A radical approach to getting IT projects done faster and cheaper than anyone thinks possibleSoftware in 30 Days summarizes the Agile and Scrum software development method, which allows creation of game-changing software, in just 30 days. Projects that use it are three times more successful than those that don't. Software in 30 Days is for the business manager, the entrepreneur, the product development manager, or IT manager who wants to develop software better and faster than they now believe possible. Learn how this unorthodox process works, how to get started, and how to succeed. Control risk, manage projects, and have your people succeed with simple but profound shifts in the thinking.The authors explain powerful concepts such as the art of the possible, bottom-up intelligence, and why it's good to fail early―all with no risk greater than thirty days. The productivity gain vs traditional "waterfall" methods has been over 100% on many projects Author Ken Schwaber is a co-founder of the Agile software movement, and co-creator, with Jeff Sutherland, of the "Scrum" technique for building software in 30 days Coauthor Jeff Sutherland was cosigner of the Agile Manifesto, which marked the start of the Agile movementSoftware in 30 Days is a must-read for all managers and business owners who use software in their organizations or in their products and want to stop the cycle of slow, expensive software development. Programmers will want to buy copies for their managers and their customers so they will know how to collaborate to get the best work possible.

See how to mine the experience of your software development team continually throughout the life of the project. The tools and recipes in this book will help you uncover and solve hidden (and not-so-hidden) problems with your technology, your methodology, and those difficult "people" issues on your team.Project retrospectives help teams examine what went right and what went wrong on a project. But traditionally, retrospectives (also known as "post-mortems") are only helpful at the end of the project--too late to help. You need agile retrospectives that are iterative and incremental. You need to accurately find and fix problems to help the team today.Now, Derby and Larsen show you the tools, tricks, and tips you need to fix the problems you face on a software development project on an on-going basis. You'll see how to architect retrospectives in general, how to design them specifically for your team and organization, how to run them effectively, how to make the needed changes, and how to scale these techniques up. You'll learn how to deal with problems, and implement solutions effectively throughout the project--not just at the end.With regular tune-ups, your team will hum like a precise, world-class orchestra.

Detailed, Proven Techniques for Estimating and Planning Any Agile ProjectAgile Estimating and Planning is the definitive, practical guide to estimating and planning agile projects. In this book, Agile Alliance cofounder Mike Cohn discusses the philosophy of agile estimating and planning and shows you exactly how to get the job done, with real-world examples and case studies.Concepts are clearly illustrated and readers are guided, step by step, toward how to answer the following questions: What will we build? How big will it be? When must it be done? How much can I really complete by then? You will first learn what makes a good plan-and then what makes it agile.Using the techniques in Agile Estimating and Planning, you can stay agile from start to finish, saving time, conserving resources, and accomplishing more. Highlights include: Why conventional prescriptive planning fails and why agile planning works How to estimate feature size using story points and ideal days--and when to use each How and when to re-estimate How to prioritize features using both financial and nonfinancial approaches How to split large features into smaller, more manageable ones How to plan iterations and predict your team's initial rate of progress How to schedule projects that have unusually high uncertainty or schedule-related risk How to estimate projects that will be worked on by multiple teamsAgile Estimating and Planning supports any agile, semiagile, or iterative process, including Scrum, XP, Feature-Driven Development, Crystal, Adaptive Software Development, DSDM, Unified Process, and many more. It will be an indispensable resource for every development manager, team leader, and team member.

Learning Agile is a comprehensive guide to the most popular agile methods, written in a light and engaging style that makes it easy for you to learn.Agile has revolutionized the way teams approach software development, but with dozens of agile methodologies to choose from, the decision to "go agile" can be tricky. This practical book helps you sort it out, first by grounding you in agile's underlying principles, then by describing four specific--and well-used--agile methods: Scrum, extreme programming (XP), Lean, and Kanban.Each method focuses on a different area of development, but they all aim to change your team's mindset--from individuals who simply follow a plan to a cohesive group that makes decisions together. Whether you're considering agile for the first time, or trying it again, you'll learn how to choose a method that best fits your team and your company.\nUnderstand the purpose behind agile's core values and principles\nLearn Scrum's emphasis on project management, self-organization, and collective commitment\nFocus on software design and architecture with XP practices such as test-first and pair programming\nUse Lean thinking to empower your team, eliminate waste, and deliver software fast\nLearn how Kanban's practices help you deliver great software by managing flow\nAdopt agile practices and principles with an agile coach\n

Hiren Doshi, Scrum.org Professional Scrum Trainer & Coach in his book, Scrum Insights for Practitioners: The Scrum Guide Companion helps the practitioners master the Scrum framework by gaining in-depth practical insights and helps answer questions like: \nA pocket reference book for Scrum.org PSM I, PSM II and PSM III assessments What are some common myths, mysteries, and misconceptions of Scrum? \nThe Scrum Guide recommends three to nine members in a Development Team, but we have fifteen members. Is this Scrum? Can you share some tactics to do effective Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, Sprint Retrospective, and Product Backlog Refinement? My designation is development manager. Does this mean I have no role in Scrum? How is Scrum Empirical? Can Scrum Master and Product Owner be the same person? We don’t have a Scrum Master. Are we still practicing Scrum? What does Self-Organization really mean? How does Scrum embrace the four values and twelve principles of the Agile Manifesto? Please share a case study on Scrum based product development? \nRecommendations for the book from the Scrum champions Take advantage of Hiren’s vast experience and avoid making the common errors people make as they begin their journey. This book contains a wealth of practical information that will be useful to readers as they work to implement the basic theory found in The Scrum Guide—Steve Porter, team member, Scrum.org In his book Scrum Insights for Practitioners, Hiren has extended the core rules of The Scrum Guide with practices he has found useful. Hiren answers questions regarding Scrum that potentially remain unanswered even after one reads The Scrum Guide. Hiren dismantles common misconceptions about Scrum, regardless of the source of such misconceptions. Hiren elaborates on basic information provided in The Scrum Guide, as well as on the principles underlying Scrum—Gunther Verheyen, Author of “Scrum — A Pocket Guide, a Smart Travel Companion” Hiren Doshi has written a fine companion to The Scrum Guide, filling in some of the intentional gaps left in the Scrum framework. Using this companion along with The Scrum Guide will undoubtedly improve the outlook for those teams that internalize its teachings.”—Charles Bradley, ScrumCrazy.com This book will help you understand the nuances of Scrum. It takes a very practical approach toward implementing Scrum without compromising on its values and principles. A useful and handy reference for Scrum practitioners!—Gopinath R, Agile coach and practitioner

Proven, 100% Practical Guidance for Making Scrum and Agile Work in Any Organization This is the definitive, realistic, actionable guide to starting fast with Scrum and agile–and then succeeding over the long haul. Leading agile consultant and practitioner Mike Cohn presents detailed recommendations, powerful tips, and real-world case studies drawn from his unparalleled experience helping hundreds of software organizations make Scrum and agile work. Succeeding with Agile is for pragmatic software professionals who want real answers to the most difficult challenges they face in implementing Scrum. Cohn covers every facet of the transition: getting started, helping individuals transition to new roles, structuring teams, scaling up, working with a distributed team, and finally, implementing effective metrics and continuous improvement. Throughout, Cohn presents “Things to Try Now” sections based on his most successful advice. Complementary “Objection” sections reproduce typical conversations with those resisting change and offer practical guidance for addressing their concerns. Coverage includes \n Practical ways to get started immediately–and “get good” fast Overcoming individual resistance to the changes Scrum requires Staffing Scrum projects and building effective teams Establishing “improvement communities” of people who are passionate about driving change Choosing which agile technical practices to use or experiment with Leading self-organizing teams Making the most of Scrum sprints, planning, and quality techniques Scaling Scrum to distributed, multiteam projects Using Scrum on projects with complex sequential processes or challenging compliance and governance requirements Understanding Scrum’s impact on HR, facilities, and project management \nWhether you've completed a few sprints or multiple agile projects and whatever your role–manager, developer, coach, ScrumMaster, product owner, analyst, team lead, or project lead–this book will help you succeed with your very next project. Then, it will help you go much further: It will help you transform your entire development organization.

