB Insights Research. Available at: https://www.cbinsights.com/research/report/startup-failure-reasons-top.
- Davenport, Thomas H., & Seseri, Rudina (2020, December 15). What is a Minimum Viable AI Product? MIT Sloan Management Review. Available at: https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/what-is-a-minimum-viable-ai-product.
- Dropbox (n.d.). About the Company. Available at: https://www.dropbox.com/about.
- Furr, Nathan, & Dyer, Jeff (2014). The Innovator's Method: Bringing the Lean Start-up into Your Organization. Boston, Massachusetts: Harvard Business Review Press.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2016). Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions. North Charleston, SC: CreateSpace.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2018, October 4). Agile Scrum Helps Innovators, Disruptors, and Entrepreneurs Develop and Deliver Products at Astounding Speed Which Drives Competitive Advantage [Presentation]. Talk delivered to an audience of startups and others in the entrepreneurial community at the Techstars Startup Week Conference at The Box Theater, Riverside, California, United States. Digital Object Identifier (DOI): 10.13140/RG.2.2.25009.12647. DOI link: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.25009.12647.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2021, February 27). Are You Realizing All the Benefits from Agile? [Presentation]. Talk delivered to an audience involved or interested in Technology at the Scottish Summit 2021 Technology Conference based from Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom. Digital Object Identifier (DOI): 10.13140/RG.2.2.17273.90728. DOI link: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.17273.90728.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2023, May 1). Fueling the Development of Innovative and Life-Changing AI Solutions [Presentation]. Talk delivered to an audience of Technology professionals (including Data Scientists, Machine Learning Engineers, Data Engineers, AI Researchers, Project Managers, Business Analysts, UX Designers, Software Developers, Cloud Architects, Data Privacy and Security Specialists, and others involved or interested in AI) at a private event in Mountain View, California, United States. Digital Object Identifier (DOI): 10.13140/RG.2.2.27956.73601. DOI link: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.27956.73601.
- Groupon (2013, July 30). The History of Groupon. Available at: https://www.groupon.com/merchant/working-with-groupon/groupon-news/the-history-of-groupon.
- Harvard Business School (2021). MVP Development. Available at: https://entrepreneurship.hbs.edu/Documents/Session%20Summary/HBSRockMVPDevelopment.pdf.
- Krishnamurthy, Rajeshwari (2021, January 29). Why is Agile Product Development Process So Popular? Product Development & Management Association (PDMA). Available at: https://community.pdma.org/knowledgehub/bok/product-innovation-process/why-is-agile-product-development-process-so-popular.
- Lenarduzzi, Valentina, & Taibi, Davide (2016, August). MVP Explained: A Systematic Mapping Study on the Definitions of Minimal Viable Product. Proceedings from the 2016 42nd Euromicro Conference on Software Engineering and Advanced Applications (SEAA): 112–119.
- Merryweather, Ellen (2023, January 9). Product-Led Growth Strategy for Product Managers. Product School. Available at: https://productschool.com/blog/product-strategy/product-led-growth-strategy.
- Meta (n.d.). About Meta. Available at: https://about.meta.com/company-info.
- Miski, A. (2014). Development of a Mobile Application Using the Lean Startup Methodology. International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, 5 (1): 1743-1748.
- Moogk, Dobrila R. (2012, March). Minimum Viable Product and the Importance of Experimentation in Technology Startups. Technology Innovation and Management Review. Available at: https://timreview.ca/article/535.
- Olsen, Dan (2015). The Lean Product Playbook: How to Innovate with Minimum Viable Products and Rapid Customer Feedback. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons.
- Osterwalder, Alexander, & Pigneur, Yves (2010). Business Model Generation: A Handbook for Visionaries, Game Changers, and Challengers. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons.
- Project Management Institute (n.d.). Minimum Business Increments (MBIs). Available at: https://www.pmi.org/disciplined-agile/da-flex-toc/minimum-business-increments.
- Putten, Alexander B. van, & MacMillan, Ian (2004, December). Making Real Options Really Work. Harvard Business Review, 82 (12): 134-141, 150.
- Ries, Eric (2011). The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses. New York, New York: Penguin Random House.
- Scaled Agile (n.d.). Applied Innovation Accounting in SAFe. Available at: https://scaledagileframework.com/guidance-applied-innovation-accounting-in-safe.
- Spotify (n.d.). About Spotify. Available at: https://newsroom.spotify.com/company-info.
- Templeton, Chuck (2014, December 9). 10 Lessons Every Entrepreneur Should Learn. Fortune. Available at: https://fortune.com/2014/12/09/10-lessons-every-entrepreneur-should-learn.
