TAC2019 Agenda Shift Workshop

s q u i r r e l n o r t h . c o m
SquirrelNorth
CONSULTING | COACHING | TRAINING
Business Improvement
Through AgendaShift
martin@squirrelnorth.com
@martinaziz
SquirrelNorth

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SquirrelNorth
@martinaziz
squirrelnorth.com
ABOUT
MARTIN AZIZ
THEN
NOW

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Imagine
You were using a map. But you didn’t
know where you where you were or
where you were going?
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AGENDA SHIFT
Developed by Mike Borrows. It’s about approaching change
thinking through understanding where you wish to go by
and where you are today.

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The Change:
Lean, Agile, Lean-Agile, DevOps, OKR,
etc, etc, etc…
WHERE
TO WE
WANT TO
GO?
WHERE
ARE WE
TODAY?
THE INSTALL
We tend to approach change as if its about introducing
something new. We think left to right.
How do we
get there?
THINK RIGHT TO LEFT!
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Remember
the Future
Picture the scene: It’s some months from now, and you’re celebrating!
Isn’t it wonderful to see everyone together like this? And
you deserve it: over this period, you, your teams, and your entire
organization have achieved far more than anyone would have
thought possible. You dared to aim high, and still you smashed it!
The
Celebration

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Exercise 1 – THE CELEBRATION
We will be describing the celebration.

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The Celebration
When is the celebration?
What date did you program into your time
machine?
How much time was needed before you had
something this worthwhile to celebrate?
What are you celebrating?
Looking back, what accomplishments seem the
most meaningful?
What were the public/external successes?
What made these
important?
What was the level of challenge involved?
Who is celebrating?
Who deserves to be there?
Who helped you?
What part did your suppliers and customers
play in your successes?
Where is that celebration?
Where are you? A cozy corner in a nice
restaurant, The Carlu, Madison Square
Garden?
What country are you in?
Why are you all here?
Listen to what everyone is saying as they look back
on this special
period. How do they describe their involvement?
Why does any of it matter?

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Imagine
Everyone able to work consistently at their best:
o Individuals, teams, between teams, across the
organization and beyond
o Right conversations, right people, best possible
moment
o Needs anticipated, met at just the right time
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Obstacles
What obstacles stand in the way?
What obstacles do you need to overcome in order for everyone
able to work consistently at their best?

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Exercise 2 - OBSTACLES
What obstacles do you need to overcome in order for everyone able to work consistently at their best?
• Fill out section 2. By yourself come up with up to 7 obstacles.

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Do we
understand
the obstacles?
And what
should we do
about them?

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LET ASK SOME Thoughtful QUESTIONS

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Exercise 3 – OBSTACLES TO OUTCOMES

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LET ASK SOME Thoughtful QUESTIONS
Exercise 3.
Do this exercise in pairs:
• One person is the coach,
the other is the coachee.
• For each obstacle come
up with an outcome.
• Use this question guide to
assist your coaching.
• Switch roles half way!

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UNDER THE HOOD:
Clean Language
Clean Language is a communications methodology, developed by
David J Grove, a New Zealand 'Counselling Psychologist', during the
1980s and 1990s. The approach he devised was based on a new type
of questioning (and listening) that was rooted in honoring the client's
language rather than paraphrasing it, reserving advice rather than
pushing it, and cleaning up his own communications with respect to
assumptions and metaphors.

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The solution is
obvious and clear
for everyone
An expert or some
research can
determine the
“right” solution
No agreement on
“right” solution –
experimentation
needed
Nobody knows what
the “right” solution
might be
How can the outcomes be achieved?

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Exercise 4 – OUTCOME COMPLEXITY

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The solution is
obvious and clear
for everyone
An expert or some
research can
determine the
“right” solution
No agreement on
“right” solution –
experimentation
needed
Nobody knows what
the “right” solution
might be
Exercise 4
A
B
E D
C
F

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UNDER THE HOOD:
Framework by Dave Snowden

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Self Assessment Survey
(HOMEWORK)
The survey has 3 questions in each of 6 categories:
1. Transparency
2. Balance
3. Collaboration
4. Customer Focus
5. Flow
6. Leadership

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For each question please score:
1. Barely started - little evidence, if any
2. Early gains - sporadic evidence, not
widespread or consistent
3. Getting there - evident, but improvement
or more consistency needed
4. Nailing it, consistently - firmly established,
widely and consistently evident