The Fast, Focused, Practical Guide to Excellence with Scrum The Great ScrumMaster: #ScrumMasterWay is your complete guide to becoming an exceptionally effective ScrumMaster and using Scrum to dramatically improve team and organizational performance. Easy to digest and highly visual, you can read it in a weekend…and use it for an entire career. Drawing on 15 years of pioneering experience implementing Agile and Scrum and helping others do so, Zuzana Šochová guides you step by step through all key facets of success as a ScrumMaster in any context. Šochová reviews the ScrumMaster’s responsibilities, introduces her powerful State of Mind model and #ScrumMasterWay approach, and teaches crucial metaskills that every ScrumMaster needs. Learn how to build more effective teams, manage change in Agile environments, and take fulladvantage of the immensely powerful ScrumMaster toolbox. Throughout, Šochová illuminates each concept with practical, proven examples that show how to move from idea to successful execution. \nUnderstand the ScrumMaster’s key role in creating high-performance self-organizing teams Master all components of the ScrumMaster State of Mind: teaching/mentoring, removing impediments, facilitation, and coaching Operate effectively as a ScrumMaster at all levels: team, relationships, and the entire system Sharpen key ScrumMaster cognitive strategies and core competencies Build great teams, and improve teams that are currently dysfunctional Drive deeper change in a safer environment with better support for those affected Make the most of Shu Ha Ri, System Rule, Root Cause Analysis, Impact Mapping, and other ScrumMaster tools Whether you’re a long-time Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) or participating in your first Scrum project, this guide will help you leverage world-class insight in all you do and get the outstanding results you’re looking for. Register your product at informit.com/register for convenient access to downloads, updates, and corrections as they become available

It’s time to extend the benefits of Scrum—greater agility, higher-quality products, and lower costs—from individual teams to your entire enterprise. However, with Scrum’s lack of prescribed rules, the friction of change can be challenging as people struggle to break from old project management habits. In this book, agile-process revolution leader Ken Schwaber takes you through change management—for your organizational and interpersonal processes—explaining how to successfully adopt Scrum across your entire organization. A cofounder of Scrum, Ken draws from decades of experience, answering your questions through case studies of proven practices and processes. With them, you’ll learn how to adopt—and adapt—Scrum in the enterprise. And gain profound levels of transparency into your development processes. Discover how to: \nEvaluate the benefits of adopting Scrum in any size organization Initiate an enterprise transition project Implement a single, prioritized Product Backlog Organize effective Scrum teams using a top-down approach Adapt and apply solutions for integrating engineering practices across multiple teams Shorten release times by managing high-value increments Refine your Scrum practices and help reduce the length of Sprints\n

EXPANDED AND UPDATEDDeliver Products in Short Cycles with Rapid Adaptation to Change, Fast Time-to-Market, and Continuous Improvement―Which Supports Innovation and Drives Competitive AdvantageShifting customer needs are common in today's marketplace. Businesses must be adaptive and responsive to change while delivering an exceptional customer experience to be competitive. There are a variety of frameworks supporting the development of products and services, and most approaches fall into one of two broad categories: traditional or agile. Traditional practices such as waterfall engage sequential development, while agile involves iterative and incremental deliverables. Organizations are increasingly embracing agile to manage projects, and best meet their business needs of rapid response to change, fast delivery speed, and more. With clear and easy to follow step-by-step instructions, Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions helps you: - Implement and use the most popular agile framework―Scrum- Deliver products in short cycles with rapid adaptation to change, fast time-to-market, and continuous improvement- Support innovation and drive competitive advantageAgile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions is for those interested or involved in innovation, project management, product development, software development or technology management. It's for those who have not yet used Scrum. It's also for people already using Scrum, in roles such as Product Owners, Scrum Masters, Development Team members (business analysts, solution and system architects, designers, developers, testers, etc.), customers, end users, agile coaches, executives, managers, and other stakeholders. For those already using Scrum, this guide can serve as a reference on practices for consideration and potential adaptation. Reactions to Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions have been fantastic:"One of the best Scrum books of all time" ― BookAuthority"The book highlights the versatility of Scrum beautifully"― Literary Titan "A superbly written and presented guide to team-based project management that is applicable across a broad range of businesses from consumer products to high-tech"― IndieBRAG "The book is excellent" ― Readers' Favorite "An all-inclusive instruction guide that is impressively 'user-friendly' in tone, content, clarity, organization, and presentation"― Midwest Book Review"A must-have"― PM World Journal Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions has received 17 first place awards: 5th Annual Beverly Hills Book Awards (Business-General)5th Annual Beverly Hills Book Awards (Technology)2016 London Book Festival (Business) Fall 2016 Pinnacle Book Achievement Awards (Business)2017 Feathered Quill Book Awards (Informational – Business)2016 New Apple Book Awards (Technology)2017 Independent Press Award (Technology)11th Annual National Indie Excellence Awards (Technology)2017 Pacific Rim Book Festival (Business)2017 Bookvana Awards (Green/Conscious Business)2017 Book Excellence Awards (Technology)14th Annual Best Book Awards (Business Reference)2017 New York City Big Book Awards (Technology)2017 Royal Dragonfly Book Awards (Science & Technology)2017 Human Relations Indie Book Awards (Workplace) 2018 Florida Book Festival (Business)2018 Pacific Book Awards (Business)Credit to Chris Hare and Colin Giffen, the technical editors on the book.Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions ― get your copy today!

If agile is so amazing, why is it so hard to produce reliable results?\nMost executives, managers, and team members get excited to adopt agile only to see it fall far short of expectations. This book has the answers to the team-level challenges that hold companies back.\n"This book describes not just every step of the agile process, but the entire process of becoming agile, the production of agile products, and how to deal with the changes that need to happen across an organization's whole culture." - Amazon ReviewerIn The Epic Guide to Agile, you'll discover:\nPersonal examples and anecdotes to tackle problems at their source\nEffective ways to introduce agile and Scrum into your organization\nThe exact system to achieve productive sprint planning sessions and successful sprints\nThe typical issues that can doom your team and how to conquer them\nThe testing and source code control techniques your team needs to be successful\nTricks to smoothly get your product into production and much, much more!\n\nAscendle CEO Dave Todaro has lived and breathed software development for over three decades. After running successful agile teams on a daily basis, he's ready to share his insights and techniques to help your company reap the benefits of his experience.

