Talk given on Agile Tour Brussels 2015 about some dysfunctionalities typically seen in Agile transformations, as well as some recommendations and thoughts on what we could do about it.

1. POLITICALLY
INCORRECT
AGILE
Red Ink Edition
Tiago Garcez
@tcgarcez
Agile Tour Brussels
2 November, 2015

2. “EVERYTHING IS
WONDERFUL HERE…
…THE ONLYTHING
UNAVAILABLE IS RED INK”

3. THERE’S PLENTY OF GREAT
TEAMS AND STORIES…
… BUTTHISTALK IS ABOUT
DYSFUNCTIONALITIES

4. Dev Team
Agile
Coaches
Management
Consultants
Scrum
Masters
Managers
ACME INC.

5. Dev Team
IS EVERYBODY A
GOOD FIT FOR AGILE?

6. Work is inherently distasteful
People are not ambitious, don’t
want responsibility
Most people have little capacity
for creativity
Motivation occurs only at the
physiological and safety levels
Most people must be coerced to
achieve objectives
Work is play
Self-control necessary to achieve
organisational goals
Capacity for creativity is widely
distributed
Motivation occurs on social,
esteem and self-actualisation
levels
People can self-organise if
properly motivated
Theory X Theory Y
Which one are you?
Source: Douglas McGregor

7. WE ARE Y !!

8. REALLY ??
reality is we all have the potential to beY

9. WE KNOWTHE
CHARACTERS

10. “BIG FISH IN SMALL POND” GUY
After years of exposure to X-type environments, cynicism is his thing

11. “WATCH THE WORLD BURN” GUY
Unit tests? Continuous Integration? What’s the problem, are you scared?

12. “LAZY” GUY
Slow down!You keep delivering like that and expectations will be raised

13. “I CAN MANAGE ALL THIS” GUY
I know what we’re doing is bad, but at least it’s predictably bad

14. IT’S NOTTHEIR FAULT

15. PSYCHOLOGICAL BAGGAGE
heavier than you think

16. Does 99% of
the work
Says he will help
but doesn't
Has no idea
what’s happening
Disappears, shows up
when it’s done

17. DYSFUNCTIONAL TEAMS
assuming they are allY and that everything will be fine is dangerous

18. NOW MAKE
THEM AGILE !

19. "BUILD (…) AROUND
MOTIVATED INDIVIDUALS"

20. DON’T WORRY,
LATER WE WILL
WORRY ABOUT
CULTURE

21. PEAK AGILE
what everybody wants

22. ACME AGILE
what many end up with

23. HIRE PEOPLE
YOU CANTRUST

24. HIRE PEOPLE
YOU CANTRUST
And create an environment where they are
empowered to their job

25. HIRE PEOPLE
YOU CANTRUST
Hedge your bet by releasing often,
not by hiring the cheapest

26. Scrum
Masters
WHERE ARE ALLTHE
SCRUM MASTERS?

27. WHAT IS A SCRUM MASTER?
most organisations don’t understand the role

28. TWO POSSIBLE
OUTCOMES

29. TOO BUSY TO BE A SCRUM MASTER
more of a manager than anything else

30. FORCED TO BE A SCRUM MASTER
you get to keep your current role, but also be a Scrum Master !

31. WHAT ABOUTTHE GOOD
SCRUM MASTERS ?

32. WHY WOULD I STAY HERE?
why stress here when I can go be a freelance coach and earn more ?

33. CAN MANAGERS EXPLAIN THE SM ROLE?
heuristic: if the answer is “no”, your organisation has a long way to go

34. UNDERSTANDTHE
SCRUM MASTER ROLE

35. UNDERSTANDTHE
SCRUM MASTER ROLE
And create an environment where great
Scrum Masters can grow and be appreciated

36. Agile
Coaches
IS A COACH WORTH
THE MONEY?

37. YES.

38. BUT…

39. … ARE ALL COACHES
CREATED EQUAL?