- Thomsen, Dave (2013, December 20). Why Human-Centered Design Matters. Wired. Available at: https://www.wired.com/insights/2013/12/human-centered-design-matters.
- Umbreen, J., Mirza, Muhammad Z., Ahmad, Yasir, & Naseem, Afshan. (2022, December). Assessing the Role of Minimum Viable Products in Digital Startups. Proceedings of the 2022 IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management (IEEM): 1073-1077.
- Wikipedia (n.d.). History of Amazon. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Amazon.
- Zappos (n.d.). About Zappos. Available at: https://www.zappos.com/marty/c/about-zappos.
About Scott M. Graffius
Scott M. Graffius, PMP, SA, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, SFE, ITIL, LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, multi-award-winning author, and international keynote speaker. He is the Founder of Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary Exceptional Agility™. He has generated over $1.9 billion of business value in aggregate for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he has served. Graffius and content from his books (Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions and Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change), talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by businesses, professional associations, governments, and universities. Examples include Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Project Management Institute, IEEE, Qantas, National Academy of Sciences, United States Department of Energy, New Zealand Ministry of Education, Yale University, Tufts University, and others. He has delighted audiences with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops on agile, project management, and technology leadership at 86 conferences and other events across 25 countries. Visit https://ScottGraffius.com to learn more.
Connect with Scott on:
About Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions
Shifting customer needs are common in today's marketplace. Businesses must be adaptive and responsive to change while delivering an exceptional customer experience to be competitive.
There are a variety of frameworks supporting the development of products and services, and most approaches fall into one of two broad categories: traditional or agile. Traditional practices such as waterfall engage sequential development, while agile involves iterative and incremental deliverables. Organizations are increasingly embracing agile to manage projects, and best meet their business needs of rapid response to change, fast delivery speed, and more.
With clear and easy to follow step-by-step instructions, Scott M. Graffius's award-winning Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions helps the reader:
- Implement and use the most popular agile framework―Scrum;
- Deliver products in short cycles with rapid adaptation to change, fast time-to-market, and continuous improvement; and
- Support innovation and drive competitive advantage.
Hailed by Literary Titan as “the book highlights the versatility of Scrum beautifully.”
Winner of 17 first place awards.
Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle worldwide. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇪 Belgium
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇭🇺 Hungary
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇮🇱 Israel
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇳🇴 Norway
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 UAE
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
- 🌏 More countries
About Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change
Thriving in today's marketplace frequently depends on making a transformation to become more agile. Those successful in the transition enjoy faster delivery speed and ROI, higher satisfaction, continuous improvement, and additional benefits.
Based on actual events, Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change provides a quick (60-90 minute) read about a successful agile transformation at a multinational entertainment and media company, told from the author's perspective as an agile coach.
The award-winning book by Scott M. Graffius is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle worldwide. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
- 🌏 More countries
Let's Connect
Connect with AgileScrumGuide.com on:
The short link for this article is: https://bit.ly/mvp-win
© Copyright 2023 Scott M. Graffius, AgileScrumGuide.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius/AgileScrumGuide.com.
24 Highly Recommended Books on Agile and Tech: List for 2024
15 December 2023
Agile Workflows
Introduction
Whether you’re reading this article on the date of publication (with 2024 on the horizon) or are reading it sometime in the future, it's always the right time to invest in your professional development.
Step through a portal crafted from 24 acclaimed titles on Agile, Technology, and their intersection. This curated list of books can support your commitment to continuous improvement and help elevate your tradecraft.
This website is owned by Scott M. Graffius, the author of two multi-award-winning books on Agile - Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions and Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change. This article does not include Graffius’ books in order to advance objectivity and keep the spotlight on the works of other stellar authors.
Prices are in U.S. Dollar. Information was current and links were functional when this article was published. Names, marks, images, and content are the property of their respective owners.
Books are presented in alphabetical order—by title. Now, on to the list!
Main Section of Article
Agile Estimating and Planning
- Title: Agile Estimating and Planning
- Author: Mike Cohn
- ISBN-10: 0131479415
- ISBN-13: 978-0131479418
- Paperback: $45.59
Order your book today.
Agile Game Development (Second Edition)
- Title: Agile Game Development (Second Edition)
- Author: Clinton Keith
- ISBN-10: 0136527817
- ISBN-13: 978-0136527817
- Paperback: $49.59
Order your book today.
Agile Project Management: Creating Innovative Products (Second Edition)
- Title: Agile Project Management: Creating Innovative Products (Second Edition)
- Author: Jim Highsmith
- ISBN-10: 0321658396
- ISBN-13: 978-0321658395
- Paperback: $45.22
Order your book today.