The rules and practices for Scrum—a simple process for managing complex projects—are few, straightforward, and easy to learn. But Scrum’s simplicity itself—its lack of prescription—can be disarming, and new practitioners often find themselves reverting to old project management habits and tools and yielding lesser results. In this illuminating series of case studies, Scrum co-creator and evangelist Ken Schwaber identifies the real-world lessons—the successes and failures—culled from his years of experience coaching companies in agile project management. Through them, you’ll understand how to use Scrum to solve complex problems and drive better results—delivering more valuable software faster. Gain the foundation in Scrum theory—and practice—you need to: \n\nRein in even the most complex, unwieldy projects \nEffectively manage unknown or changing product requirements \nSimplify the chain of command with self-managing development teams \nReceive clearer specifications—and feedback—from customers \nGreatly reduce project planning time and required tools \nBuild—and release—products in 30-day cycles so clients get deliverables earlier \nAvoid missteps by regularly inspecting, reporting on, and fine-tuning projects \nSupport multiple teams working on a large-scale project from many geographic locations \nMaximize return on investment! \n

★★Buy the Paperback Version of this Book and Get the Kindle Book version for FREE ★★ Does your business need a better software development process? Maybe you're dealing with complex problems and need to manage products in a more productive way. Why not try anAgile Framework, specifically the Scrum Agile Framework! \n But what exactly is Scrum? It's a management framework that is versatile enough to be used in different projects. It can help streamline your business while delivering products of the highest possible value! It allows cooperation between the development team, the business owner, the stakeholders, and the customer - all at the same time! It promotes the strength of community and why working together as a development team is so important. Within Scrum, each and every role is important and helps to produce the finished product in a timely manner and within budget. And bonus, it also helps to keep the customer happy! And while Scrum, and the Agile Framework itself, can be a little confusing, this book talks about the process behind the system in an easy-to-understand manner.Scrum: The Ultimate Beginner's Guide To Learn And Master Scrum Agile Framework defines each role within Scrum and outlines each specific stepyou and your business needs to take in order to successfully help your company better itself. This book explains the many different uses for Scrum Agile Framework including: \n\n\nUsing Scrum in an effective way\n\nWhat exactly is Scrum?\n\nHow can Scrum help me and my business?\n\nWhat are the different roles in Scrum?\nScrum Activities\nScrum Artifacts\nWhat is Scrum good for?\nThe different stages of Scrum\nWhat is a Sprint?\nHow to use the Product Backlog\nWhat does the Scrum Team do?\nThe Agile Manifesto\nWho's in charge when implementing Scrum?\nWhy would I even want to use Scrum?\nIs it really worth it?\nHow Scrum can help with quality\nHow Scrum can help with team building and cooperation\nAnd much more \n\nBy reading this guide, you will be able to implement the principles of Scrum for your business and see a marked improvement in how you deal with complex problems. Don't waste your time working with a guide that's only going to make an already complicated topic even more complicated. Buy this book now to learn everything you need to know in no time!

Any Agile approach involves change. If you choose Scrum as the new way to do work, an effective Scrum Master is critical to successfully meeting goals and objectives and continuously improving. New Scrum Masters tend to focus on the "mechanical" part of the Scrum framework. Yes, that is an important part of the job! The more important aspect of the S.M.'s job is the "people" part. The Scrum Master is a coach, a guide, an objective facilitator and a teacher. Many companies say they want to "Go Agile" and choose the Scrum framework but do not understand scrum mastery.This book provides many secrets every new Scrum Master should know. It can also be helpful to others in an organization who seek to understand this role more in depth. This book is not only packed full of tips and tricks for coaches, it provides practical scenarios to work through. These case studies provide the reader a safe way to think through Scrum Master interventions resulting in several lessons learned.If you want to improve your "people chip" and enhance your scrum master skills, this book is for you.

Do you want to manage projects more effectively? Do you want to increase your team’s productivity, collaboration, and deliver business value sooner?Scrum is the leading Agile methodology used by Fortune 500 companies and is transforming businesses everywhere.\nIn this ever-changing world of customer expectations and new technologies, businesses need to be Agile to get ahead and stay there. With Scrum, you can be ready to adapt to the inevitable change.\nIn this book, “Scrum Fundamentals - A Beginner’s Guide to Mastery of The Scrum Project Management Methodology,” you will learn:\n\nHow to embrace the Agile mindset\nThe different stages of Scrum\nHow to break down a complex task and prioritize\nWhat a Scrum team looks like and how to build one\nHow to run sprints, backed with real-world examples\nCommon mistakes and how to avoid them\nMeaningful metrics to track progress\nApplications of Scrum outside of software development\nHow to get started with Scrum and overcome any resistance\nAnd more...\n\nBy the end of this book you will have the confidence to implement Scrum within your organization, how to run your first sprint, and bring others on board.\nAre you ready to start seeing results?\nGrab your copy today and transform the way you manage projects and teams.\n★★ Buy the Paperback Version of this Book and get the Kindle Book version for FREE ★★

This book aims to give you a head start by providing a detailed downtoearth account of how one Swedish company implemented Scrum and Xp with a team of approximately 40 people and how they continuously improved their process over a year's time. Under the leadership of Henrik Kniberg they experimented with different team sizes, different sprint lengths, different ways of defining "done", different formats for product backlogs and sprint backlogs, different testing strategies, different ways of doing demos, different ways of synchronizing multiple Scrum teams, etc. They also experimented with Xp practices different ways of doing continuous build, pair programming, test driven development, etc, and how to combine this with Scrum. This second edition is an annotated version, a "director's cut" where Henrik reflects upon the content and shares new insights gained since the first version of the book.

About Agile Development In Practice The development of complex systems is fraught with difficulty. Many organizations have taken the vocabulary and outward form of agile practice, but without sponsoring the deep change that agile adoption genuinely requires. The benefits they hope for escape them...and their projects continue to fail. All too often, nothing really changes at all. This book tells you what agile practice is really about, and how to achieve it. The essential components of an agile way of working are laid out chapter by chapter. The book concludes with a concise treatment of the agile transformation problem, and shows how to leverage agile patterns and practices in order to resolve it. About the Author Ian Mitchell's experience in iterative and incremental delivery began with a PhD on object-oriented rapid prototyping in 1997. He then worked as a developer for several years where he witnessed the failure of many initiatives that were allegedly implementing Scrum. He realized that his true vocation was to help teams and organizations to better understand agile practice. Dr. Mitchell has a particular focus on evidence-based enterprise transformation and is the curator of a related site, agilepatterns.org. A Scrum advocate and accredited Professional Scrum Trainer, he is a veteran member of the scrum.org forums.

Are you already working in Scrum but stuck in a rut?   Do you know the basics of Scrum but don't feel like you can adequately support your team? Scope creep, team members showing up late, challenging stakeholders... sound familiar? "Scrum Mastery - Agile Leadership to Take Your Team's Performance from Good to Great," goes beyond the basics of Scrum.  You will learn how to become a skilled Scrum Master who is more than just a meeting facilitator, and how to lead your team to greatness. This book is for people and organizations who are serious about Scrum and Agile, and looking for more in-depth advice. You will learn: What a great Scrum Master looks like Common 'anti-patterns' in Scrum and Agile, and how to overcome them How to run an effective self-organizing team A simple tool to keep stakeholders on board How to build a culture of feedback and continuous improvement How to run better Scrum meetings, such as daily stand-ups and retrospectives Exercises and workshops to foster team collaboration Scaling Scrum across multiple teams and locations And more... By the end of this book you will have gained a deeper insight into Scrum, understand the full scope of what it can do, and how to practice great servant leadership. Are you ready to start seeing results? Grab your copy today and take your team's performance from good to great. ★★ Buy the Paperback Version of this Book and get the Kindle Book version for FREE ★★

When it was first published in 2009, Scrum Product Ownership was the first book to address the Product Owner role in detail. It was a breakthrough guide in how to drive high quality and customer value while maintaining a singular focus on agile delivery principles. Fast forward to 2019, ten years later, and much has changed.Scrum has been in use for over 20 years, but the role of Product Owner is still a challenge. For example: scaling Scrum, inspiring innovative solutions, delivering and measuring value, providing team leadership, being a part of organizational transformation, and simple survival are all still in play. In other words, the role is still just plain HARD. The Third Edition of Scrum Product Ownership has been written to help with today’s challenges. It has more practical advice, real-world tactics, and stories. It provides a framework of ideas to help today's Product Owners and their teams to better “Deliver the Goods.” However, it remains true to its heritage of guiding you towards becoming a GREAT Product Owner.

