Scrum Evaluaiton & Insights » Doug Shimp

Extended Mind And the Scrum Pathway

Doug Shimp — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 17:00:34 +0000

This was not your typical scrummaster training course. We raised the bar by bringing the Scrum Framework home in applied context to the classroom and helping each other understand it better through simulations that encouraged participation and responses from each of us. It focused on the truely adaptive nature of great teams and how the class over the course of 2 days stared to jel and move faster. Each person became a member of a close knit team and helped each other extend our ability to think about more complex and challenging issues of Scrum. This would be the same pattern of thought for teams building product.

Simple Rules For Emerging Collaborative Behavior Focused On Complex Demanding Business Drivers

No heads work alone
Let the product lead
One bite at a time
Make it visible
Avoid and eliminate confusion
Start with the end in mind

What an awesome course. Each attendee recieved a free identity boost with the course and we will work to build a community to grow from. The community will be focused on Collaborative Skills for and will help each open more doors by improving our connectedness through applied effort the driven by our passion. Coaching others is a reward and a skill we all need to polish.

We will be running this course again in San Mateo and creating another extended mind.

Brillant and Informative

Read the hand written evaluations

and see if you agree!!

1st Prize in Art for Certified Scrum Product Owner

Doug Shimp — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 18:39:16 +0000

This course took the cake for a 1st prize in art. Below are the images from the class and clearly this was one of the best dogie day care pictures done using sharpie pens. Wow!

This course was a Certified Scrum Product Owner as recognized by the Scrum Alliance and sponsored by 3Back LLC, VersionOne and Normandale College.

The challenges of a Product Owner is to recognize the sustainably rate of development that a team can maintain and then to use that predictable core to determine what can be successfully delivered to market. Successful Product Owners are empowered by their organizations to find a way to maximize delivery on ROI by realizing a product in complex adaptive market situations. Great Product Owners see the team as an extension of themselves and augment their ability to think creatively by leveraging that greater social intelligence to solve complex problems.

This was our 3rd time running this course and it was a successful outcome for students. Please leave comments or thoughts on our Certified Scrum Product Owner training event. If you are interested in a private or public course just contact us.

You can follow Doug’s daily thoughts as a Scrum Coach at twitter or read deeper thoughts at Advanced Topics in Scrum.

“Agile / Scrum is not about memorization of explicit knowledge but, rather the application of that knowledge to an in-flight challenging problem.” – Doug Shimp Daily Twitter Thought

Honolulu ScrumMaster Training – A Hui Hou

Doug Shimp — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 22:16:34 +0000

Traveling too Hawaii was a long trip but, once you there you don’t want to leave. Of course the thought of returning home to the thawing Midwest was not that bad since we are moving into the spring season. Being in Hawaii and hearing the local view of cold weather being less than 75 degrees brought a smile my face. If only I could see it from their side. As someone pointed out you have to be there a couple of years for your blood to thin and then you will understand.

We ran our second ScrumMaster training event. The class size was small and favored my preferred style of andragogy training (small group guided learning). Typically I start these courses with just enough instruction to strike a dialog driven process of exploration and unfolding . The small sizes are always favored since it enables a small group guided learning approach. Traditional instructional (pedagogy grounded theory) design is for larger groups >20 students who sit in a student/lecturer arrangement. This requires less responsive guidance for the lecturer and encourages an adherence to a scripted course delivery. These styles of training are to be avoided if real mastery of Scrum / Agile is to be achieved.

Learning Agile / Scrum is not about memorization of explicit knowledge but, rather the application of that a mind set to an in-flight challenging problem. It is a learning process of using the scrum framework to move as a team to understand. Learning Scrum / Agile can be setup as such a challenge and the group present rose to the occasion to create their own learning experience as a team.

This trip was a real exposure to the varied and subtle tastes of Hawaiian culture. No where in the country have I seen “East meets West” be as pronounced as in Hawaii and that makes it all the more beautiful.

Coffee Question:

Do you like your Kona blended or pure?

A Hui Hou

- Doug

Orlando Scrum Training and Scrum Gathering

Doug Shimp — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 16:06:09 +0000

We spent a week down in Orlando this past month for two reason. One was the Orlando Certified ScrumMaster(CSM) training course we ran and the other was for the Scrum Gathering.

Both events were a blast and did much to continue raising awareness of Agile / Scrum in the community.

The Certified ScrumMaster course was run by Michele Sliger and Douglas Shimp. The event was delivered on a Saturday and Sunday just before the Gathering and was a success for the students.

Feedback on the Scrum training class was great.

read the hand written evals to see what our students had to say
Watch the Scrum Ideas Developed During Class

Chicago Midwest Certified ScrumMaster Training Event

Doug Shimp — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 13:12:19 +0000

We ran another Certified ScrumMaster training course in Chicago.

The newest topic that has been emerging with increased regularity is Agile Contracts. How do we avoid the pressures of big waterfall contracting models in and increasingly aware agile client world. Our old methods of contracting and working are becoming irrelevant and clients are no longer buying into the big bang waterfall contracting model. You can’t wald in with your big in house methodology and expect clients to be amazed at how smart (overly complex) your process is.

Thank you for a wonderful 2 days together.

- Doug