Agile Retrospectives: Making Good Teams Great
- Title: Agile Retrospectives: Making Good Teams Great
- Authors: Esther Derby and Diana Larsen
- ISBN-10: 0977616649
- ISBN-13: 978-0977616640
- Paperback: $16.79
Order your book today.
Agile Software Development: Principles, Patterns, and Practices
- Title: Agile Software Development: Principles, Patterns, and Practices
- Author: Robert C. Martin
- ISBN-10: 0135974445
- ISBN-13: 978-0135974445
- Paperback: $79.32
Order your book today.
AI 2041: Ten Visions for Our Future
- Title: AI 2041: Ten Visions for Our Future
- Authors: Kai-Fu Lee and Chen Qiufan
- ISBN-10: 0593238311
- ISBN-13: 978-0593238318
- Paperback: $20.00
Order your book today.
Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life
- Title: Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life
- Author: Rory Sutherland
- ISBN-10: 0062388428
- ISBN-13: 978-0062388421
- Paperback: $16.71
Order your book today.
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones
- Title: Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones
- Author: James Clear
- ISBN-10: 0735211299
- ISBN-13: 978-0735211292
- Hardcover (paperback not available at time of story): $13.79
Order your book today.
Blood, Sweat, and Pixels: The Triumphant, Turbulent Stories Behind How Video Games are Made
- Title: Blood, Sweat, and Pixels: The Triumphant, Turbulent Stories Behind How Video Games are Made
- Author: Jason Schreier
- ISBN-10: 0062651234
- ISBN-13: 978-0062651235
- Paperback: $12.61
Order your book today.
Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship
- Title: Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship
- Author: Robert C. Martin
- ISBN-10: 0132350882
- ISBN-13: 978-0132350884
- Paperback: $47.49
Order your book today.
Coaching Agile Teams: A Companion for ScrumMasters, Agile Coaches, and Project Managers in Transition
- Title: Coaching Agile Teams: A Companion for ScrumMasters, Agile Coaches, and Project Managers in Transition
- Author: Lyssa Adkins
- ISBN-10: 0321637704
- ISBN-13: 978-0321637703
- Paperback: $40.02
Order your book today.
Competing in the Age of AI: Strategy and Leadership When Algorithms and Networks Run the World
- Title: Competing in the Age of AI: Strategy and Leadership When Algorithms and Networks Run the World
- Authors: Marco Iansiti and Karim R. Lakhani
- ISBN-10: 1633697622
- ISBN-13: 978-1633697621
- Hardcover (paperback not available at time of story): $22.31
Order your book today.
Designing & Leading Life-Changing Workshops: Creating the Conditions for Transformation in Your Groups, Trainings, and Retreats
- Title: Designing & Leading Life-Changing Workshops: Creating the Conditions for Transformation in Your Groups, Trainings, and Retreats
- Authors: Ken Nelson, David Ronka, Lesli Lang, Liz Korabek-Emerson, and Jim White
- ISBN-10: 1732003300
- ISBN-13: 978-1732003309
- Paperback: $25.65
Order your book today.
Doing Agile Right: Transformation Without Chaos
- Title: Doing Agile Right: Transformation Without Chaos
- Authors: Darrell K. Rigby, Sarah Elk, and Steven H. Berez
- ISBN-10: 163369870X
- ISBN-13: 978-1633698703
- Hardcover (paperback not available at time of story): $17.99
Order your book today.
Innovation Project Management: Methods, Case Studies, and Tools for Managing Innovation Projects (Second Edition)
- Title: Innovation Project Management: Methods, Case Studies, and Tools for Managing Innovation Projects (Second Edition)
- Author: Harold Kerzner
- ISBN-10: 111993124X
- ISBN-13: 978-1119931249
- Hardcover (paperback not available at the time of story): $74.68
Order your book today.
Lean Software Development: An Agile Toolkit
- Title: Lean Software Development: An Agile Toolkit
- Authors: Mary Poppendieck and Tom Poppendieck
- ISBN-10: 0321150783
- ISBN-13: 978-0321150783
- Paperback: $54.94
Order your book today.
Level Up: The Guide to Great Video Game Design (Second Edition)
- Title: Level Up: The Guide to Great Video Game Design (Second Edition)
- Author: Scott Rogers
- ISBN-10: 1118877160
- ISBN-13: 978-1118877166
- Paperback: $34.00
Order your book today.
Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It
- Title: Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It
- Author: Chris Voss
- ISBN-10: 1847941486
- ISBN-13: 978-1847941480
- Paperback: $14.95
Order your book today.
