A to Z of Being Agile in Business

Agile and lean aren’t just tech buzzwords – they’re the fast and efficient methodologies you need to change the way you work – for good.

A is for…

action(s) 34, 36, 78
active listening 12, 14-15
ad-hoc work 25, 66, 84-5, 89, 108-9, 117.
147, 161
adoption lifecycle 78, 130-2
– and change 20
– early adopters 20, 131, 140
– early majority 131
– innovators 130-1
– laggards 132
– late majority 131-2
agile
– benefits 5, 6, 7-8, 136
– characteristics associated with 11-12, 13,14,15
– definitions 9
– key aims of 78
– problems solved 5
– as a test-driven development
– methodology 50
‘Agile on the Beach 2014’ survey 7
agile dashboard see dashboards, agile
Agile Manifesto 25, 26-7, 134
agile software development 3
agile state 23-4
assumption-driven development 51-2
avatars 90, 143
awareness
– and teams 146

B is for…

backlog of work 115, 116, 154, 160
balance, gaining 42-3
barriers, breaking down 156-7
behaviour-driven development 52-3
beliefs, agile 25-7
bottlenecks 121, 149
boundaries 46
budgets 63
burn up/down charts 116-17
business agility 165-7
business improvement 167

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C is for…

‘caught up in the details’ situation 42
change 23
– adoption lifecycle 20
– awareness of 18-19
– directing of by leaders 156
– enabling 44
– metrics and measuring 117
– and MVP 77,78
– and normalisation 18
– as positive 19
– rejection and denial of 17, 18
– resistance to 18, 150-1
– responding to 26
– thriving during 16-17
– understanding the journey of 17-18
Chinese proverb 19
coaching, agile 4
collaboration 26, 27
customer 25
– and teams 133, 136-8, 167
collaboration games 137-8
– smooth sailing 137-8
– collaborative work 61
communication/communication technology 102-3, 155, 156
– and teams 137
computing systems, navigation of 104
consensus
– and teams 136
conservatory drip challenge 30-1
constraints 46
content 23, 24
continuous delivery 54-6
continuous development 55
continuous feedback 55-6
continuous improvement 56
continuous integration 55
continuous testing 55
controls 46
conversion rate 112
culture, agile 133-9
cup of tea example 69-70
customer collaboration 25
customer lean pipeline 153-4
customers 151
– and feedback-driven delivery 35-6

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D is for…

dashboards, agile 42, 81-93, 103, 109, 119, 166
– and avatars 90, 143
– benefits of using 82
– creating 83-9
– current work 85-9
– digital options 92-3
– doing box 86
– done box 88-9
– evolving 91
– feedback box 86-7, 89
– future work 84-5
– inbox 84-5
– lean pipeline 152
– level of detail recorded on 90-1
– nature of 81-2
– and photos 90
– and sharing agile 130
– and strategic roadmap 158
– and swim lanes 143
– and teams 136. 142-4. 147 149
– tips 89-91
– to do box 85-6
– waiting box 87-8, 103
diminishing returns theory 104
DONE 63

day-to-day working practices 42, 44, 50
defects 101-2
delivery, continuous 54-6
development, continuous 55
digital tools 92-3
benefits of 117

E is for…

early adopters 20, 131, 150
early majority 131
eating a cake metaphor 32-3
efficiencies, lean see lean efficiencies
emotional intelligence
– and teams 147
environment, agile 138-9
estimation games 65-70, 130, 136
estimation(s) 64, 71, 161
– cup of tea example 69-70
– reasons for differences in 68
– and scope creep 66-7
etiquette
– and teams 147-8
experience, learning from 125

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F is for…

face-to-face conversation 27
feedback 52, 53, 120, 125, 133, 166
– continuous 55-6
– and dashboard 86-7, 89
– and MVP 76, 77
– releasing early work for 50, 56
– reviewing of 118
– and sprint retrospective meetings 124
feedback-driven delivery 35-6
firefighting 43, 44
fit for purpose 33, 52, 53, 55, 62, 78, 87, 113,115, 131
flexibility
– and teams 134
flexible business management systems 25
focus
– and working in sprints 108
Ford, Henry 53
forecasting 63, 64, 66, 96, 133, 146, 148, 158, 166

