In this XBOSoft webinar, we were glad to have Heidi Araya, a seasoned agile coach, discuss the reality or non-reality of agile teams being colocated. She covered many tips and techniques for working remotely in an agile environment.

1. How to work successfully with virtual and remote Agile teams
with Heidi Araya
#remoteagile @HeidiAraya

2. XBOSo5
Dedicated to So5ware Quality Improvement
Founded in 2006
We speed products to market with our expert:
• So:ware QA consul>ng
• So:ware tes>ng
Global team with offices in San Francisco & Beijing
“Thorough, accurate and fast”
© XBOSo:, Inc. 2017 All Rights Reserved
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

3. House Rules
§ Par>cipants other than the speakers are muted
§ Ask ques>ons in the GoToWebinar control on the right side of your screen
or through TwiVer @XBOSo:
§ Ques>ons may be asked throughout the webinar - we’ll try to answer
them at the end
§ You’ll receive info on recording a:er the webinar
Webinar Hashtag: #remoteagile @HeidiAraya
© XBOSo:, Inc. 2017 All Rights Reserved
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

4. Meet our Speakers
Philip Lew
CEO and Founder, XBOSo5
• Relevant special>es and passions
• So:ware quality process, evalua>on,
measurement and improvement
• So:ware quality in use / UX design
• Mobile User Experience and usability
• Cycling and travel
© XBOSo:, Inc. 2017 All Rights Reserved
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

5. Meet our Speakers
Heidi Araya
Agile Leader & Coach at
• Working with remote & distributed teams
since 1999
• Process improvement aficionado
• Passionate about happy workplaces!
© XBOSo:, Inc. 2017 All Rights Reserved
@HeidiAraya
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

6. Learning Objec>ves
• Understand types of distributed
teams
• Understand the common challenges
and risks as well as benefits
• Tips, Tricks and Solu>ons
– Facilitate remote teams to get the most
engagement
– Gain agreement on how to work together
– Increase togetherness on your remote teams
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@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

7. Poll
How many of you have teams (answer in chat with
the number):
1. En>rely collocated
2. One or two people in the team remote, mostly
collocated
3. Some people collocated in mul>ple loca>ons
4. En>re team dispersed
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@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

8. Agile Manifesto
All of the above requires trust, close
collabora>on and great communica>on
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Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
Working software over comprehensive documentation
Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
Responding to change over following a plan
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

9. Distributed Work Benefits
Remote workers
• Less travel
• BeVer life balance
• Happier people
• More loyal employees
• Less unscheduled days off
9
Business
• Diversity leads to innova>on
• Easier extended customer service
and support hours with global team
• Hire specialists in their field
• Sharing risks and knowledge
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

10. 3 Kinds Of Distributed Teams
Satellite
(one or a few
remote from team)
Clusters
(team is in groups
in a few loca>ons)
Nebula
(whole team
dispersed)
more info at hVp://remotelyagile.info / @mkilby
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

11. Distributed Teams Challenges
• Less real >me, high-bandwidth communica>on
• Less opportunity to collaborate spontaneously
• Poten>al cultural differences
• Less chance to bond
• People might find it harder to trust,
empathize with, people they have never met
• No “learning by osmosis” (learning through
overhearing)
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@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

12. This could lead to…
• Lack of empathy & understanding
• Lack of clarity and direc>on
• Slower decision making
• Lack of par>cipa>on in mee>ngs
• Misunderstandings from poor
communica>on
• Less ability to resolve conflicts in a healthy manner
• Difficul>es in expressing opinions and being open
• Reduced sense of ownership and commitment
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@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

13. Risks With Distributed Agile Teams
• Confusion about product vision & mission
• Confusion about priori>es
• Different ideas about teamwork, collabora>on
• Teams unable to be as effec>ve
– Product Owner/other stakeholders not readily
available
– Different >me zones make true collabora>on difficult
– Interdependent stories reduces ability to get things
done
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@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

14. Distributed Agile – Solu>ons
• Communicate product vision relentlessly
• Communicate priori>es frequently
• Ensure teams are set up for success
– Communicate process clearly
(don’t assume people know)
– Have the right roles readily available
(Scrum Master, Product Owner, Tech Lead)
– Minimize cross team dependencies
– Watch for boVlenecks and work to alleviate
• Retrospec>ves and open communica>on are key to uncover challenges
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By Dietmar Rabich - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://
commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=44683604
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