Refactoring: Improving the Design of Existing Code (2nd Edition)
- Title: Refactoring: Improving the Design of Existing Code (2nd Edition)
- Author: Martin Fowler
- ISBN-10: 0134757599
- ISBN-13: 978-0134757599
- Hardcover (paperback not available at the time of story): $38.59
Order your book today.
Testing Computer Software
- Title: Testing Computer Software
- Authors: Cem Kaner, Jack Falk, and Hung Quoc Nguyen
- ISBN-10: 0471358460
- ISBN-13: 978-0471358466
- Paperback: $42.58
Order your book today.
The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More & Change the Way You Lead Forever
- Title: The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More & Change the Way You Lead Forever
- Author: Michael Bungay Stanier
- ISBN-10: 0978440749
- ISBN-13: 978-0978440749
- Paperback: $7.58
Order your book today.
The Design Thinking Toolbox: A Guide to Mastering the Most Popular and Valuable Innovation Methods
- Title: The Design Thinking Toolbox: A Guide to Mastering the Most Popular and Valuable Innovation Methods
- Authors: Michael Lewrick, Patrick Link, and Larry Leifer
- ISBN-10: 1119629195
- ISBN-13: 978-1119629191
- Paperback: $26.00
Order your book today.
The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution
- Title: The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution
- Author: Walter Isaacson
- ISBN-10: 1476708703
- ISBN-13: 978-1476708706
- Paperback: $14.29
Order your book today.
Thinking in Systems
- Title: Thinking in Systems
- Author: Donella H. Meadows
- ISBN-10: 1603580557
- ISBN-13: 978-1603580557
- Paperback: $20.66
Order your book today.
Conclusion
Leverage the 24 titles in this curated list of highly rated books to advance your lifelong learning, professional development, and continuous improvement. Level-up!
How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2023, December 15). 24 Highly Recommended Books on Agile and Tech: List for 2024. Available at: https://agilescrumguide.com/blog/files/asg-books-2024.html.
A short URL for this article is: https://bit.ly/books-2024
© Copyright 2023 Scott M. Graffius, AgileScrumGuide.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius/AgileScrumGuide.com.
Top 7 Agile Thought Leaders to Follow on X: 2024 Report
15 January 2024
Agile Workflows
Introduction
If you're involved or interested in Agile — and you're on X (formerly known as Twitter) — this article highlights Agile thought leaders and influencers you may want to follow on the platform.
Here are the criteria and calculations for making the list for 2024.
We started with over 500 X (formerly known as Twitter) accounts and progressively refined the list down to the top seven. We're transparent about the criteria and calculations for making the list, so here's how we did it.
Note: AgileScrumGuide.com is owned by Scott M. Graffius, the author of two multi-award-winning books on Agile - Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions and Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change. Graffius is not listed in this Top 7 article so that there’s no appearance of a conflict of interest.
To qualify, accounts were required to meet all of the following six characteristics:
- Account is for a person or a professional association,
- Account is three or more years old,
- Account is active (defined as five or more tweets in the last 30 days),
- 1,000 or more tweets,
- 7,000 or more followers, and
- 90% or more of tweets have engagement (e.g., likes and retweets).
The accounts meeting the above qualifications were then weighted and ranked ordered on three factors:
- Number of followers (weighted at 1x),
- Number of tweets in the last 30 days (weighted at 1x), and
- Percent of tweets with engagement (because this reflects the effectiveness of tweets, and to what degree they are connecting with followers, it was weighted higher—at 3x).
The top seven accounts are based on the above criteria and calculations. Now, on to this list!
#1 | Project Management Institute (PMI)
- Twitter handle: @PMInstitute
- Direct link: https://twitter.com/PMInstitute
- Bio/description as it appears on Twitter account: Our mission—Making you and your projects more successful
#2 | Henrik Kniberg
- Twitter handle: @HenrikKniberg
- Direct link: https://twitter.com/henrikkniberg
- Bio/description as it appears on Twitter account: Former Minecraft game designer/developer/coach @ Mojang. Cofounder of http://GoClimate.com. Like to jam! Previously Spotify/LEGO. I'm MrHenrik in MC.
#3 | Scrum.org
- Twitter handle: @ScrumDotOrg
- Direct link: https://twitter.com/Scrumdotorg
- Bio/description as it appears on Twitter account: Scrum.org, the Home of Scrum, was founded by Scrum co-creator Ken Schwaber as a mission-based organization to help people and teams solve complex problems.
