Avoid the pitfalls of assigning or picking user stories in sprint planning. Learn what to do instead to be more productive.
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The Great Agile Paradox: Why We Can’t Seem to Let Go of “Finalizing the Plan”
The Agile Compass
by Matthias Orgler
Hello Reader,
last week we talked about why Product Owners shouldn’t spend so much time writing user stories. This week we’ll look at the paradox of well knowing how much waste big upfront planning is, yet still insisting on doing it.
Before we dive into why we can’t let go of planning to plan the plan, here are other articles you might have missed:
Overcoming Resistance to Change in Agile Transformations: A Guide for Agile Coaches and Leaders
Unlocking…
How to Boost Team Collaboration with User Stories – Not Just Writing!
Alright, do you measure the effectiveness of product owners by how much time they devote to writing great user stories? Many do – more or less explicitly. But there is a hard truth: The better the Product Owner, the less time they spend writing user stories ?!
How to Overcome Resistance to Change in Agile Transformations
Let’s tackle an issue most agile practitioners grapple with: Resistance to change. Why it happens and what you can do about it.
Unlocking Innovation and Autonomy: The Critical Role of Psychological Safety in Agile Teams
Psychological safety is crucial for high-performing teams. If you want innovation and self-management, learn to create psychological safety
Rapid Experiments vs. Big Upfront Planning
What is better: An iterative approach with rapid experiments and lots of failures, or a cautious big upfront planning trying to sketch a perfect solution while avoiding risks? While we Agile Coaches talk a lot about this topic, it helps to look at real world cases of...
Why do we plan agile transformations as waterfall projects?
Why do we plan agile transformations as waterfall projects? It sounds hilarious, yet I‘ve seen it over and over again: Agile transformations are planned as a project with big upfront planning and a strict timeframe. We need to understand: ? An Agile transformation is...
Why do some management boards think agility wouldn‘t affect them?
Why do some management boards think agility wouldn‘t affect them? Don‘t limit your agile transformation to the “delivery organization“! You cannot require Product Owners and Product Managers to create clear priorities and goals … and then have 10 “most important“...
How to easily destroy agility
If you don‘t set clear goals & priorities on top management level, you‘ll stir unhealthy conflict & confusion in teams. It‘s not uncommon for managers to spend half of their workday resolving conflicts that bubble up to them. Many of these conflicts stem from...
Warning: A hybrid agile/waterfall organization should NOT be your goal.
A hybrid agile/waterfall organization should NOT be your goal. An agile/waterfall hybrid is a temporary state that exists during transformations. It‘s not the state you‘re aiming for. Agility and waterfall come with different values and beliefs. You cannot simply...