G is for

goals 33, 37-9, 45
– establishing 38, 39
– and GROW model 37-8
– mapping 39
– and teams 135
Google 42
GROW model 37-8, 40, 59, 119, 122, 155

H is for

high-agility businesses
– and profits 4

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I is for…

important/urgent matrix 74
improvement, continuous 56
incremental improvements 31-2, 33, 37, 54, 108, 109
indirectly measurable value 113
innovators 130-1
integration, continuous 55
inventory 103
invoice 72
iterative approach 53, 56, 102
iterative cycle 32

J is for

Jira 92-3
jobs to do, mapping of 60-1
just in time delivery 96

K is for

kanban 3-4, 81

L is for…

laggards 132
late majority 131-2
later adopters 150
leadership/leaders 155-9, 167
– breaking down barriers 156-7
– directing change 156
– and GROW model 155
– role of within a business 155
lean 3, 31, 150
– definitions 94-5
– primary goals of 94
lean efficiencies 100-6, 120, 153
– defects 101-2
– inventory 103
– motion 103-4
– over-processing 104
– over-production 102
– talents 100-1
– transportation 102-3
– waiting 103
Lean Kit 92-3
lean pipelines 94-9, 152, 158, 166, 167
lean sales pipeline 96-7
lean teams 152-4
learn-act-reflect cycle 33-4, 36, 134
learning 17
– peer 136
– shared 135-6
learning-driven approach 28, 29-30
learning from experience 125
Lego Millennium Falcon 97-9
letting go 19-20
lifecycle 16
– adoption 78, 130-2
linear process 28, 32
listening 12
– active 12. 14-15
logic, agile 16-20

Read the book

M is for ..

magnetic whiteboards 90
managed variables 63-4
management, agile 160-4, 167
– people 163
– performance 163-4
– self-managing teams 146, 162-3
– workflow 160-1
– workload 161-2
Manifesto for Agile Software Development see Agile Manifesto
mass production 3
Massachusetts Institute of Technology 4
meetings
– reflective 135
– retrospective 118, 135, 152
– short regular 137
– stand-up 122-3, 129, 135, 136, 152, 161, 162
method, agile 28-36
metrics 130, 135, 166
– burn up/down charts 116-17
measuring change 117
– performance 114, 155, 162-3
– purpose of 110
– repeat 112-13
– sales vanity 111-12
– sanity 112-13
– and teams/team performance 135, 148,149 162
– value 113-14
– vanity 110-11
– volume 114-15
minimum viable product (MVP) 75-80, 113,130,141
– and change 77, 78
– mapping a 79-80
– testing with 80
minimum viable proposition 64
minimum viable solution 78
mission creep 6
mistakes 33
mob programming 145
MoSCoW 72
motion 103-4
MVP see minimum viable product

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N is for

NASA 41

O is for…

objectives 45
– clarifying 37
– see also goals
observing behaviour 61
open questioning/questions 15, 40-1
optimism 29
options 47-9
– mapping of 47-8
over-delivering 104
over-processing104
overproduction 102

P is for…

pair programming 145
Pareto Principle 45, 78, 149
peer learning 136
peer performance 149
people management 163
performance
– shared 135
– and teams 133-4

performance management 163-4
performance metrics 114, 155, 162-3
performance targets 96
personal development 164
philosophy 23
pipelines 94-9, 103
– customer lean 153-4
– lean 94-9, 152, 158, 166, 167
– lean sales 96-7
Planning Poker game 67
Post It Plus 92
presentation, delivering a 23-4
priorities
– important/urgent matrix 74
– ranking 71-4, 136
– visualising 73-4
processes and tools 25, 26
product owner 142
productivity
– and team performance 148-9
prototype 77

Q is for

quality dynamic 114
questions, open 15, 40-1

Read the book

R is for…

ranking priorities 71-4, 136
ranking tools 161
reality 40-6
– mapping 42
reflection 30, 33, 34, 36, 118-24, 125, 146
– awareness of what has changed 121
– defining what next 121-2
– identification of what is going well 119-20
– identifying of what is stopping you 121
– identifying of what we can do better 120
– and retrospectives 119-22
– sprint retrospective meetings 123-4
– stand-up meetings 122-3
reflective meetings 135
relationship management
– and teams 146
remote working
– and teams 151
repeat metrics 112-13
resources 46
retention rate 112
retrospective meetings 118, 135, 152
retrospectives 119-22, 130, 136. 161
rework 17
roadmap, strategic 157-9, 166, 167
root cause analysis 41
Royce, Winston W. 28

