Articles

The Good, The Bad And The Ugly About Estimates

,

Ask any developer to estimate how long it will take for them to finish a project. You will see the loathing in their eyes. And for good reason. Estimates have been wrongly used for decades by a lot of managers who then hold the team accountable to their estimate as if it were the actual deadline. Even more frustrating, in many cases, those managers only act on the lowest number they hear from you! It’s as if they had a min() function, and they just keep trying to get the number lower. But engineering is not magic!! No wonder the hashtag #NoEstimates has become famous.

For this to happen, we (well…especially managers) need to abide by a few rules. Then we’ll see how estimates can improve the quality of your software. Yup, you read that right. Well, in my opinion, obviously.

Source de l’article sur DZONE

/0 Commentaires/par

Bring a New Tool to Your Team (and Not Get Squashed in The Process): 5 Tips for Successful Adoption

,

Bringing any new tool into an organization can feel like an uphill battle. It’s difficult to overcome inertia, even with the promise of improved workflows and happier teammates. Any change is hard, harder still when colleagues have grown attached to "the way we’ve always done things." How can you get your team to see the light when you know there’s a better way?

We’ve spoken to many individuals over the years who have successfully brought CircleCI into their organizations, so we’ve asked them what tips they had for others working to adopt a new tool.

Source de l’article sur DZone (Agile)

/0 Commentaires/par

Agile Leadership Is a Continuous Journey

,

A company’s leaders must prepare for the selection, achievement, and continuous improvements of Agile delivery. Only the leadership can evolve and continuously grow the environments in which their people function. Moreover, only these mentors can design the atmosphere that promotes high-performing Agile teams to thrive and deliver excellence. Agile leaders, therefore, must show smarter ways of working so that their people will discover from their personal and professional standards, mentorship and intrinsic motivation. The quest to become an Agilest does not need to be hard. Many leaders have to attempt a new method of management. The process will need to prepare, enable, and challenge their people to attain the highest potential through Agile teachings and practices.

What is not so apparent to leaders is that their people’s knowledge of the processes alone won’t be enough. Agile leaders must take an actual role to guide the new way of working. How many times have I heard from leadership that, "You have my support and contact me if you have any questions"? That way of thinking is a recipe for disaster with Agile. Agile leaders need to involve themselves directly on a daily basis. Get out and walk around, attend daily stand-ups, pop in on Sprint Planning sessions and come to the Sprint Reviews. You want your people to see you are involved with and care about the success of the implementation.

Source de l’article sur DZone (Agile)

/0 Commentaires/par

Are Managers Really as Horrible as We Think They Are?

,

If you’re like me, every article you’ve ever read about managers vs. leaders bagged on managers while praising leaders. Not surprising, right? People hate being "managed" and nearly everyone fancies themselves as being (or becoming) a leader. 

There may come a time when managers are obsolete, but for now, these are both valuable roles – they’re just different.

Source de l’article sur DZone (Agile)

/0 Commentaires/par