2. Who am I?
Andreea Visanoiu
• Scrum Master, Agile Coach
• Originally from Romania
• Lives in Kuala Lumpur
• Works for Mindvalley
• Former Product Manager / Product Owner
• Working with Agile for 7 years
• CSM, CSPO, Certified LeSS Practitioner
• Co-founder of Girls Who Code Romania
4. • Good leadership is not a one-size-
fits-all proposition => we need a new
perspective based on complexity
science => Cynefin framework
• The framework sorts the issues facing
leaders into five contexts defined by
the nature of the relationship between
cause and effect
• It’s a decision / analytical framework
• You should manage in the Complex
and Complicated spaces and only
move a small amount to Simple, as it
is highly vulnerable to rapid and
accelerated change
Complexity theory - Cynefin
framework
Source: https://hbr.org/2007/11/a-leaders-framework-for-decision-making
5. Complexity theory -
Cynefin framework
COMPLICATEDCOMPLEX
CHAOTIC SIMPLE
Disorder
• Cause and effect are only
coherent in retrospect
• Probe - Sense - Respond
C E
• Cause and effect are
separated over time and
space
• Sense - Analyse - Respond
C - - - - > E
• No cause - effect
relationship perceivable
• Act - Sense - Respond
C # E
• Cause - effect relations
repeatable, perceivable &
predictable
• Sense - Categorise -
Respond
C = E
UNORDERED ORDERED
Examples:
• Simple: heavily process-oriented situations -
loan payment; complacency, falling in chaos
• Complicated: call the experts; you know
something is wrong with you car, but you
need an expert to solve it; the expert might
overlook non-experts thus miss opportunities
• Complex: battlefield commanders, politicians
in emergency they gather a team together
(different domains, backgrounds, etc.)
desperately hoping some will come up with
an answer; “Huston, we got a problem”
• Chaotic: September 11; the “legend” issue
Scrum&Leanarehere
EMERGENT PRACTICE GOOD PRACTICE
BEST PRACTICENOVEL PRACTICE
6. Cynefin framework and software development
Examples:
• Simple: just do it
• Complicated: web shop; solution
not evident
• Complex: empirical process
(Scrum, Lean)
• Chaotic: outage in a hosting
environment; “Triage” - solve the
most urgent problem and go
down towards less urgent
(stabilise situation first)
Source: https://blog.agilistic.nl/on-complexity-why-your-software-project-needs-scrum/
8. Waterfall ModelConception
User requirements
Deployment
Analysis
Design
Development
Testing
Idea is generated, business case created,
requirements are built, analysed, and
written down in a specification document
which is the basis for ALL future
development.
System analysis
Technical design requirements
Coding - building the app
QA, all testing
Release complete
application as per agreed
requirements
Client
9. Waterfall pros and cons
Advantages Disadvantages
Suitable for simple systems (simple apps, that solve
one problem)
Creates big issues for complex to complicated systems and
completely fails in chaos
Adapts to shifting teams: as the scope is not
changed from the beginning of the project and work
is done entirely based on documentation (in theory)
The application is built based on specification that can be obsolete
or not reflect the client’s needs anymore
Forces a structured organisation
Ignores client feedback (mid to end project). Changes required by
client after the design phase are costly and time-consuming
Allows early design changes
=> lack of adaptability across all stages of development life cycle
(e.g. testing coming up with essential issues that affects the entire
system design can lead to complete project fail)
Suited for milestone-focused development Not adaptable or flexible to continuously changing customer needs
Delayed testing period; testing is a fundamental and always-present
process throughout development.
11. The birth of Agile movement
• 1930s: W. Edwards Deming used the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA, created by physician and
statistician Walter Steward of Bell Labs) as a consultant for Toyota
• 1948-1975: The Toyota Production System was born => lean thinking (Taichi Ohno, Eiji Toyoda)
• 1950s: Iterative and incremental development methods - contributed to successful creation of
X-15 hypersonic jet
• 1986: The New New Product Development Game, by Hirotaka Takeuchi & Ikujiro Nonaka:
“rugby approach” at Fuji Xerox, Honda, and Cannon
• 1993: Jeff Sutherland (Scrum father) started to apply agile principles in software development
and called it Scrum (see “rugby approach”); 1995 it was made public
• 2001: 17 developers - “organisational anarchists” - created the Agile movement after an
intense few days at Snowbird, Utah; the Agile Manifesto was born
• 2000s on: lean and kanban software development systems emerged (formal)
15. You don’t “do” agile, you ARE agile
CUSTOMER
• Highest priority: satisfy the customer
through early and continuous
delivery of valuable software
• Welcome changing requirements,
even late in development. Agile
processes harness change for the
customer's competitive advantage.