Scrum is the most widely adopted Agile framework in the world. It is easy to understand and yet, difficult to master. Having trained thousands of professionals across the world and helped them implement Scrum in their organizations, the authors provide practical, succinct, and effective answers to 50 of the most common questions about Scrum. This book is for Scrum practitioners, Scrum Masters, Product Owners, and Agile Coaches who want to refine their expertise and to take Scrum to the next level.\\nIncludes an interview with Jeff Sutherland, co-creator of Scrum.\\nSprint Your Way to Scrum will do the following:\\n●Provide succinct answers to commonly asked questions about the Scrum framework\n●Enable you to explain/teach Scrum elements in a very easy and effective way to peers\n●Allow you to understand the usual problems teams face when implementing Scrum\n●Debunk day-to-day myths about Scrum\n●Help you identify the gap between Knowing About Scrum and Mastering Scrum

eXtreme Programming is an ideal many software shops would love to reach, but with the constant pressures to produce software quickly, they cannot actually implement it. The Agile software process allows a company to implement eXtreme Programming quickly and immediately-and to begin producing software incrementally in as little as 30 days! Implementing eXtreme Programming is easier said than done. The process can be time consuming and actually slow down current software projects that are in process. This book shows readers how to use SCRUM, an Agile software development process, to quickly and seamlessly implement XP in their shop-while still producing actual software. Using SCRUM and the Agile process can virtually eliminate all downtime during an XP implementation.

This pocket guide to Scrum is the one book for everyone who wants to learn or re-learn about Scrum. The book describes the framework as it was designed and intended, with a strong focus on the purpose to the rules and adding an historical perspective to Scrum and the Agile movement.Several elements that were described in the first edition of Scrum - A Pocket Guide (2013) were later added to the official Scrum Guide. The most noticeable ones are the Scrum Values (2016) and the description of the 3 questions of the Daily Scrum as a good, yet optional practice (2017).As the balance of society keeps shifting from industrial labor to digital work, complexity and unpredictability keep increasing. The need for agility through Scrum increases equally, in and beyond software and product development.This 2nd edition of Scrum - A Pocket Guide offers the clarity and insights on Scrum that many organizations need, today and in the foreseeable future.Scrum – A Pocket Guide is an extraordinarily competent book. It flows with insight, understanding, and perception. This should be the de factostandard handout for all looking for a complete, yet clear overview ofScrum without being bothered by irrelevancies.(Ken Schwaber, Scrum co-creator)The author, Gunther Verheyen, is a seasoned Scrum practitioner (2003). Throughout his standing career as a consultant, Gunther has employed Scrum in diverse circumstances. He was partner to Ken Schwaber and Director of the Professional Scrum series at Scrum.org. Heis the founder of Ullizee-Inc and engages with people and organizations as an independent Scrum Caretaker.

The Go-To Resource for Large-Scale Organizations to Be Agile Rather than asking, “How can we do agile at scale in our big complex organization?” a different and deeper question is, “How can we have the same simple structure that Scrum offers for the organization, and be agile at scale rather than do agile?” This profound insight is at the heart of LeSS (Large-Scale Scrum). In Large-Scale Scrum: More with LeSS, Craig Larman and Bas Vodde have distilled over a decade of experience in large-scale LeSS adoptions towards a simpler organization that delivers more flexibility with less complexity, more value with less waste, and more purpose with less prescription. Targeted to anyone involved in large-scale development, Large-Scale Scrum: More with LeSS, offers straight-to-the-point guides for how to be agile at scale, with LeSS. It will clearly guide you to \nAdopt LeSS Structure a large development organization for customer value Clarify the role of management and Scrum Master Define what your product is, and why Be a great Product Owner Work with multiple whole-product focused feature teams in one Sprint that produces a shippable product Coordinate and integrate between teams Work with multi-site teams

Agile adoption can only be successful when the people themselves create the necessary changes and are committed and feel accountable for it. The goal, vision and reasons for the adoption should be clearly communicated. But the path towards agility can only emerge by walking it. In EMERGENT, Cesario Ramos shares his experience in Agile adoption. He introduces the Emergent Innovation Framework that you can use to: - Successfully lead your Agile adoption - Engage people in the change so that the change sticks - Create an innovative workplace that enables the needed changes to reveal themselves. The ideas in this booklet come from years of leading Agile change initiatives, guiding teams, projects, departments and organizations in changing to a Agile way of developing products.

Six Sigma Certifications have become very popular in recent times. This guide aims to provide comprehensive and detailed knowledge regarding the subject as well as study materials that students can benefit from. There are separate sections on Scrum, Kanban and Agile Project Management in this book because they will ultimately provide the Six Sigma student with valuable insight.This guide includes hundreds of practice test questions with answers so that the student can be fully prepared before the exam. There are different questions included by category: White, Green, Yellow and Black Belt Certifications.

Teams -- the key to top performanceMotorola relied heavily on teams to surpass its competition in building the lightest, smallest, and highest-quality cell phones. At 3M, teams are critical to meeting the company's goal of producing half of each year's revenues from the previous five years' innovations. Kodak's Zebra Team proved the worth of black-and-white film manufacturing in a world where color is king.But many companies overtook the potential of teams in turning around tagging profits, entering new markets, and making exciting innovations happen -- because they don't know how to utilize teams successfully. Authors Jon R. Katzenbach and Douglas K. Smith talked with hundreds of people in more than thirty companies to find out where and how teams work best and how to enhance their effectiveness. They reveal:The most important element in team successWho excels at team leadership ... and why they are rarely the most senior peopleWhy companywide change depends on teams ... and moreComprehensive and proven effective, The Wisdom of Teams is the classic primer on making teams a powerful tool for success in today's global marketplace.

The basics of being a ScrumMaster are fairly straightforward: At face value all a ScrumMaster needs to do is facilitate the Scrum process and remove impediments. But being a great ScrumMaster, one who truly embodies the principles of servant-leadership and helps move a team to the high performance levels possible with Scrum, is much harder and much more elusive. \nIn this book Geoff shares a collection of stories and practical guidance, drawn from over ten years of coaching numerous Scrum teams that will guide you on your path to greatness.\nIn this book you will learn:\nThe skills and characteristics of great ScrumMasters\nHow to generate, maintain and increase engagement from the team\nHow to increase the effectiveness of the Scrum meetings, such as retrospectives and daily scrums.\nHow to foster a more creative and collaborative team\nHow to increase the performance of the team\nHow to know when you are a successful ScrumMaster\nScrum Mastery is for practicing ScrumMasters who want to develop themselves into a great servant-leader capable of taking their teams beyond simple process compliance.\nMike Cohn, in his foreword for the book, said:\n"Most books rehash well-trod territory and I don’t finish them any wiser. I am positive I will be referring back to this book for many years" \nRoman Pichler said:\n"I am thoroughly impressed with how comprehensive and well-written the book is. It will be indispensable for many people"

An essential guide for any small group that must deliver team performance. With the demand for project-oriented work and faster, more nimble responses, successful small-group performance is more crucial than ever. Katzenbach and Smith, authors of the international bestseller The Wisdom of Teams, have again joined forces, revealing how to implement the disciplines, frameworks, tools, and techniques required for team- and small-group performance. Combining their insights and practical strategies, they offer concepts and pragmatic, doable exercises for team leaders and team members to deliver results. Hot topics covered include: why small-group performance demands expertise at two disciplines, team level and leader level, instead of one; virtual teams; and global teams. This book combines practical exercises with cutting-edge insights, and both authors are authorities on the subject. Attend a featured author workshop at the 13th International Conference on Work Teams: Collaborating for Competitive Advantage, September 23-25, 2002, in Dallas, TX. For information, contact the Center for the Study of Work Teams at 940 565 3096 or visit them online at www.workteams.unt.edu.

