Scrum And Agile Articles By Michael Vizdos
Looking for one short, practical idea per week? See Focus. #deliver, my newsletter, sorted by problem.
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Become More Productive. Do. Less.
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An index of Michael Vizdos's weekly 'Focus. #deliver' LinkedIn newsletter — one actionable tip every week to help you increase productivity by doing less.
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You Built A First Team. So Why Is Leadership Still Misaligned?
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A First Team aligns leaders with each other, not strategy with the work. Why leadership still feels misaligned, and three steps to close the gap.
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SLAY The Technical Debt Monster: The 3-Step Script To Get Leaders To Say 'YES' To Cleanup
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To get leaders to fund technical debt cleanup, call it product risk, put it in the Product Backlog, and state it as business impact. A 3-step script.
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Wearing Two Hats in Scrum? 3 Rules for Surviving as a Product Owner and Developer
Holding both Product Owner and Developer accountabilities creates real internal conflict. Three rules for wearing both hats without sacrificing value.
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Your Retrospectives Are Pointless — Until You Apply This 1 Simple Rule
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The mistake silently draining energy from Scrum retrospectives: trying to fix too many things at once. Commit to one actionable improvement instead.
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Your Product Owner is MIA? It's Costing More Than You Think.
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The "Weekend at Bernie's" Product Owner: propped up in meetings, providing no real direction. Four counter-intuitive strategies for fixing it.
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Understanding Why Organizational Impediments Are Strategic Challenges, Not Just Team Problems
Stop talking about Scrum in terms of sprint reviews and velocity. Learn to speak leadership's language of risk, ROI, and measurable business value instead.
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AI for Scrum Teams: Your Practical Blueprint For Success In An AI-Powered World
Leadership says "use AI now." How Scrum Teams adapt, use AI as a co-pilot, and still deliver value — a practical blueprint.
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Create An Agile Community of Practice In Your Organization
As Scrum Teams multiply, an Agile Community of Practice is the natural next step. How to start one without creating another committee.
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3 Steps to Land Your Dream Job
Not just any job — your dream job. A practical, three-step approach to networking your way into the specific company you actually want to work for.
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Scrum Is Not A Silver Bullet
Scrum is not a silver bullet. Michael Vizdos — creator of the original Scrum Chicken & Pig cartoons — on why it isn't, in reality.
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Scrum Trainer Evaluation Guide: 10 Questions Answered
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What to ask any Scrum trainer before you pay for a CSM or CSPO class, with a Certified Scrum Trainer's own answers as a model.
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Your CSM Training Experience With Michael Vizdos
What to expect during a Certified Scrum Master training event with Michael Vizdos — a session-by-session walkthrough, not a slide-deck lecture.
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Simplify Scrum: Use Occam's Razor
The secret of success when Implementing Scrum: limit WIP. A simple, four-step version of Scrum, and a slightly deeper version using the real Scrum Guide terms.
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Product Backlog Refinement: The Greatest Non-Event Event In Scrum
Product Backlog Refinement isn't a formal Scrum event — but skipping it is why most teams struggle. Finish it before Sprint Planning, not during.
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Lipstick On A Pig: Avoiding Scrum Anti-Patterns
Scrum anti-patterns are everywhere. Learn how to avoid "Putting Lipstick On A Pig" and sidestep some of them, in this short, practical article.
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Beware Of Agile Snake Oil Scams
Scrum Is One Of The Most Popular Agile Frameworks In Existence Today. Beware Of Agile Snake Oil Scams When Learning About Implementing Scrum In Your World.
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Customer Versus End User: Who is your Customer?
The difference between your customer and your end user changes what a Sprint Review means. Fix time and budget, then focus on delivering value.
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Communication Preferences Matter When Implementing Scrum
How many times have you 'reached out' and gotten no response? A real example of one person's communication preferences — and why yours aren't your team's.
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You Suck and That Makes Me Sad — Ken Schwaber Quote
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Worried your sprint burn-down means you're a bad Scrum Master? A real email exchange, and why the answer starts with 'you are not alone.'
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A Tool Is Just A Tool: Don't Be A Tool When Using Scrum Tools
People love their Scrum tools. But if you're not solving a real problem for your customer or end user, someone else will do that for you. Guaranteed.
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Receiving Feedback When Implementing Scrum
Two words that make receiving feedback dramatically easier on any Scrum Team — and why saying them isn't about being passive.
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The New New Product Development Game
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The 1986 Harvard Business Review article by Takeuchi and Nonaka that Ken Schwaber's 1995 paper cites as the source of Scrum's approach and its name.
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Onboarding New Team Members: Be Intentional
Onboarding needs to be intentional. How the Tuckman Model — Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, Adjourning — applies every time your team changes.
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Are You Present When You Are Present On An Agile Scrum Team?
Being 'in' a meeting and being present are two different things. What does checking out really cost you, your team, and your organization?
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Drunken PM Radio with Dave Prior and Michael Vizdos: Podcast Episode
Michael Vizdos joins Dave Prior on Drunken PM Radio: competing for resources across Product Owners, coaching senior leadership, and the First Team.
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Listen: A Key To Success When Implementing Scrum.
Listening is important. Mike Vizdos (creator of the Scrum Cartoon Series) examines why listening — more than speaking — is vital when Implementing Scrum.
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What Is the First Team Concept?
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The First Team concept, from Patrick Lencioni: a leader's first team is their peers, not their direct reports. What it means, why leaders miss it, how to start.
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I Want Scrum Training - Preparation For Your CSM or PSM
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Looking for Scrum training? Six free resources to prepare for your CSM or PSM, plus ten questions to ask any Scrum trainer before you pay.
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Scrum Fundamentals (Scrum Foundations)
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Know the 2020 Scrum Guide well enough to run a Sprint or pass a CSM class. Pick your role, take a 3-minute self-check, and get a next step.
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Origin of the Scrum Chicken and Pig Cartoons
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The Scrum Chicken and Pig story: what 'committed vs. involved' meant, who drew the cartoons, why Scrum stopped using the terms, and what still applies.
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Hyperactive Hive Mind Concept By Cal Newport
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The Hyperactive Hive Mind, from Cal Newport's A World Without Email: work run on constant, unscheduled messages. What it is, how to spot it, what to try first.
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Welcome To 2022
What will be different than years before? Who knows. Stick around and let's learn together.
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