• Constant customer feedback
through the development lifecycle
• Work directly with customers and
business people (no intermediaries)
• Continuous learning & adaptation:
the teams reflect on how they
become more effective, tunes and
adjust behaviour accordingly
PEOPLE
• Build projects around motivated individuals.
Give them the environment and support they
need and trust them to do the work
• Working software is the primary measure of
progress
• Sustainable development - maintain a
constant pace indefinitely (work - life
balance)
• Cross-functional teams
• The best architectures, requirements, and
designs emerge from self-organising teams
• Face-to-face conversation as much as
possible
• Continuous learning & adaptation: the teams
reflect on how they become more effective,
tunes and adjust behaviour accordingly
PROCESS & TOOLS
• Embraced continuous change, in all
development cycle
• Short iterations (maximum 30 days)
• Deliver frequently
• Continuous attention to technical
excellence and good design
enhances agility
• Maximize the work not done -
simplicity is essential (just in time and
just enough)
• Continuous learning & adaptation: the
teams reflect on how they become
more effective, tunes and adjust
behaviour accordingly
Source: http://agilemanifesto.org/principles
16. Agile pros and cons
PROs (all of the above and…) CONs
Creates value from the get go
Lack of understanding agility (it needs training and management support
to be successful)
Fast response to change Requires cultural change - it’s not only about adopting a framework =>
Accepts and integrates uncertainty Becoming truly agile is timely (1-3 years)
Greater flexibility in releasing features
Interpreting the manifesto ad literam can create issues (people blame
Agile for their own bad behaviour)
Promotes caring about employees and creating a
highly motivating environment
Integrate diverse skills-set into teams (cross-functional teams)
Less up-front work
Lack of predictability. Waterfall creates a (false) sense of security with
steady deadlines and estimation, in Agile environments these are
continuously changing, constantly considering feedback).
Constant integration of customer feedback,
among the entire development cycle
Challenges at scale
17. Why short iterations?
• 2-4 weeks sprints
• Why:
• Rapid response to changes
• Continuous client feedback - as early as starting up
• Easier tracking of progress and planning (with real data)
• Detect problems (from architecture, design, process, etc.) as early as possible
• Shorter iterations = smaller items to be built => easier reprioritisation
• Easiest approach to go “iterationless” :)
• Releasable increment / MVP / MMF
20. Building MVPs (or MMFs)
Breakdown of client needs:
• The client needs to go from A-B (let’s say 50 km)
• In under one hour, Every day, back and forth
• She also needs deposit space in case she does any shopping
• She needs extra space for friends in case he wants to take someone or bring someone along.
Client needs: to go from A-B (let’s say 50 km), in under one hour, every day, back and
fort; she also needs deposit space in case she does any shopping and space for friends
in case he wants to take someone or bring someone along.
23. Traditional vs Agile - game
Rules
• Each egg must have at least two different colors
• Two separate people must complete each coloring
activity
• Each egg should be minimum 90% filled with color
• White space doesn’t count as colour
• Cutting must be around oval edges of the egg
• Eggs with major distractions in cutting will be
disqualified
Method 1: Plan driven approach with waterfall team structure
3 min 6 min 3 min
Plan Execution Learning
Method 2: Multiple iterations with cross-functional team
1 min 2 min 1 min
Plan Execution Retro
1 min 2 min 1 min
Plan Execution Retro
1 min 2 min 1 min
Plan Execution Retro
27. Go and see is a management technique
A technique with four dimensions:
1. Develop judgement by testing hypotheses: figure out if you’re right or you
have misconception
2. Build consensus by getting people to agree on the problem before
debating a solution; most conflicts involve people arguing on the solution
when they don’t agree on what the problem really is (=> one-person
solutions, people resist implementation)
3. Achieve goals at the desired speed by checking regularly where people
are in the implementation and helping them if they run into impediments
4. Empower people by involving them. “Take it to the team”.
28. Kaizen - continuous improvement
• The heart of agile
• Help the team figure out what’s their best performance and why
• Try to beat that
• The “standard” m.o. is the best the team can give at any time; now try to
beat it
• Continuous improvement - the basis for creating “learning organisations”
29. 5
THE WHY
WHY
WHY
WHY
WHY’S
The vehicle will not start. (the problem)
1. Why?
– The battery is dead.
2. Why?
– The alternator is not functioning.
3. Why?
– The alternator belt has broken.
4. Why?
– The alternator belt was well beyond its useful
service life and not replaced.
5. Why?
– The vehicle was not maintained according to
the recommended service schedule.
=> the fifth why, a root cause
NOTE: you should continue asking “why” until
you reach the root cause of the problem. Only
then you jump into finding a solution.