15. Tips For Handling Distributed Communica>on
Buddy System –
each remote person has
a “buddy” in the room
(paired communica>on)
Back Channel –
mul>ple methods of
communica>on open
(chat & voice); someone
should always monitor
Co-Pilot –
someone at another
loca>on that can help you
coordinate the whole
team (paired facilita>on)
Thanks to Mark Kilby … more info at hVp://remotelyagile.info / @mkilby
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

16. Gesng Started With Online Mee>ngs
• Use the best tools ... These replace the everyday
channels of communica>on (and use video)
• If one person is remote, everyone is remote
• Avoid impromptu mee>ngs … include everyone
• Learn to deal with asynchronous
communica>on if your team is very widely
distributed
• Mute when not speaking
• Socialize online, not only at the watercooler
16

17. Leading Effec>ve Mee>ngs
Having the mee,ng is only a part of the work
• Have an agenda and share expecta>ons for outcomes
• Prepare ahead and send out materials in advance
• Time box discussions and s>ck to agenda
• Facilitator – note taker assistance
• Ac>on Plan – all ac>on items have owners
• Vote on mee>ng effec>veness
• Follow up on ac>on items
17
*See Leading effec>ve mee>ngs Slideshare for more >ps
By NSF/Josh Landis
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

18. Solu>ons For Lack Of Engagement In Mee>ngs
• Use video and have good ligh>ng
• Start with icebreakers & socialize
• Arrive early to build in personal >me
• Ask open-ended ques>ons
• Call on individuals if there is silence
• Do “rounds” to ensure everyone has a
chance to speak
• Assign and rotate mee>ng roles
• Keep one way presenta>ons to a minimum - Stop and ask for input
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@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

19. Solu>ons For Mee>ngs Going Off Track
• Start mee>ng by reviewing the agenda, including expected
outcomes, and ask for buy in
• Use a parking lot for off-topic discussions and ques>ons
• Keep to >me
• Have a facilitator
• Use “ELMO” cards
(enough – let’s move on)
or a common signal
19
Cards: www.collaborationsuperpowers.com/supercards
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

20. Now for the hard part…
Recrea>ng virtually some
of the human condi>ons
that make work
rela>onships thrive ...
Encouraging the right
culture
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@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

21. Encourage Empathy
• Meet in person every so o:en
• Random pair buddies (“Donut” app/Slack)
• Schedule or find personal >me
• Channels for common interests
• Reach out to and welcome new
employees in front of everyone
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@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

22. Promote Understanding
Working agreements
• Guidelines developed by
teams on how to work
together to create a posi>ve,
produc>ve process
• Describe posi>ve behaviors
• For example, “we all agree to
par=cipate fully”; Mee=ngs:
be on =me, end on =me.
© XBOSo:, Inc. 2017 All Rights Reserved
Core values or culture deck
• Why we are here; what we represent
Working agreements (SlideShare)
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

23. Be Apprecia>ve & Recognize Contribu>ons
Say thank you – give kudos publicly
• Highground
• www.kudobox.co
• Slack (or other) channel #thanks
Highlight your own accomplishments
• #humblebrag channel
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Thanks Management 3.0!
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

24. Encourage Constant Feedback
• Everyone should encourage feedback (management too!)
• Hold retrospec>ves on focused topics
• Set up anonymous polls, surveys, input & feedback methods
(and do something with the results!)
– Input (ideaboardz)
– Polls (poll-maker.com,
surveymonkey.com)
– Retrium (online retrospec>ves)
• People appreciate that
their opinions are valued
© XBOSo:, Inc. 2017 All Rights Reserved
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

25. Recommended Resources
• Communica>on Technology (Voice + Video) –
Zoom, Slack, Sococo
• Working agreements (in SlideShare)
• Whiteboards and polls
– Ideaboardz.com , mural.co, dotstorming.com
– Mindmeister.com
– Poll-maker.com, Surveymonkey.com
– Trello, s>ckies.io
• Collabora>on Superpowers Supercards
• Management 3.0 prac>ces
• Leading effec>ve mee>ngs (in SlideShare)
• Icebreaker ques>ons
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Cards:www.collaborationsuperpowers.com/supercards
@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile

26. Post your webinar questions on Twitter @XBOSoft
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Thank you!
Q+A
www.xbosoft.com@XBOSoft @HeidiAraya #remoteagile