In Michael Bungay Stanier's The Coaching Habit, coaching becomes a regular, informal part of your day so managers and their teams can work less hard and have more impact.Drawing on years of experience training more than 10,000 busy managers from around the globe in practical, everyday coaching skills, Bungay Stanier reveals how to unlock your peoples' potential. He unpacks sevenessential coaching questions to demonstrate how--by saying less and asking more--you can develop coaching methods that produce great results.Get straight to the point in any conversation with The Kickstart QuestionStay on track during any interaction with The Awe QuestionSave hours of time for yourself with The Lazy Question, and hours of time for others with The Strategic QuestionGet to the heart of any interpersonal or external challenge with The Focus Question and The Foundation QuestionFinally ensure others find your coaching as beneficial as you do with The Learning QuestionA fresh innovative take on the traditional how-to manual, the book combines insider information with research based in neuroscience and behavioural economics, together with interactive training tools to turnpractical advice into practiced habits. Witty and conversational, The Coaching Habit takes your work--and your workplace--from good to great."Coaching is an art and it's far easier said than done. It takes courage to ask a question rather than offer up advice, provide and answer, or unleash a solution. giving another person the opportunity to find their own way, make their own mistakes, and create their own wisdom is both brave and vulnerable. In this practical and inspiring book, Michael shares seven transformative questions that can make a difference in how we lead and support. And he guides us through the tricky part - how to take this new information and turn it into habits and a daily practice." --Brené Brown, author of Rising Strong and Daring Greatly"Michael Bungay Stanier distills the essentials of coaching to seven core questions. And if you master his simple yet profound technique, you'll get a two-fer. You'll provide more effective support to your employeesand co-workers. And you may find that you become the ultimate coach for yourself."--Daniel H. Pink, author of To Sell Is Human and Drive"What can you do to become a better leader? Michael asks and answers this question by offering aspiring leaders seven thoughtful questions that will change their leadership habits. This book is full of practical,useful and interesting questions, ideas and tools that will guide any leader trying to be better."--Dave Ulrich, co-author of The Why of Work and The Leadership Code"Michael's intelligence, wit, articulateness and dedication to the craft of coaching shine forth in this brilliant how-to manual for anyone called to assist others. Even after four decades of my own experience in thisarena, The Coaching Habit has provided me with great takeaways."--David Allen, author of Getting Things Done"The Coaching Habit is funny, smart, practical, memorable and rounded in currentbehavioural science. I found it highly valuable for my own work and collaborations."--James Slezak, Executive Director of Strategy, New York Times

Offers a guide to effective project management in many business settings. This book provides a synthesis of the diverse strategies and practices in project management. It builds upon scientific research of complex adaptive systems for project managers and executives faced with the challenge of monitoring and controlling agile projects.

User story mapping is a valuable tool for software development, once you understand why and how to use it. This insightful book examines how this often misunderstood technique can help your team stay focused on users and their needs without getting lost in the enthusiasm for individual product features.Author Jeff Patton shows you how changeable story maps enable your team to hold better conversations about the project throughout the development process. Your team will learn to come away with a shared understanding of what you’re attempting to build and why. Get a high level view of story mapping, with an exercise to learn key concepts quickly Understand how stories really work, and how they come to life in Agile and Lean projects Dive into a story’s lifecycle, starting with opportunities and moving deeper into discovery Prepare your stories, pay attention while they’re built, and learn from those you convert to working software

Ramp up your software development with this comprehensiveresource Microsoft's Application Lifecycle Management (ALM) makessoftware development easier and now features support for iOS,MacOS, Android, and Java development. If you are an applicationdeveloper, some of the important factors you undoubtedly considerin selecting development frameworks and tools include agility,seamless collaboration capabilities, flexibility, and ease of use.Microsoft's ALM suite of productivity tools includes newfunctionality and extensibility that are sure to grab yourattention. Professional Application Lifecycle Management withVisual Studio 2013 provides in-depth coverage of these newcapabilities. Authors Mickey Gousset, Martin Hinshelwood, Brian A.Randell, Brian Keller, and Martin Woodward are Visual Studio andALM experts, and their hands-on approach makes adopting new ALMfunctionality easy.\n\nStreamline software design and deployment with Microsoft toolsand methodologies\nGain a practical overview of ALM with step-by-step guides andreference material\nCase studies illustrate specific functionality and providein-depth instruction\nUse new capabilities to support iOS, MacOS, Android and Javadevelopment\nDiscover this comprehensive solution for modeling, designing,and coordinating enterprise software deployments\nOver 100 pages of new content, forward-compatible with newproduct releases\n\nProfessional Application Lifecycle Management with VisualStudio 2013 provides a complete framework for using ALM tostreamline software design and deployment processes usingwell-developed Microsoft tools and methodologies. ProfessionalApplication Lifecycle Management with Visual Studio 2013 isyour guide to make use of newly-available ALM features to take yourenterprise software development to the next level.

“In this second edition of Extreme Programming Explained, Kent Beck organizes and presents five years’ worth of experiences, growth, and change revolving around XP. If you are seriously interested in understanding how you and your team can start down the path of improvement with XP, you must read this book.”― Francesco Cirillo, Chief Executive Officer, XPLabs S.R.L. “The first edition of this book told us what XP was―it changed the way many of us think about software development. This second edition takes it farther and gives us a lot more of the ‘why’ of XP, the motivations and the principles behind the practices. This is great stuff. Armed with the ‘what’ and the ‘why,’ we can now all set out to confidently work on the ‘how’: how to run our projects better, and how to get agile techniques adopted in our organizations.”― Dave Thomas, The Pragmatic Programmers LLC “This book is dynamite! It was revolutionary when it first appeared a few years ago, and this new edition is equally profound. For those who insist on cookbook checklists, there’s an excellent chapter on ‘primary practices,’ but I urge you to begin by truly contemplating the meaning of the opening sentence in the first chapter of Kent Beck’s book: ‘XP is about social change.’ You should do whatever it takes to ensure that every IT professional and every IT manager―all the way up to the CIO―has a copy of Extreme Programming Explained on his or her desk.”― Ed Yourdon, author and consultant “XP is a powerful set of concepts for simplifying the process of software design, development, and testing. It is about minimalism and incrementalism, which are especially useful principles when tackling complex problems that require a balance of creativity and discipline.”― Michael A. Cusumano, Professor, MIT Sloan School of Management, and author of The Business of Software “ Extreme Programming Explained is the work of a talented and passionate craftsman. Kent Beck has brought together a compelling collection of ideas about programming and management that deserves your full attention. My only beef is that our profession has gotten to a point where such common-sense ideas are labeled ‘extreme.’...”― Lou Mazzucchelli, Fellow, Cutter Business Technology Council “If your organization is ready for a change in the way it develops software, there’s the slow incremental approach, fixing things one by one, or the fast track, jumping feet first into Extreme Programming. Do not be frightened by the name, it is not that extreme at all. It is mostly good old recipes and common sense, nicely integrated together, getting rid of all the fat that has accumulated over the years.”― Philippe Kruchten, UBC, Vancouver, British Columbia “Sometimes revolutionaries get left behind as the movement they started takes on a life of its own. In this book, Kent Beck shows that he remains ahead of the curve, leading XP to its next level. Incorporating five years of feedback, this book takes a fresh look at what it takes to develop better software in less time and for less money. There are no silver bullets here, just a set of practical principles that, when used wisely, can lead to dramatic improvements in software development productivity.”― Mary Poppendieck, author of Lean Software Development: An Agile Toolkit “Kent Beck has revised his classic book based on five more years of applying and teaching XP. He shows how the path to XP is both

The missing manual on how to apply Lean Startup to build products that customers loveThe Lean Product Playbook is a practical guide to building products that customers love. Whether you work at a startup or a large, established company, we all know that building great products is hard. Most new products fail. This book helps improve your chances of building successful products through clear, step-by-step guidance and advice.The Lean Startup movement has contributed new and valuable ideas about product development and has generated lots of excitement. However, many companies have yet to successfully adopt Lean thinking. Despite their enthusiasm and familiarity with the high-level concepts, many teams run into challenges trying to adopt Lean because they feel like they lack specific guidance on what exactly they should be doing.If you are interested in Lean Startup principles and want to apply them to develop winning products, this book is for you. This book describes the Lean Product Process: a repeatable, easy-to-follow methodology for iterating your way to product-market fit. It walks you through how to: Determine your target customers Identify underserved customer needs Create a winning product strategy Decide on your Minimum Viable Product (MVP) Design your MVP prototype Test your MVP with customers Iterate rapidly to achieve product-market fitThis book was written by entrepreneur and Lean product expert Dan Olsen whose experience spans product management, UX design, coding, analytics, and marketing across a variety of products. As a hands-on consultant, he refined and applied the advice in this book as he helped many companies improve their product process and build great products. His clients include Facebook, Box, Hightail, Epocrates, and Medallia.Entrepreneurs, executives, product managers, designers, developers, marketers, analysts and anyone who is passionate about building great products will find The Lean Product Playbook an indispensable, hands-on resource.