#4 | Jeff Sutherland
- Twitter handle: @JeffSutherland
- Direct link: https://twitter.com/JeffSutherland
- Bio/description as it appears on Twitter account: Co-Creator of #Scrum and #ScrumatScale and Signatory of the #AgileManifesto
#5 | Mike Cohn
- Twitter handle: @MikeWCohn
- Direct link: https://twitter.com/MikeWCohn
- Bio/description as it appears on Twitter account: I'm an agile software development consultant, trainer, author and practitioner. I blog at http://mountaingoatsoftware.com/blog #MGSClasses
#6 | Agile Alliance
- Twitter handle: @AgileAlliance
- Direct link: https://twitter.com/AgileAlliance
- Bio/description as it appears on Twitter account: #Agile Alliance is a global nonprofit membership organization dedicated to people and organizations that apply the values and principles of the #AgileManifesto
#7 | Scrum Alliance
- Twitter handle: @ScrumAlliance
- Direct link: https://twitter.com/ScrumAlliance
- Bio/description as it appears on Twitter account: We advance real-world agility by equipping changemakers with what they need to get the job and get the job done.
Conclusion
If you're involved or interested in Agile and you're on X, be sure to follow the seven agile thought leaders and influencers highlighted in this article.
How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, January 15). Top 7 Agile Thought Leaders to Follow on X: 2024 Report. Available at: https://agilescrumguide.com/blog/files/leaders-2024.html.
About Scott M. Graffius
Scott M. Graffius, PMP, SA, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, SFE, ITIL, LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, multi-award-winning author, and international keynote speaker. He is the Founder of Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary Exceptional Agility™. He has generated over $1.9 billion of business value in aggregate for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he has served. Graffius and content from his books (Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions and Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change), talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by businesses, professional associations, governments, and universities. Examples include Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Project Management Institute, IEEE, Qantas, National Academy of Sciences, United States Department of Energy, New Zealand Ministry of Education, Yale University, Tufts University, and others. He has delighted audiences with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops on agile, project management, and technology leadership at 89 conferences and other events across 25 countries.
Connect with Scott on:
About Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions
Shifting customer needs are common in today's marketplace. Businesses must be adaptive and responsive to change while delivering an exceptional customer experience to be competitive.
There are a variety of frameworks supporting the development of products and services, and most approaches fall into one of two broad categories: traditional or agile. Traditional practices such as waterfall engage sequential development, while agile involves iterative and incremental deliverables. Organizations are increasingly embracing agile to manage projects, and best meet their business needs of rapid response to change, fast delivery speed, and more.
With clear and easy to follow step-by-step instructions, Scott M. Graffius's award-winning Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions helps the reader:
- Implement and use the most popular agile framework―Scrum;
- Deliver products in short cycles with rapid adaptation to change, fast time-to-market, and continuous improvement; and
- Support innovation and drive competitive advantage.
Hailed by Literary Titan as “the book highlights the versatility of Scrum beautifully.”
Winner of 17 first place awards.
Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle worldwide. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇪 Belgium
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇭🇺 Hungary
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇮🇱 Israel
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇳🇴 Norway
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 UAE
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
- 🌏 More countries
About Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change
Thriving in today's marketplace frequently depends on making a transformation to become more agile. Those successful in the transition enjoy faster delivery speed and ROI, higher satisfaction, continuous improvement, and additional benefits.
Based on actual events, Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change provides a quick (60-90 minute) read about a successful agile transformation at a multinational entertainment and media company, told from the author's perspective as an agile coach.
The award-winning book by Scott M. Graffius is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle worldwide. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
- 🌏 More countries
Let's Connect
Connect with AgileScrumGuide.com on:
And connect with agile project management practitioner, consultant, award-winning author, and international speaker Scott M. Graffius on:
The short link for this article is: https://bit.ly/7-leaders
© Copyright 2024 Scott M. Graffius, AgileScrumGuide.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius/AgileScrumGuide.com.
The Agile Coach: 2024 Edition
05 April 2024
This article presents the 2024 edition of The Agile Coach infographic visual developed by Scott M. Graffius. It also provides details on the work of Agile Coaches. Including supporting information, it's organized into eight sections:
- Introduction
- The Agile Coach Infographic Visual
- Values, Guiding Principles, Focus Areas, Tools, and Activities for Agile Coaches
- The Agile Coach as a Change Agent
- Conclusion
- References
- How to Cite This Article
- How to Request Permission
Introduction
The demand for Agile—and Agile expertise—is soaring. Here are apt quotes on customer needs and the most popular Agile approach, Scrum.
