The short answer to the title question is, of course, don't hold one at all.
The long answer is: Read the full article…
How not to hold a webinar
Leave a reply
Category Archives: agile
What we learned from (teaching) our first Certified ScrumMaster class
Chris recently co-taught Agile Learning Labs' Certified ScrumMaster training course under the visionary tutelage of Jeff McKenna. Jeff, as you no doubt know, was a member of the first Scrum team, and he knows a thing or two on the subject. He and Chris worked well together. One student quipped, "It's like Chris is the Mom and Jeff is the dad." If your mom is a former lounge lizard with a beard…. No, it makes sense. Chris is the nurturer who wants to provide you with a safe place to learn to crawl, then walk, then run; Jeff, on the other hand, is the wise and wisecracking veteran of the front lines, with a satchel full of war stories–and riveting delivery. Having both in the classroom made for a fun, dynamic learning environment.
The Agile Product Manager’s Guide to the Galaxy
Yesterday Chris and I got together with Steve Bockman to hold a rehearsal for a new class: The Agile Product Manager's Guide to the Galaxy, which debuts on Wednesday September 30. I got to play the persnickety customer during a couple of exercises, and I think my portrayal was a bit… authentic. Ah well, they'll be well prepared to demonstrate special-forces-approved customer interview techniques come Wednesday.
It's going to be a fun day: user stories, story mapping, paper prototyping, and assorted other tools and techniques to limber up a product manager.
There is still time to sign up, or try your luck bidding on a seat on ebay!
Yes, there will be a test at the end. The answer is 42.
Agile Retrospectives – Part 2
In my first post about retrospectives, I described what a retrospective is, why you want to do them, and described the Retrospective Prime Directive. Now it's time to talk about how to do a retrospective.
Agile Retrospectives – Part 1
Retrospectives are a scrum team’s most powerful tool for facilitating continuous improvement. We’ve all encountered teams making the same mistakes and suffering the same pain over and over again. The good news is that it’s possible to break this cycle by investing as little as one hour per week in a sprint retrospective.
Scrum Master Certification Workshop with Jeff McKenna
What: Certified Scrum Master Workshop
When: Saturday and Sunday, September 12 & 13
Where: Redwood City, CA
Who: Jeff McKenna and Chris Sims
Fun & Games & Aha moments at the Bay APLN
A couple of weeks ago, Chris was the guest speaker at the Bay Area Agile Project Leadership Network's monthly meeting. It was an evening of game-playing and simulations. One of the most popular is a simple game that takes under five minutes to play, but always blows the tops of people's heads off by demonstrating concretely and irrevocably just how deeply multitasking cuts into productivity and even quality. This particular exercise led to some insightful conversations and aha moments, including:
‘State of Agile’ Survey Open
The fourth annual State of Agile survey is open for participation. The survey is sponsored by VersionOne Software. Over the past 3 years, the survey has provided some interesting insight into what agile practices are actually being used, and what benefits companies are getting from going agile.
I just wrote about the survey for InfoQ. Just because you read this blog, you can get a sneak peak. The rest of the world will have to wait until it hits the InfoQ front page on Monday morning.
Cheers,
Ah Ha! Moments from the Great Requirements Showdown
Tonight, at the North Bay Agile meetup, I facilitated "The Great Requirements Showdown!" It's an experiential exercise that pits traditional written requirements against the agile alternative: user stories and face-to-face communication.
During the workshop, participants wrote down their 'Ah Ha!' moments and we shared and talked about them. Here are they are:
Sticky Note Stop Motion
Here at Agile Learning Labs, we go through almost this many sticky notes every day. Almost.
BTW, registration for the August Agile Project Management learning lab closes on Monday. Check it out now!