Master proven processes for improving development with Scrum and Azure DevOps This guide can help any development team plan, track, and manage work far more effectively, by combining today's leading agile framework (Scrum) and Microsoft's ALM/DevOps toolset (Azure DevOps). Renowned Scrum expert Richard Hundhausen thoroughly covers team formation, backlogs, Sprints, test plans, collaboration, flow, continuous improvement, Azure Boards, Azure Test Plans, and the real-world tradeoffs associated with DevOps. Throughout, you'll find practical, in-the-trenches tips from experienced Professional Scrum Developers. To make this guide even more valuable, Hundhausen has organized it to complement Scrum.org's popular Professional Scrum Developer (PSD) program, which he created with Scrum.org's Ken Schwaber, author of this book's Foreword. Professional Scrum Trainer Richard Hundhausen shows how to:  Deepen your understanding of the Scrum framework and Professional Scrum as based on the 2020 Scrum Guide. Provide proven work item planning and tracking, and quickly drive value from Azure Boards Improve your Scrum "pre-game": the tasks you'll perform before your first Sprint Use Azure DevOps to create and manage backlogs, plan Sprints, and collaborate throughout them Improve at scale with Scaled Professional Scrum and the Nexus scaled Scrum framework Recognize which practices are still most efficiently performed without tools Define and optimize team flow, overcome common dysfunctions, and evolve into a high-performance Professional Scrum Team About This Book For everyone who works with or relies on Scrum, including developers, designers, architects, testers, business analysts, Product Owners, Scrum Masters, managers, and other stakeholders Focuses primarily on using Scrum for software products, but can support development of adaptive solutions for any complex problem performance Professional Scrum Team

Scrum and Kanban are two flavors of Agile software development - two deceptively simple but surprisingly powerful approaches to software development. So how do they relate to each other? The purpose of this book is to clear up the fog, so you can figure out how Kanban and Scrum might be useful in your environment. Part I illustrates the similarities and differences between Kanban and Scrum, comparing for understanding, not for judgement. There is no such thing as a good or bad tool - just good or bad decisions about when and how to use which tool. Part II is a case study illustrating how a Scrum-based development organization implemented Kanban in their operations and support teams. Consistent with the style of "Scrum and XP from the Trenches", this book strikes a conversational tone and is bursting with practical examples and pictures. This book includes:\n\nKanban and Scrum in a nutshell\nComparison of Kanban and Scrum and other Agile methods\nPractical examples and pitfalls\nCartoons and diagrams illustrating day-to-day work\nDetailed case study of a Kanban implementation within a Scrum organization\n

Today’s new breed, eXtreme projects are different. They feature high speed, high change, high complexity, high risk, and high stress. While traditional projects follow the classic model of ready, aim, fire, eXtreme project managers succeed by shooting the gun and then redirecting the bullet while not loosing sight of their moving target. eXtreme Project Management provides a practical guide for leaders working under high risk and high pressure while producing the desired bottom-line results. Based on Doug DeCarlo’s extensive experience in working with more than 250 project teams, his eXtreme project management model is built around an integrated set of principles, values, skills, tools, and practices proven to consistently work under conditions of rapid change and uncertainty. eXtreme project management is based on the premise that you don’t manage the unknown the same way you manage the known. It’s a people-centric approach to high performance that makes quality of life a fundamental part of the project venture.

Denne, a business manager for a big software company, and Cleland-Huang apply ideas in application development methodologies to achieving financial rather than technological benefit.

A radical new management model for twenty-first century leaders Organizations today face a crisis. The crisis is of long standing and its signs are widespread. Most proposals for improving management address one element of the crisis at the expense of the others. The principles described by award-winning author Stephen Denning simultaneously inspire high productivity, continuous innovation, deep job satisfaction and client delight. Denning puts forward a fundamentally different approach to management, with seven inter-locking principles of continuous innovation: focusing the entire organization on delighting clients; working in self-organizing teams; operating in client-driven iterations; delivering value to clients with each iteration; fostering radical transparency; nurturing continuous self-improvement and communicating interactively. In sum, the principles comprise a new mental model of management. \nAuthor outlines the basic seven principles of continuous innovation The book describes more than seventy supporting practices Denning offers a rethinking of management from first principles \nThis book is written by the author of The Secret Language of Leadership―a Financial Times Selection in Best Books of 2007.

With detailed scenarios, imaginative illustrations, and step-by-step instructions, consultant Norman L. Kerth guides readers through productive, painless retrospectives of project performance. \nWhether your shop calls them postmortems or postpartums or something else, project retrospectives offer organizations a formal method for preserving the valuable lessons learned from the successes and failures of every project. These lessons and the measurements they yield foster stronger teams and savings on subsequent efforts. \nFor a retrospective to be effective and successful, though, it needs to be safe. Kerth shows facilitators and participants how to defeat the fear of retribution and establish an air of mutual trust. One tool is Kerth's Prime Directive: Regardless of what we discover, we must understand and truly believe that everyone did the best job he or she could, given what was known at the time, his or her skills and abilities, the resources available, and the situation at hand. \nApplying years of experience as a project retrospective facilitator for software organizations, Kerth reveals his secrets for managing the sensitive, often emotionally charged issues that arise as teams relive and learn from each project. \nDon't move on to your next project without consulting and using this readable, practical handbook. Each member of your team will be better prepared for the next deadline.

Most organizational change initiatives fail spectacularly (at worst) or deliver lukewarm results (at best). In his international bestseller Leading Change, John Kotter revealed why change is so hard, and provided an actionable, eight-step process for implementing successful transformations. The book became the change bible for managers worldwide.Now, in A Sense of Urgency, Kotter shines the spotlight on the crucial first step in his framework: creating a sense of urgency by getting people to actually see and feel the need for change.Why focus on urgency? Without it, any change effort is doomed. Kotter reveals the insidious nature of complacency in all its forms and guises.In this exciting new book, Kotter explains:· How to go beyond "the business case" for change to overcome the fear and anger that can suppress urgency· Ways to ensure that your actions and behaviors -- not just your words -- communicate the need for change· How to keep fanning the flames of urgency even after your transformation effort has scored some early successesWritten in Kotter's signature no-nonsense style, this concise and authoritative guide helps you set the stage for leading a successful transformation in your company.

Agile development processes foster better collaboration, innovation, and results. So why limit their use to software projects—when you can transform your entire business? Written by agile-mentoring expert Jochen Krebs, this book illuminates the opportunities—and rewards—of applying agile processes to your overall IT portfolio. Whether project manager, business analyst, or executive—you’ll understand the business drivers behind agile portfolio management. And learn best practices for optimizing results. Use agile processes to align IT and business strategy \nAdapt and extend core agile processes Orchestrate the collaboration between IT and business vision Eliminate wish-list driven requirements, and manage expectations instead Optimize the balance of projects, resources, and assets in your portfolio Use metrics to communicate project status, quality, even team morale Create a portfolio strategy consistent with the goals of the organization Achieve organizational and process transparency Manage your business with agility—and help maximize the returns!

