Mike Palladino. Practical examples of working remote on a large distributed agile program. Ukraine Online PMDay Conference - http://online.pmday.org Part of Kyiv PMDay Conference - http://pmday.org Video at https://www.youtube.com/user/StartupLviv

1. PMDAY 2020 – Kyiv, Ukraine
Practical Examples of Working
on a Large Distributed Agile
Program
Mike Palladino, PMP, CSM
- Director, Agile Center of Excellence, Bristol-Myers Squibb
- Adjunct Professor, Villanova University
- Author, Data Management University
- Past President, PMI-DVC chapter
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2. Program Background – Pharmaceutical Wholesale
• Buys from pharmaceutical manufactures
• Sells to pharmacies and hospitals
• $153 Billion revenue
• #9 on the Fortune 500 list of largest
companies in the world
• #1 Walmart
• #2 Exxon
• #3 Apple
• #5 Amazon
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3. Program Background – Business Goal
• Build a web ordering solution for Pharmacies
• i.e. Build the “Amazon.com” platform for Pharmacies
• Features include
• Ordering
• Returns
• Safety data information
• Inventory
• Payment information
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4. Program Background –
• Web-based Java solution
• SAP Hybris eCommerce & Customer
Relationship Mgmt (CRM) solution
• C/4 Hana and other SAP modules
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5. Program Background – Team
• 200 people in 9 teams
• $120 Million
• 4 Vendors: SAP, IBM,
and 2 others
• 9 Location: USA (PA, MA,
TN, NY, CA, LA), Toronto,
Dublin, Hyderabad
• 5 time zones
• 13 1/2 hour time
difference
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6. Program Background – Program Structure
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Sponsors, Stakeholders + team
below
Product Manager, Product Owners,
Scrum Masters, Dev Lead, Test Lead
Team
1
Team
2
Team
3
Team
4
Team
5
Team
6
Team
7
Team
8
Team
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Vendor Leads

7. Program Background – Sample Team structure
• Product Owners x2
• Business PO and IT PO
• Scrum Master x1
• Business Analyst/Testers x5
• Full Stack developers x7
• Hana developers x5
• User Experience (UX) x2
• Total: 22 people in 7 sites, 5 time zones
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8. Program Background – Agile Experience
• Little to no Agile Experience
• Initial training
• All 9 teams
• 2 Agile Coaches
• 4 Scrum Masters
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9. Program Background – Tools
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10. Retention of Information
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• Retention of Information
• 10% of what we read
• 15% of what we read and see
• 80% of what we do
• Visual, fun,
hands-on

11. Remote Sponsors and Team Members
• Become the local eyes and ears for sponsor
• Keep Sponsors in the loop more than normal
• Formal and informal conversations
• Concerns, worries, early warnings for future problems
• Use video where applicable
• But, beware if video becomes distracting
• Rotate who speaks first
• Call on people from all sites
• Laptop Closed
Mastering Project Management 11

12. Trust - Getting to Know Each Other
Initial Introductions
Thank you card
Thank you at work
Team “group photo”
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13. The Team!
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Name
RoleName
Role
Name
Role
Name
Role
Name
Role
Name
Role Name
Role
Name
Role
Name
Role
Name
Role

14. Retrospective
Single most valuable ceremony
Builds Trust
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Increased Velocity 400%
in 3 ½ months
No evenings, weekends
or overtime

15. Trust  Motivation
• Improves team performance
• Highly motivated team will always outperform a poorly motivated team
• Infectious (in a good way)
• Reduces external problems
Mastering Project Management 15

16. Question and Reference
• Treating people Fairly or the Same?
• “First Break all the Rules” by Marcus Buckingham
• What makes a great manager/leader?
• Great managers treat their staff the way they want/need to be treated. They do NOT
treat everyone the same.
• i.e. more independent vs needs support
Mastering Project Management 16

17. Motivational Strategies
• Strategies reminder – samples from the material
• Command and Control – Do what I say
• Carrot and Stick – Reward if good, punishment if bad
• Achievement – Want to accomplish something
• Affiliation – Be part of a group
• Power – Ability to influence others
• What motivates you? What style do you prefer?
• What style is least motivating?
• What style do you use to motivate others?
• Do you find it easy or hard to motivate others?
Mastering Project Management 17
“Motivation is a fire from within. If
someone else tries to light that fine
under you, chances are it will burn
very briefly.”
-Stephen R Covey

18. Motivating and Trust
• Motivating people
• The Baseball coach Billy Bean is trying to motivate an
older player
• “Need you to set the example. Others will look up to you
as a leader”
• Trust
• Build early and often
• Able to rely on trust during the stressful times
Mastering Project Management 18

19. Bonus – When Everyone Works From Home
• Schedule breaks
• Schedule family time in your calendar
• Talk a walk
• Play cards
• Cook together
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20. Conclusion
• Working remote is becoming more common
• Senior leaders are experiencing Work from
Home and see the benefits
• Try new ideas
• Experiment
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21. PMDAY 2020 – Kyiv, Ukraine
Thank you!
Questions ???
Comments ???
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