Reducing time to market is critical when you're building software, but achieving top speed isn't an accident. To move fast you have to be deliberate, smart, and disciplined. The good news is you don't move the fastest by being frantic or cutting corners — look around and you’ll notice that the most productive teams are the most calm. You move quickly by having a plan, and to create this plan you need to understand the elements of speed. In this talk I'll break down what these elements are and how to apply them.

1. SPEED UP YOUR TEAM
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2. Low Quality + Long Hours + Frantic Effort = ?
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3. Awareness + Smarts + Discipline = Speed
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4. WHAT IS SPEED?
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5. Speed = Throughput + Cycle Time
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6. THROUGHPUT = Number of cars this highway can “process.”
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7. CYCLE TIME =
How long will it take
this guy to get coffee?
Amount of time each person has to wait.
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8. INFLUENCING SPEED
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9. Quality | Hours | Pace
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11. Maximize Throughput
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13. Maximize Throughput
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14. Maximize Throughput
Slack
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15. 1) Introduce Slack (to maximize throughput)
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19. 1) Introduce Slack (to maximize throughput)
2) Shorten Queues (to minimize cycle time)
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20. HOW DOES THIS WORK
FOR SOFTWARE?
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21. WIP Limit =4
Limit Work In Process (WIP)
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22. Limit Work In Process (WIP)
WIP Limit =4
<- Requirements Features ->
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23. 1) Limit WIP (to introduce slack)
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24. Shorten Queues
WIP Limit =4
<- Requirements Features ->
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25. Shorten Queues
WIP Limit =4
<- Requirements Features ->
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26. Shorten Queues
might will
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Commitment

27. 1) Limit WIP (to introduce slack)
2) Delay Commitment (to shorten queues)
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28. PROCESSES & TOOLS
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29. Why don’t we just add more people?
Expense & Complexity
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30. Adding human-power
to a late software project
makes it later.
— Brooks’ Law —
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31. Make decisions closest
to the point of activity.
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Make decisions close
to the point of activity.

32. 1) … focus on only a few items at a time.
2) … selectively commit to new work.
Empowered Teams who …
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33. Small Teams with
Clear Accountabilities making
Collaborative Decisions.
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34. Integrative Decision Making (IDM)
(holacracy.org/governance-meetings)
Pro-Tip #1
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35. Cadenced Planning using
Value-Based Requirements
and Economic Prioritization.
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36. Weighted Shortest Job First (WSJF)
(scaledagileframework.com/wsjf/)
Pro-Tip #2
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37. Warmth
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38. competence
warmthPro-Tip #3
@bobgower | @citrusbytesource: Presence by Amy Cuddy

39. Trust & Respect
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40. For this slide deck and a free book:
email me: bob@citrusbyte.com
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41. EXTRA STUFF

42. Selected Bibliography
• The Principles of Product Development Flow by Donald G. Reinertsen
• Managing the Design Factory by Donald G. Reinertsen
• The Phoenix Project by Gene Kim, Kevin Behr, George Spafford
• The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni
• Velocity by Dee Jacob, Suzan Bergland, Jeff Cox
• The Goal: by Eliyahu M. Goldratt, Jeff Cox, David Whitford
• Presence by Amy Cuddy

43. Geek productivity at work
how non-geeks think it works
how it actually works
sampling points likely to used by
non-geeks to get a general
picture of how geeks work
effect of a 5-min interruption (or a meeting!)
recovery
5 min
Along the day:
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