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1.1
4
MA
We know the state of all our
work at any given time. The
customer always knows
where we are at. We use…
Score
Question #
Your Initial
Reason for
this score

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1. Transparency
1.1 Our delivery process and the work items currently in progress
within it are easily visible to all involved and interested parties
1.2 We have visibility of work items due to enter the delivery process
soon
1.3 We can see which work items are blocked and for what reason
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2. Balance
2.1 We bring work into the delivery process only as capacity allows,
preferring to finish work items already in progress than to start new
work items
2.2 We maintain a clear separation between work currently in
progress and work still under consideration
2.3 We take steps to avoid being overburdened with more work-in-
progress than we can accommodate effectively
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3. Collaboration
3.1 We work with those whose needs we are meeting in order to
understand, shape and size potential work before committing to
deliver it
3.2 Our delivery process encourages collaboration across roles and
specialties
3.3 We meet on a regular basis to review and improve our outputs
and processes
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4. Customer Focus
4.1 We seek to align our work to shared goals, prioritizing for
maximum impact
4.2 We incorporate customer feedback into our work while it is in the
delivery process
4.3 We continue to own work items until the customer confirms that
their needs are being met
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5. Flow
5.1 We can predict with reasonable confidence how long it will take to
deliver work of typical value and risk
5.2 We understand the performance of our delivery system in
sufficient detail to make timely decisions, to set appropriate
expectations, and to focus our improvement efforts
5.3 We proactively identify and address dependencies and other
impediments to flow
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6. Leadership
6.1 Together, we strive to meet customer needs, improve our delivery
systems, and develop new capabilities; in all three pursuits we are
appropriately recognized, supported, and rewarded
6.2 We ensure that opportunities for improvement are recognized
and systematically followed through
6.3 We all share the responsibility to seek clarification, to highlight
problems, and to come up with improvement ideas
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51%
20
28%
11
18%
7
3%
1
1 2 3 4
Balance
33%
12
31%
11
33%
12
3%
1
1 2 3 4
Transparency
15%
6
51%
20
33%
13
0%
0
1 2 3 4
Flow
ASSESSMENT RESULTS
Strongest -> Weakest

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WEAKEST RESULTS
Keeping it analog
Scores of 2 or lower
are usually more
obstacles to develop
into outcomes!

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All Questions TRANSPARENCY
BALANCE
COLLABORATION
CUSTOMER FOCUS
FLOW
LEADERSHIP
5.1 We can predict with reasonable confidence how long it will take to deliver work
of typical value and risk
5.2 We understand the performance of our delivery system in sufficient detail to
make timely decisions, to set appropriate expectations, and to focus our
5.3 We proactively identify and address dependencies and other impediments to
flow
6.1 Together, we strive to meet customer needs, improve our delivery systems, and
develop new capabilities; in all three pursuits we are appropriately recognized,
6.2 We ensure that opportunities for improvement are recognized and
systematically followed through
6.3 We all share the responsibility to seek clarification, to highlight problems, and to
come up with improvement ideas
3.1 We work with those whose needs we are meeting in order to understand,
shape and size potential work before committing to deliver it
3.2 Our delivery process encourages collaboration across roles and specialties
3.3 We meet on a regular basis to review and improve our outputs and processes
4.1 We seek to align our work to shared goals, prioritizing for maximum impact
4.2 We incorporate customer feedback into our work while it is in the delivery
process
4.3 We continue to own work items until the customer confirms that their needs
are being met
1.1 Our delivery process and the work items currently in progress within it are
easily visible to all involved and interested parties
1.2 We have visibility of work items due to enter the delivery process soon
1.3 We can see which work items are blocked and for what reason
2.1 We bring work into the delivery process only as capacity allows, preferring to
finish work items already in progress than to start new work items
2.2 We maintain a clear separation between work currently in progress and work
still under consideration
2.3 We take steps to avoid being overburdened with more work‐in‐progress than
we can accommodate effectively
2.0
2.4
1.8
1.0
2.4
1.8
2.7
1.9
1.8
2.4
2.2
3.0
2.1
2.5
2.0
2.5
2.0
2.5

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HOMEWORK: Obstacles to Outcomes Round 2.
For anything that scored a 2 or lower develop an outcome.