In this informative and inspirational book, Coach K, Duke University's head basketball coach, tells readers how he coaxes peak performances from his team, relying on lessons he learned as a captain in the U.S. Army.Duke University's head basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski has proved himself a leader both on and off the court. He's led the Duke Blue Devils to five straight Final Four appearances, culminating in back-to-back championships in 1991 and '92. He has received five National Coach of the Year Awards—and many of the players he coached in college have gone on to NBA stardom.From sportsmanship to respect, Leading with the Heart is a genuine gift from a coach who knows how to lead with heart.

The New York Times best-selling team leadership handbook for modern executives, managers, and organizationsAfter her first two weeks observing the problems at DecisionTech, Kathryn Petersen, its new CEO, had more than a few moments when she wondered if she should have taken the job. But Kathryn knew there was little chance she would have turned it down. After all, retirement had made her antsy, and nothing excited her more than a challenge. What she could not have known when she accepted the job, however, was just how dysfunctional her team was, and how team members would challenge her in ways that no one ever had before.For twenty years, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team has been engaging audiences with a page-turning, realistic fable that follows the travails of Kathryn Petersen, DecisionTech’s CEO, as she faces the ultimate leadership crisis. She must unite a team in such disarray that it threatens to derail the entire company.Equal parts leadership fable and business handbook, this definitive source on teamwork by Patrick Lencioni reveals the five behavioral tendencies that go to the heart of why even the best teams struggle. He offers a powerful model and step-by-step guide for overcoming those dysfunctions and getting every one rowing in the same direction.Today, the lessons in The Five Dysfunctions of a Team are more relevant than ever. This special anniversary edition celebrates one of the best-selling business books of all time with a new foreword from the author that reflects on its legacy and lessons.

63 New and Updated Patterns for Driving and Sustaining Change “The hard part of change is enlisting the support of other people. Whether a top manager interested in improving your organization’s results or a lone developer promoting a better way of working, this book will give you tools and ideas to help accomplish your goal.” –George Dinwiddie, independent coach and consultant, iDIA Computing, LLC “Keep the patterns in this book and Fearless Change handy. … These patterns transformed me from an ineffective ‘voice in the wilderness’ to a valued collaborator.” –Lisa Crispin, co-author (with Janet Gregory) of Agile Testing and More Agile Testing In their classic work, Fearless Change, Mary Lynn Manns and Linda Rising interviewed successful leaders of change, identified 48 patterns for implementing change in teams of all sizes, and demonstrated how to use these techniques effectively. Now, in More Fearless Change the authors reflect on all they’ve learned about their original patterns in the past decade, and introduce 15 powerful, new techniques–all extensively validated by change leaders worldwide. Manns and Rising teach strategies that appeal to each individual’s logic (head), feelings (heart), and desire to contribute (hands)–the best way to motivate real change and sustain it for the long haul. Learn how to \n Focus on the best things you can achieve with limited resources \n Strategize to build flexible plans and go after low-hanging fruit \n Get help from the right people in the right ways \n Establish emotional connections that inspire motivation and imagination \n Create an “elevator pitch” that keeps everyone focused on what truly matters \n Build bridges, work with skeptics, soften resistance, and open minds \n Uncover easier paths towards change, and build on what already works \n Sustain momentum, provide time for reflection, and celebrate small successes More Fearless Change reflects a profound understanding of how real change happens: not instantaneously in response to top-down plans and demands, but iteratively, through small steps that teach from experience. Best of all, as thousands of change agents have already discovered, its patterns are easy to use–and they work.

How have Japanese companies become world leaders in the automotive and electronics industries, among others? What is the secret of their success? Two leading Japanese business experts, Ikujiro Nonaka and Hirotaka Takeuchi, are the first to tie the success of Japanese companies to their ability to create new knowledge and use it to produce successful products and technologies. In The Knowledge-Creating Company, Nonaka and Takeuchi provide an inside look at how Japanese companies go about creating this new knowledge organizationally.The authors point out that there are two types of knowledge: explicit knowledge, contained in manuals and procedures, and tacit knowledge, learned only by experience, and communicated only indirectly, through metaphor and analogy. U.S. managers focus on explicit knowledge. The Japanese, on the other hand, focus on tacit knowledge. And this, the authors argue, is the key to their success--the Japanese have learned how to transform tacit into explicit knowledge.To explain how this is done--and illuminate Japanese business practices as they do so--the authors range from Greek philosophy to Zen Buddhism, from classical economists to modern management gurus, illustrating the theory of organizational knowledge creation with case studies drawn from such firms as Honda, Canon, Matsushita, NEC, Nissan, 3M, GE, and even the U.S. Marines. For instance, using Matsushita's development of the Home Bakery (the world's first fully automated bread-baking machine for home use), they show how tacit knowledge can be converted to explicit knowledge: when the designers couldn't perfect the dough kneading mechanism, a software programmer apprenticed herself with the master baker at Osaka International Hotel, gained a tacit understanding of kneading, and then conveyed this information to the engineers. In addition, the authors show that, to create knowledge, the best management style is neither top-down nor bottom-up, but rather what they call "middle-up-down," in which the middle managers form a bridge between the ideals of top management and the chaotic realities of the frontline.As we make the turn into the 21st century, a new society is emerging. Peter Drucker calls it the "knowledge society," one that is drastically different from the "industrial society," and one in which acquiring and applying knowledge will become key competitive factors. Nonaka and Takeuchi go a step further, arguing that creating knowledge will become the key to sustaining a competitive advantage in the future.Because the competitive environment and customer preferences changes constantly, knowledge perishes quickly. With The Knowledge-Creating Company, managers have at their fingertips years of insight from Japanese firms that reveal how to create knowledge continuously, and how to exploit it to make successful new products, services, and systems.

In this classic text, Taiichi Ohno--inventor of the Toyota Production System and Lean manufacturing--shares the genius that sets him apart as one of the most disciplined and creative thinkers of our time. Combining his candid insights with a rigorous analysis of Toyota's attempts at Lean production, Ohno's book explains how Lean principles can improve any production endeavor. A historical and philosophical description of just-in-time and Lean manufacturing, this work is a must read for all students of human progress. On a more practical level, it continues to provide inspiration and instruction for those seeking to improve efficiency through the elimination of waste.

The common denominator/bottom line for both the professional service firm/PSF and the individual/Brand You is: the project. And for the cool individual in the cool professional service firm there is only one answer: the cool project.A seminar participant said: "Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre successes." So, how many of you are at work -- right now -- on "mediocre successes"? At work on projects that won't be recalled, let alone recalled with fondness and glee, a year from now? We don't study professional service firms. (Mistake.) And we don't study WOW Projects. (Worse mistake.) There is, of course, a project management literature. But it's awful. Or, at least, misleading. It focuses almost exclusively on the details of planning and tracking progress and totally ignores the important stuff like: Is it cool? Is it beautiful? Will it make a difference? My No.1 epithet: "On time . . . on budget . . . who cares?" I.e., does it matter? Will you be bragging about it two--or ten--years from now? Is it a WOW project?So, then: Step #1 . . .the organization . . .the professional service firm/PSF 1.0. Step 2 . . .the individual . . .the pursuit of distinction/Brand You. And: Step #3 . . . the work itself . . . the memorable project/WOW Projects. The Project50 is a simple and handy guide that provides 50 easy steps to help the modern businessperson choose the right project, find the right team, develop strategies for success, and ultimately know when it's time to move on.See also the other 50List titles in the Reinventing Work series by Tom Peters -- The Brand You50 and The Professional Service Firm50 -- for additional information on how to make an impact in the professional world.