S is for

state of mind 23, 24, 29
sticky notes 10, 12, 39, 47, 99, 129
strategic roadmap see roadmap, strategic
structure 23. 24
success
– definition of 62
– journey to 30
sustainable development 27
swarming 144-5
sales pipeline, lean 96-7
sales vanity metric 111-12
sanity metrics 112-13
scope 59-64
scope creep 17, 29, 63, 66-7
scrums 107, 142
self-awareness
– and teams 146
self-managing teams 146, 162-3
self-organising teams 27, 144
shared learning
– and teams 135-6
shared performance
– and teams 135
shared purpose 155
– and teams 134-6
shared spaces 157
– and teams 138-9
shared understanding 156
– and teams 135
shared values 134
sharing agile 129-32
– adoption lifecycles 130-2
– tips 129-30
simplicity 27, 115
slack 42, 44, 46, 108, 161
– creating 43
small incremental steps 31-2, 33, 37, 54, 108,119
smooth sailing game 137-8
Snakes and Ladders 29 49
social awareness
– and teams 146
solution-focused attitude
– and teams 133-4
solution(s)
– MVP and viable 77-8
– optimal minimum viable 78
space, shared 138-9 157
sprint retrospective meetings 123-4
sprints 105, 106-9,114, 130, 161
– case example 108-9
– focus and control 108
scope to change 107-8
stand-up meetings 122-3, 129, 135, 136, 152,

state of mind 23, 24, 29
sticky notes 10, 12, 39, 47, 99, 129
strategic roadmap see roadmap, strategic
structure 23. 24
success
definition of 62
journey to 30
sustainable development 27
swarming 144-5

swim lanes
and dashboards 143
systems thinking 50-1

swim lanes
– and dashboards 143
systems thinking 50-1

T is for …

tablets versus laptops 115
talents 100-1
team leader 142
team moral 6
team performance 148-9
– bottlenecks and distractions 149
– and metrics 135, 148, 149, 162
– and peer performance 149
– and productivity 148-9
teams 130, 140-51, 167
– virtual cross-functional141
– and collaboration 133, 136-8 167
– and communication 137
– and consensus 136
– and dashboards 136, 142-4, 147. 149
– and emotional intelligence 147
– and etiquette 147-8
– features of high-performing agile 140
– and flexibility 134
– lean 152-4
– and lean pipeline dashboard 152-3
– pairing and swarming 144-5
– and performance 133-4
– relationship management 146
– and remote working 151
– resistance to change 150-1
– roles within 141
– scrums 142
– and self-awareness 146
– self-managing146, 162-3
– self-organising 27, 144
– and shared learning 135-6
– shared performance 135
– and shared purpose 134-6
– and shared spaces 138-9
– shared understanding 135
– and smooth sailing game 137-8
– and social awareness 146
– solution-focused attitude 133-4
– and strategic roadmap 158-9
– structure and size 141
– and transparency 145
– workflow management 160-1
– workload management 161-2
test-driven approach 50, 52, 53, 77, 113
testing, continuous 55
time efficiency 6
time management tool 6
touch-screen technology 117
Toyota Production System 3, 41, 94
tracking methods 42
traditional management tactics 4
transparency
– and teams 145
transportation 102-3
Trello app 92

Read the book

U is for…

uncertainty, thriving during 16-17
understanding, shared 135
user stories 61-2, 71

V is for …

value drivers 45-6
value metrics 113-14
value proposition 44-5
value(s) 25-6
indirectly measurable 113
ranking measures against measure of 73
shared 134
vanity metrics 110-11
variables, managed 63-4
velocity 115
video conferencing 102, 151
video editing example 105-6
volume metrics 114-15

W is for

waiting 103
waste, reducing of 3
wastes 100-6
– defects 101-2
– inventory 103
– motion 103-4
– over-processing104
– overproduction 102
– talents 100-1
– transportation 102-3
waiting 103
waterfall model 28-9, 31, 36
whiteboards 83, 90
workflow
– and lean pipelines 95-7
workflow efficiencies 105-6
workflow management 160-1
working solutions 25, 26, 27
workload management 161-2
workplaces 139

Z is for

Zuill, Woody (mob programming) 145
see also Swarming

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