"Shifting customer needs are common in today's marketplace. Businesses must be adaptive and responsive to change while delivering an exceptional customer experience to be competitive. Traditional development and delivery frameworks such as waterfall are often ineffective. In contrast, Scrum is a value-driven agile approach which incorporates adjustments based on regular and repeated customer and stakeholder feedback. And Scrum’s built-in rapid response to change leads to substantial benefits such as fast time-to-market, higher satisfaction, and continuous improvement—which supports innovation and drives competitive advantage." — Scott M. Graffius, Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions
"Thriving in today’s marketplace frequently depends on making a transformation to become more Agile." — Scott M. Graffius, Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change
Organizations are increasingly embracing Agile to best meet their business needs and an Agile Coach can increase the chances of a successful agile adoption or improvement (Dikert, Paasivaara & Lassenius, 2016) (Sureshchandra & Shrinivasavadhani, 2008).
Some define the Agile Coach role as "an individual who coaches agile teams" or a similar self-descriptive representation. Here's a more helpful definition of the role (and examples and other examples follow later in this article):
"The individual is an agile expert who provides guidance for new agile implementations as well as existing agile teams. The agile coach is experienced in employing agile techniques in different environments and has successfully run diverse agile projects. The individual builds and maintains relationships with everyone involved, coaches individuals, trains groups, and facilitates interactive workshops. The agile coach is typically from outside the organization, and the role may be temporary or permanent." (Graffius, 2019)
The Agile Coach Infographic Visual
In 2019, Scott M. Graffius first developed The Agile Coach as a high-level visual on the role. He periodically updates his respective work. The top of this article shows the 2024 edition. The visual highlights the values, guiding principles, focus areas, tools, and activities for Agile Coaches.
- Values include respect, courage, focus, openness, and commitment.
- Principles include collaboration, technical excellence, transparency, continuous improvement, simplicity, fast and frequent delivery, and high satisfaction.
- Focus areas include company; division or segment; product or service; tribe, squad, or team; and individuals.
- Tools include data collection, visualization, best techniques, feedback, and agile process tools.
- Activities include coaching, teaching, facilitating, and mentoring.
Values, Guiding Principles, Focus Areas, Tools, and Activities for Agile Coaches
This section elaborates on the values, guiding principles, focus areas, tools, and activities for Agile Coaches.
Values. Agile Coaches instill the core values that underpin Agile success. These include:
- Respect: Valuing diverse perspectives and contributions.
- Courage: The ability to speak up, challenge the status quo, and do the right thing.
- Focus: Maintaining a clear vision and prioritizing work that delivers the most value.
- Openness: Candid about the work and its challenges.
- Commitment: Dedication to the team/department/company and its goals.
Principles. Guided by the values, the principles include:
- Collaboration: Working together towards shared objectives.
- Technical excellence: Delivering high-quality work that is maintainable and scalable.
- Transparency: Fostering open communication and information sharing.
- Continuous improvement: A commitment and practice to constantly learn and evolve.
- Simplicity: Doing the least amount of work needed to achieve the objective or outcome.
- Fast and frequent delivery: Agile’s iterative and short-cycle incremental approach results in the rapid and frequent delivery of working products and services.
- High satisfaction: Delivering product and service features and functionality that offer value to the customer/user fosters and supports their satisfaction as well as the satisfaction of those doing the work.
Focus. Agile Coaches ensure a balanced focus across the organization. This may cover the company, division/segment, product/service, tribe/squad/team, and/or individuals to help the organization transform their processes and achieve its mission and strategic objectives. Examples follow.
- Company-wide strategy alignment: Agile Coaches ensure that team initiatives are aligned with broader company goals and objectives. They help bridge the gap between individual teams and the larger organization, fostering a unified approach to achieving business objectives.
- Division/segment/departmental performance: Agile principles can be applied across different departments within an organization. Agile Coaches can help technology and non-technology areas adopt Agile practices, leading to increased efficiency and improved collaboration across the company.
- The product or service itself: Understanding the product vision, roadmap, and user needs is crucial. Agile Coaches help teams prioritize features, delineate work into manageable user stories/requirements, and ensure the product delivers value to the customer.
- Tribe/squad/team dynamics: Building strong, self-organizing teams is essential for Agile success. Agile Coaches help foster collaboration, communication, and psychological safety within groups (which may be called tribes, squads, or teams), encouraging them to work effectively towards shared goals.
- Growth of individuals: Agile Coaches support the professional development of individuals. This could involve providing coaching on specific skills, identifying training opportunities, and encouraging knowledge sharing within the team.
Tools. Agile Coaches equip others with the tools — including data collection, visualization, best techniques, feedback, and agile process tools — needed to prosper in Agile environments. Examples follow.
- Data Collection and Analysis: Data-driven decision-making is crucial. Agile Coaches encourage teams to collect data on various metrics, such as velocity, cycle time, and defect rates. They then help teams analyze this data to identify areas for improvement and continuously refine their Agile practices.