The New York Times bestseller that gives readers a paradigm-shattering new way to think about motivation from the author of When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect TimingMost people believe that the best way to motivate is with rewards like money—the carrot-and-stick approach. That's a mistake, says Daniel H. Pink (author of To Sell Is Human: The Surprising Truth About Motivating Others). In this provocative and persuasive new book, he asserts that the secret to high performance and satisfaction-at work, at school, and at home—is the deeply human need to direct our own lives, to learn and create new things, and to do better by ourselves and our world.Drawing on four decades of scientific research on human motivation, Pink exposes the mismatch between what science knows and what business does—and how that affects every aspect of life. He examines the three elements of true motivation—autonomy, mastery, and purpose-and offers smart and surprising techniques for putting these into action in a unique book that will change how we think and transform how we live.

“Collaboration Explained is a deeply pragmatic book that helps agile practitioners understand and manage complex organizational and team dynamics. As an agile coach, I’ve found the combination of straightforward advice and colorful anecdotes to be invaluable in guiding and focusing interactions with my teams. Jean’s wealth of experience is conveyed in a carefully struck balance of reference guides and prose, facilitating just-in-time learning in the agile spirit. All in all, a superb resource for building stronger teams that’s fit for agile veterans and neophytes alike.” —Arlen Bankston, Lean Agile Practice Manager, CC Pace “If Agile is the new ‘what,’ then surely Collaboration is the new ‘how.’ There are many things I really like about Jean’s new book. Right at the top of the list is that I don’t have to make lists of ideas for collaboration and facilitation anymore. Jean has it all. Not only does she have those great ideas for meetings, retrospectives, and team decision-making that I need to remember, but the startling new and thought-provoking ideas are there too. And the stories, the stories, the stories! The best way to transfer wisdom. Thanks, Jean!” —Linda Rising, Independent Consultant The Hands-On Guide to Effective Collaboration in Agile Projects To succeed, an agile project demands outstanding collaboration among all its stakeholders. But great collaboration doesn’t happen by itself; it must be carefully planned and facilitated throughout the entire project lifecycle. Collaboration Explained is the first book to bring together proven, start-to-finish techniques for ensuring effective collaboration in any agile software project. Since the early days of the agile movement, Jean Tabaka has been studying and promoting collaboration in agile environments. Drawing on her unsurpassed experience, she offers clear guidelines and easy-to-use collaboration templates for every significant project event: from iteration and release planning, through project chartering, all the way through post-project retrospectives. Tabaka’s hands-on techniques are applicable to every leading agile methodology, from Extreme Programming and Scrum to Crystal Clear. Above all, they are practical: grounded in a powerful understanding of the technical, business, and human challenges you face as a project manager or development team member. · Build collaborative software development cultures, leaders, and teams · Prepare yourself to collaborate—and prepare your team · Define clear roles for each participant in promoting collaboration · Set your collaborative agenda · Master tools for organizing collaboration more efficiently · Run effective collaborative meetings—including brainstorming sessions · Promote better small-group and pair-programming collaboration · Get better information, and use it to make better decisions · Use non-abusive conflict to drive positive outcomes · Collaborate to estimate projects and schedules more accurately · Strengthen collaboration across distributed, virtual teams · Extend collaboration from individual projects to the entire development organization

Knowledge Management (KM) is the art and science of utilizing knowledge as the most important resource towards gaining competitive advantage in today's business environment. Despite the huge and growing interest in KM, there has been no serious attempt to bridge theory and practice, the practices of East and West, the soft side (organizational capabilities) with the hard side (information technology), or the practices of large companies with start-ups. Until now. Written by the Dean of Hitotsubashi Business School in Tokyo, the world's leading centre of KM, and featuring contributions from thought leaders around the world, this book will provide a synthesis towards the emerging field of KM. It brings together the latest trends in the field and re-ignites the debate on the future form of knowledge management.

Radical Project Management introduces eXtreme Project Management (xpm), the first radically new approach to project management in decades! Traditional project management is inward looking, static, and doesn't respond to rapid, constant change. xpm looks outward to stakeholders, management, and clients, and thoroughly involves them in an agile process that assumes everything will change. Rob Thomsett presents xpm from start to finish and introduces every tool and technique you need to make it work in your organization.

No is perhaps the most important and certainly the most powerful word in the language. Every day we find ourselves in situations where we need to say No–to people at work, at home, and in our communities–because No is the word we must use to protect ourselves and to stand up for everything and everyone that matters to us. But as we all know, the wrong No can also destroy what we most value by alienating and angering people. That’s why saying No the right way is crucial. The secret to saying No without destroying relationships lies in the art of the Positive No, a proven technique that anyone can learn. This indispensable book gives you a simple three-step method for saying a Positive No. It will show you how to assert and defend your key interests; how to make your No firm and strong; how to resist the other side’s aggression and manipulation; and how to do all this while still getting to Yes. In the end, the Positive No will help you get not just to any Yes but to the right Yes, the one that truly serves your interests. Based on William Ury’s celebrated Harvard University course for managers and professionals, The Power of a Positive No offers concrete advice and practical examples for saying No in virtually any situation. Whether you need to say No to your customer or your coworker, your employee or your CEO, your child or your spouse, you will find in this book the secret to saying No clearly, respectfully, and effectively. In today’s world of high stress and limitless choices, the pressure to give in and say Yes grows greater every day, producing overload and overwork, expanding e-mail and eroding ethics. Never has No been more needed. A Positive No has the power to profoundly transform our lives by enabling us to say Yes to what counts–our own needs, values, and priorities. Understood this way, No is the new Yes. And the Positive No may be the most valuable life skill you’ll ever learn!

Pair programming is a simple, straightforward concept. Two programmers work side-by-side at one computer, continuously collaborating on the same design, algorithm, code, and test. It produces a higher quality of code in about half the time than that produced by the summation of their solitary efforts. However, nothing is simple where people and personalities are involved--especially people who are accustomed to working alone. The leap to pair programming for a variety of software development projects is one that yields many benefits. However, it is also one that requires careful thought and planning.

Extreme Programming (Xp) is a radical new approach to software development that has been accepted quickly because its core practices-the need for constant testing, programming in pairs, inviting customer input, and the communal ownership of code-resonate with developers everywhere. Although many developers feel that Xp is rooted in commonsense, its vastly different approach can bring challenges, frustrations, and constant demands on your patience. Unless you've got unlimited time (and who does these days), you can't always stop to thumb through hundreds of pages to find the piece of information you need. The Extreme Programming Pocket Guide is the answer. Concise and easy to use, this handy pocket guide to Xp is a must-have quick reference for anyone implementing a test-driven development environment. The Extreme Programming Pocket Guide covers Xp assumptions, principles, events, artifacts, roles, and resources, and more. It concisely explains the relationships between the Xp practices. If you want to adopt Xp in stages, the Extreme Programming Pocket Guide will help you choose what to apply and when. You'll be surprised at how much practical information is crammed into this slim volume. O'Reilly's Pocket Guides have become a favorite among developers everywhere. By providing a wealth of important details in a concise, well-organized format, these handy books deliver just what you need to complete the task at hand. When you've reached a sticking point in your work and need to get to a solution quickly, the new Extreme Programming Pocket Guide is the book you'll want to have beside your keyboard.

One of the least discussed and most challenging roles in the Scrum Agile Methodology is that of Product Owner. Quite often Product Owners are selected from the ranks of Product Managers or Business Analysts and simply "thrown" into the role. While these backgrounds can lead to successful product ownership, often there are fundamental understanding and large skills gaps that need to be crossed in order to be truly successful. This book takes a unique look at the role of Scrum Product Owner with a focus on how the role needs to interact with their Scrum team first--thus the "inside out". We review all of the nuance and requisite habits that allow the Scrum Product Owner to drive their teams towards creating high quality products that provide great customer value.