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ACHIEVE ORGANIZATIONAL FITNESS THROUGH 5 KEY CONCEPTS
Visual
Models
Improved
Predictability
through Flow
Maximize
Agility
Service
Delivery
Commitment
A Culture of
Respect &
Leadership
UNDER THE HOOD:
The Kanban Method

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OUTCOME Mapping
Let’s develop a map for our improvement journey.
Outcomes can be mapped into one of these 6 categories:
1. Refine existing work management systems
2. Improve the service experience
3. Manage the knowledge discovery process
4. Balance demand and capability
5. Address sources of dissatisfaction and other motivations
for change
6. Pursue fitness for purpose

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Refine
existing work
management
systems
Improve the
service
experience
Manage the
knowledge
discovery
process
Balance
demand and
capability
Address sources
of dissatisfaction
and other
motivations for
change
Pursue
fitness for
purpose
1.1 1.2 2.2 1.3 5.1 5.2 3.1 4.1 4.2 4.3 2.3 2.1 5.3 3.2 3.3 6.1 6.3 6.2
MAP survey questions
Each survey question can be mapped to one of these 6
categories.

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Refine
existing work
management
systems
Improve the
service
experience
Manage the
knowledge
discovery
process
Balance
demand and
capability
Address sources
of dissatisfaction
and other
motivations for
change
Pursue
fitness for
purpose
B C
E
D
G F A
1.1 1.2 2.2 1.3 5.1 5.2 3.1 4.1 4.2 4.3 2.3 2.1 5.3 3.2 3.3 6.1 6.3 6.2
MAP survey questions
Place outcomes into their corresponding categories.

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Exercise 6 – OUTCOME MAPPING
A
B
E D
C
F

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• Arrange your outcomes in
the provided categories.
Exercise 6 – OUTCOME MAPPING

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OUTCOME Mapping
You may wish to balance your strategy
Homework questions:
Is it balanced? Is something missing?
Choose which outcomes we are going to
pursue first.

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OUTCOME Mapping
What to do first?
Once mapped, you
may wish to determine
which outcomes to
work on now vs later.

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• For today we will only choose
one outcome we wish to focus
on first.
OUTCOME MAPPING
Choose something to focus on

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Exercise 7 – DEVELOP A CHANGE EXPERIMENT

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One owner or
partnership
Reference the
category and
outcome
The change being
done.
Assumptions you
can quickly
confirm
Assumptions to
be worked on
over time to
confirm or resolve
Who’s working
with you? Who’s
impacted?
Who might you
need to get
agreements with?
Fill out as you go with your observations,
metrics, board designs, etc. Bring with you
to the Service Delivery Review (SDR)
What are the
negative issues that
may come up that
need to be handled?
What are the
positive outcomes?
How can you ensure
them.
Do I need to design small
experiments to build up to this
one? I will create more A3s and
reference them here.
We believe that <actionable change>
will result in <meaningful outcome>.
If successful, we might expect to see:
– <observable impact>
– …
– <observable impact>

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IMPROVEMENT KATA
Continuous improvement approach part of
Toyota Production System (TPS)
The Current
Condition
Target
Condition
Vision
UNDER THE HOOD:
USER STORY MAPPING
User Story Mapping: Discover the Whole
Story, Build the Right Product - Jeff Paton

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Resources
Agendashift,
Mike Borrows.
Kanban,
David J. Anderson
Clean Language,
Wendy Sullivan,
Judy Rees
Toyota Kata,
Mike Rother
w w w . s q u i r r e l n o r t h . c o m
/ p o s t / s h i f t i n g - t h e - a g e n d a - o n - b u s i n e s s - i m p r o v e m e n t
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Martin Aziz
Principal Consultant, SquirrelNorth
Martin brings years of experience working in the Fortune 500 as a
senior leader, executive and change agent. A teacher and guide, he has
a track record of developing new leaders and transforming
companies. For the last two decades he has a history of building and
transforming: bringing everyone along with him acting as teacher and
guide in developing new leaders.
Martin is actively affiliated with Lean Kanban Inc. as an accredited
Kanban Coaching Professional (KCP) and Accredited Kanban Trainer
(AKT). He speaks regularly at conferences focusing on improving how
businesses are organized.

TAC2019 Agenda Shift Workshop

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TAC2019 Agenda Shift Workshop