- Visualization tools: Kanban boards, burndown charts, information radiators, and other visual tools provide beneficial views on the status of work.
- Best Techniques: There's a vast array of Agile techniques. Agile Coaches help teams select the most appropriate techniques for their specific context. This could involve introducing techniques like pair programming, test-driven development, or user story mapping.
- Feedback: Agile Coaches emphasize the importance of regular constructive feedback. They encourage team members to provide feedback to each other, as well as actively seek feedback from stakeholders throughout the development process.
- Agile process: Agile Coaches are skilled facilitators who can help with Agile processes such as Agile events/ceremonies. Examples include Sprint Planning, Daily Stand-Up Meetings, Sprint Review, and the Sprint Retrospective.
Activities. Activities are covered individually. In practice, however, they may overlap. Examples of activities — coaching, teaching, facilitating, and mentoring — follow.
- Coaching: Partnering with others in a process that helps them develop personally and professionally. This typically involves leveraging a wide array of knowledge and skills (such as technical expertise, business/product development/innovation expertise, organizational development/change management expertise, and more).
- Teaching: Instructing others in specific knowledge and skills.
- Facilitating: Guiding others through processes to help them arrive at solutions and formulate decisions.
- Mentoring: Sharing knowledge and skills with others to foster their personal and professional growth.
Also, see the Agile Coach definition provided earlier in this article.
The Agile Coach as a Change Agent
Additionally, Agile Coaches serve as catalysts for cultural transformation within organizations. They help bridge the gap between traditional structures and the collaborative, fast-paced environment that Agile fosters. Agile Coaches usually achieve this through multiple means such as:
- Facilitating Open Communication: Agile practices rely on open communication and information sharing across all levels of the organization. Agile Coaches encourage open dialogue, helping to break down silos and fostering a culture of transparency.
- Empowering Teams: Agile Coaches empower teams to make decisions, take ownership of their work, and hold themselves accountable for results. This supports the development of effective self-organizing/self-managing teams.
- Managing Resistance to Change: Transitioning to Agile can be challenging. Agile Coaches serve as change agents, helping to manage resistance through clear communication, addressing concerns, and highlighting the benefits of Agile adoption.
- Building a Culture of Continuous Improvement: Agile Coaches instill a culture of continuous improvement. It involves encouraging experimentation, the practice of inspect and learn, and more.
Conclusion
Organizations looking to embrace Agile or enhance their existing Agile practices should consider bringing in an Agile Coach. Their expertise and guidance can be the key to unlocking the full potential of Agile and achieving remarkable results. Agile Coaches are highly skilled and adaptable professionals who can tailor their approach to the exacting needs of the organization. Their versatility allows them to work with various stakeholders to ensure everyone is well-aligned with the Agile transformation journey. Investing in an Agile Coach is an investment in the organization’s success.
References/Sources
- Adkins, Lyssa (2010). Coaching Agile Teams: A Companion for ScrumMasters, Agile Coaches, and Project Managers in Transition. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Addison-Wesley Professional. Order your book today.
- Agile Alliance (2022, March). Code of Ethical Conduct for Agile Coaching (Version 2.0). Available at: https://www.agilealliance.org/agile-coaching-code-of-ethical-conduct/.
- CFO South Africa (2021, August 19). Agile Leadership Unlocked [Video]. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJZiitw5tHo&t=359s.
- Dikert, K.; Paasivaara, M.; and Lassenius, C. (2016). Challenges and Success Factors for Large-Scale Agile Transformations: A Systematic Literature Review. Journal of Systems and Software, 119: 87-108.
- Exceptional Agility (2023, April 13). Scott M. Graffius Presenting "The Science of High-Performance Teams" at DevOps Institute Conference. Available at: https://exceptionalagility.com/blog/files/doi-conf.html.
- Ganesh, N.; and Thangasamy, S. (2012). Lessons Learned in Transforming from Traditional to Agile Development. Journal of Computer Science, 8 (3): 389-392.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2024, January 8). Scott M. Graffius’ Phases of Team Development: 2024 Update. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/teams-2024.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.28629.40168.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2023, July 15). Successful Video Game Development Teams Leverage an Extensive Range of Hard Skills and Soft Skills. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/gamedev.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.31205.17124.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2023, June 29). What Successful AI Teams Have in Common [Presentation]. Talk delivered at Conf42 Quantum Computing 2023 Conference. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.29382.45120. DOI link: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.29382.45120.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2023). The Agile Coach: An Infographic (2023 Edition). Available at: https://agilescrumguide.com/blog/files/the-agile-coach-2023.html.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2020). Definition of Agile Culture. Available at: https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/agile-culture.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.11170.35521.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2019): Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change. North Charleston, South Carolina: CreateSpace. Order your book today.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2016). Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions. North Charleston, South Carolina: CreateSpace. Order your book today.
