This presentation explores and compares 5 different experiences in which I was the Product Sponsor or Head Product Owner partnering with Agile teams that were based in Bosnia, China, India, and Germany and what led to the success or failure of these 5 different products. The common factors across all 5 case studies include: Understanding of High Level Business Objectives Rigidity of Agile Habits & Rituals Openness of Communication Partners or "Mercenaries" ***Spoiler Alert*** Each of the successful products 1. Ensured that the entire agile team understood the high level objectives. 2. Chose the right method (Scrum & Kanban) that fit the situation, 3. Established open communication channels, meetings, and tools, 4. The agile team were viewed as partners & team members as opposed to just hired help.

1. The Ugly Americans
Successes & Failures from Distributed Agile Teams
HOTEL EUROPE, October 21st

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’Murica

4. 4
Another Ugly American Stakeholder
Jonathan Toler
Product Guy
• 16 Years
• 9 Companies
• 16 Countries
• 10 Unique Products Launched
• 12 Products Attempted 

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4 Tenants of Distributed Agile Team Success
High Level Business Understanding
Does every team member actually understand the
business problem they are solving?
01
Flexible Agile Rituals
Follow the spirit of agile, not a playbook. Ritual and
artifacts should flow with the team.
02
Transparency
Information does not care about location or role.
03
Be Allies Not Mercenaries
Motivational alignment is key to LT success.
04

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Use Case 1: Survey Tool
Objective
Using the next generation technology stack, build a
survey & research MVP with a 4 month go-to-
market.
Location
Atlanta
Sarajevo
Florida
Member Agile Lead Product Owner

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Success
• Turned Mercenaries Into Allies by ensuring all
team members were motivated by success.
• The team decided how to apply the agile
rituals they thought would make them
successful.
• Unfiltered 2-way access to people and
information was available for all team
members.

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Use Case 2: Promotions Mgr.
Objective
Create an industry-first tool to allow radio stations
the ability to manage radio promotional events.
Location
Atlanta
Sarajevo
Florida
Member Agile Lead Product Owner

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Not a Success
• Failed to ensure every team member had a
high level understanding of what they were
building.
• Stakeholders viewed developers as “hired
help” which stifled communication and
innovation.

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Use Case 3: E-Commerce Platform
Objective
Create a new software platform that leverages a
“cutting edge” technology stack that will change the
way Americans order TV & Internet.
Location
Atlanta
Sarajevo
Frankfurt
Shanghai
Romania
Miami
Member Agile Lead Product Owner

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Not a Success
• Language Barriers kept 4 or 5 developers from
having direct conversations w/ others.
• Leadership refused to split team up and let
team self-determine how it worked together.
• Half of the developers had no clue what they
were writing code for.

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Use Case 4: Reward Platform
Objective
Rewrite a SaaS product that rewards home services
customers for the number of successful referrals
from social media.
Location
Atlanta
Sarajevo
Romania
Miami
Member Agile Lead Product Owner

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Success
• Since previous proess was documentation
heavy, development team was up-to-speed
instantly.
• Team chose Kanban method of working since
each team member could do almost
everything.

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Applying Lessons at Kloeckner
High Level Business Understanding
• Every developer has access to business strategy
dcouments.
• Product Owners & Developers get to meet customers.
• Frequent workshops by stakeholders / executives on
features.
Flexible Agile Rituals
• Team chose the LeSS Framework.
• Team + Stakeholders chose to have a multi-step
stakeholder review process.
Transparency
• Slack ensures that developers and QA have direct access
to stakeholders and executive sponsors.
• Product business performance as well as deployments,
commits, and system data are all free and open.
Be Allies Not Mercenaries
• Compensation based on the same metrics, product
performance.
• Our employees are highly motivated because they
believe that they are revolutionizing the steel industry

15. THANK YOU!