The “Spotify Model” probably isn’t a model and definitely isn’t what is currently practiced at Spotify today. (Some suggest it never was.) The below image was made famous in a video by Henrik Kniberg, where he explains how work was organized into Squads, Tribes, and Guilds. Many people see the structure and try to mimic […]
Business
Forcing People Back to the Office
In December the Treasury Board of Canada ordered that, starting in mid-January, all employees would be expected to return to the office for two to three days a week. Among the stated goals were: Innovation, Creativity, Fairness, and Consistency. This all ties in well with the Agile Manifesto which includes the principle “The most efficient […]
What United Can Teach Us About Building Systems
![By InSapphoWeTrust from Los Angeles, California, USA (United Airlines - N797UA Uploaded by Altair78) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons](https://agilepainrelief.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/800px-United_Airlines_777_N797UA-150x150.jpg)
In April 2017, United Airlines made global headlines when they forcibly removed one passenger (David Dao) who had already boarded the flight, to accommodate crew flying to another destination. The flight staff called the airport police and Dao was hurt as he was dragged off the plane, suffering a concussion, loss of teeth and other […]
Dear Former Prime Minister
Dear Rt. Hon. Kim Campbell, In early October we met in the Toronto airport while lining up to board for Edmonton. I’m the Ottawa-based management consultant, who helps organizations become more effective. You asked what it is that I do, so I’ve undertaken to explain it here briefly, in a way that’s clear regardless of […]
Reinventing Existing Products – Big Bite vs Small Nibble Rewrites
Twice now in my career I’ve done a massive rewrite to replace an existing product. In both cases, it didn’t end well. Each time, the new product was competing with an existing product that was making the company money. So, of course, the existing product got enhancements on a rickety structure, and on the new […]
$50 Million Phoenix Fix – Avoiding Disaster With Scrum
As most Canadians can tell you, the rollout of the Canadian Government’s Phoenix payroll modernization system has gone disastrously badly. At one stage, there were over 80,000 civil servants who had payment problems, with some even losing their houses over the mess. I’ve seen everything from the contractor (IBM) to a lack of training being […]
Yahoo Bans Work from Home – an Alternative Perspective
Face-to-face conversation is best for Scrum, but switching from work-from-home to in-office only can have dramatic effects on employees. Alternatives to drastic changes.
Does Your Grocery Store Limit Work in Progress?
What can developers learn from Grocery Stores? Grocery stores seem to have discovered the Theory of Constraints and Self Organize to eliminate bottlenecks.