40. NO.

41. HIRE THE RIGHT COACH
know what you are looking for,
beware of prescriptions

42. @COACHES: DON’T GET
TOO COMFORTABLE

43. WHO ISYOUR
COMPETITION?

44. MANAGEMENT CONSULTANCIES
more effective than us right now,
but on the wrong side of the paradigm shift

45. EVOLUTIONARY PURPOSE
differentiation by eating your own dog food
teal

46. HIRE A COACHTHAT
MATCHESYOUR LEVEL
OF AMBITION

47. Management
Consultants
FILLING INTHE
LEADERSHIPVOID

48. SOYOU WANT
TO BE AGILE?

49. THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
fear creeps into the minds of managers

50. RESIST
do we have to change everything?

51. ENTERTHE MANAGEMENT
CONSULTANTS

52. IMPROVEMENT ILLUSION
we will improve everything, while actually changing nothing

53. AGILE-BUT
hammering the square peg through the round hole

54. AGILE AS TOOL
something to do to improve productivity

55. MOST MANAGEMENT
CONSULTANCIES SELL
STABILITY, NOT CHANGE

56. AGILE IS UNSTABLE.
IT’S ABOUT
CONTINUOUS CREATION

57. Managers
THE MANAGEMENT
FARCE

58. ACT I.
GREAT EXPECTATIONS

59. THE PROMISE
Agile will improve productivity, happiness, and reduce cholesterol

60. IGNORING THE DISCLAIMERS
this is not a process, it’s a mindset, and as such this change will hurt

61. ACT II.
UNHOLY COMPROMISES

62. MY RESOURCES
we’ll create teams, but they remain with their current silo’d boss

63. LET’S NOT LOSE CONTROL
we’ll create metrics that have no relationship to the team

64. HIDE SOME ISSUES
some of these impediments are political, let’s leave them alone

65. EXECUTIVE INFALLIBILITY
I know it’s stupid, but the CEO said it, now we have to support it

66. ACT III.
TURD POLISHING

67. ITHINK WE
SHOULD DOTHE
. MODEL

68. WHAT’SYOUR
POINT?

69. ACME-OTIFY FRAMEWORK
it’s just like Spotify, except it’s sh*t

70. ACT IV.
CELEBRATE BANALITY

71. WE MADE IT !
it took only 8 months and 30 people to deliver this app, we’re rocking

72. ACTV.
EMPIRE STRIKES BACK

73. MY PRECIOUS
no cultural change happened, but management has a new improvement idea

74. MEH

75. “HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF,
FIRST ASTRAGEDY,
THEN AS FARCE”
- Karl Marx

76. MANAGEMENTVISION IS
THE BOTTLENECKTO
CHANGE

77. PEOPLE

78. HIRE PEOPLE
YOU CANTRUST

79. HIRE PEOPLE
YOU CANTRUST
And create an environment where they are
empowered to their job

80. HIRE PEOPLE
YOU CANTRUST
Hedge your bet by releasing often,
not by hiring the cheapest

81. SCRUM MASTERS

82. UNDERSTANDTHE
SCRUM MASTER ROLE
And create an environment where great
Scrum Masters can grow and be appreciated

83. COACHES

84. HIRE A COACHTHAT
MATCHESYOUR LEVEL
OF AMBITION

85. MANAGEMENT
CONSULTANCIES

86. MOST MANAGEMENT
CONSULTANCIES SELL
STABILITY, NOT CHANGE

87. AGILE IS UNSTABLE.
IT’S ABOUT
CONTINUOUS CREATION

88. MANAGERS

89. MANAGEMENTVISION IS
THE BOTTLENECKTO
CHANGE

90. “EVERYTHING IS
WONDERFUL HERE…
…THE ONLYTHING
UNAVAILABLE IS RED INK”

91. RED INK CHANGE

92. DON’T HIDE FROMTHE
CHALLENGE

93. Tiago Garcez
@tcgarcez
www.slideshare.net/tgarcez
ThankYou !
www.agilar.org