- Jovanovic, M.; Mas, A.; Mesquida, A.L.; and Lali c, B. (2017). Transition of Organizational Roles in Agile Transformation Process: A Grounded Theory Approach. Journal of Systems and Software, 133: 174-194.
- Kerzner, Harold (2022). Innovation Project Management: Methods, Case Studies, and Tools for Managing Innovation Projects (Second Edition). Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Order your book today.
- Meadows, Donella H. (2008). Thinking in Systems: A Primer. White River Junction, Vermont: Chelsea Green Publishing. Order this your today.
- Nelson, Ken; Ronka, David; Lang, Lesli; Korabek-Emerson, Liz; and White, Jim (2020). Designing & Leading Life-Changing Workshops: Creating the Conditions for Transformation in Your Groups, Trainings, and Retreats. Kittery Point, Maine: Cliffhouse Press. Order your book today.
- Scrum Alliance (n.d.). The Growing Impact of Agile Coaching: Notes from the Research Study on Agile Coaching from SINTEF. Available at: https://resources.scrumalliance.org/Article/growing-impact-agile-coaching.
- Stanier, Michael Bungay (2016). The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More & Change the Way You Lead Forever. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada: Page Two. Order your book today.
- Sureshchandra, K.; and Shrinivasavadhani, J. (2008). Moving from Waterfall to Agile. Proceedings from Agile, 2008: AGILE ’08 Conference. Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
- Thompson, S.; and Cox, E. (2017). How Coaching is Used and Understood by Project Managers in organizations. Project Management Journal, 48 (5): 64-77.
How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, April 5). The Agile Coach: 2024 Edition. Available at: https://agilescrumguide.com/blog/files/tac-2024.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.27752.07682.
How to Request Permission
To request permission to use Scott M. Graffius' The Agile Coach infographic visual, contact Scott M. Graffius.
If your request is approved, a high resolution version of the image will be provided along with applicable terms and conditions.
About Scott M. Graffius
Scott M. Graffius, PMP, SA, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, SFE, ITIL, LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, multi-award-winning author, and international keynote speaker. He is the Founder of Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary Exceptional Agility™. He has generated over $1.9 billion of business value in aggregate for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he has served. Graffius and content from his books (Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions and Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change), talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by businesses, professional associations, governments, and universities. Examples include Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Project Management Institute, IEEE, Qantas, National Academy of Sciences, United States Department of Energy, New Zealand Ministry of Education, Yale University, Tufts University, and others. He has delighted audiences with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops on agile, project management, and technology leadership at 89 conferences and other events across 25 countries.
Connect with Scott on:
About Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions
Shifting customer needs are common in today's marketplace. Businesses must be adaptive and responsive to change while delivering an exceptional customer experience to be competitive.
There are a variety of frameworks supporting the development of products and services, and most approaches fall into one of two broad categories: traditional or agile. Traditional practices such as waterfall engage sequential development, while agile involves iterative and incremental deliverables. Organizations are increasingly embracing agile to manage projects, and best meet their business needs of rapid response to change, fast delivery speed, and more.
With clear and easy to follow step-by-step instructions, Scott M. Graffius's award-winning Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions helps the reader:
- Implement and use the most popular agile framework―Scrum;
- Deliver products in short cycles with rapid adaptation to change, fast time-to-market, and continuous improvement; and
- Support innovation and drive competitive advantage.
Hailed by Literary Titan as “the book highlights the versatility of Scrum beautifully.”
Winner of 17 first place awards.
Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle worldwide. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇪 Belgium
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇭🇺 Hungary
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇮🇱 Israel
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇳🇴 Norway
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 UAE
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
- 🌏 More countries
About Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change
Thriving in today's marketplace frequently depends on making a transformation to become more agile. Those successful in the transition enjoy faster delivery speed and ROI, higher satisfaction, continuous improvement, and additional benefits.
Based on actual events, Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change provides a quick (60-90 minute) read about a successful agile transformation at a multinational entertainment and media company, told from the author's perspective as an agile coach.
The award-winning book by Scott M. Graffius is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle worldwide. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
- 🌏 More countries
Let's Connect
Connect with AgileScrumGuide.com on:
And connect with agile project management practitioner, consultant, award-winning author, and international speaker Scott M. Graffius on:
The short link for this article is: https://bit.ly/tac-24
© Copyright 2024 Scott M. Graffius, AgileScrumGuide.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius/AgileScrumGuide.com.