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The Problem with Agile

The Agile Manifesto was a concise document created by 17 software developers focusing on creating value for customers.
Despite its original intent, Agile has evolved into a formal system with its own customs, jargons, and rituals, deviating from its core principle of value creation and adaptability.
Agile has been criticized for turning into a cult-like culture, where common sense is obscured by strict rules and dogma.
Andy Hunt, an original signatory, expressed disappointment in how Agile has become rigid and dogmatic, contrary to its initial purpose of using common sense over rules.
Alistair Cockburn proposed simplifying Agile with the Heart of Agile, focusing on collaboration, delivery, reflection, and improvement as the core principles.
Collaboration in Agile involves understanding the team and ensuring work adds value to users, rather than blindly following rituals like backlogs or daily stand-ups.
Delivering value to customers is emphasized as the fundamental goal of Agile, requiring PMs to explore who the customers are and what value means to them.
Reflection is deemed crucial in Agile, allowing teams to assess what works, why it works, and how it adds value, giving them a competitive edge.
Improvement in Agile involves changing or discarding practices that do not contribute to value generation efficiently, even if they are considered 'good practices' within the framework.
Agile is praised for promoting adaptability and value creation over rules and rituals, emphasizing the importance of independent thinking and collaboration.

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Medium

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Mastering Large-Scale IT Projects: Aligning Expectations and Delivering Value

To avoid misalignment between client needs and development outcomes, it is important to gather references, validate each stage with explicit approvals, and set clear expectations.
Regular touchpoints and client engagement are essential for effective communication and project success.
Transparency tools like task trackers and involving clients early in the process help build trust and shared ownership.
Clarifying decision-makers, confirming approvals at every milestone, and engaging end users lead to better decision-making and successful product development.

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Medium

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Release Channels: Beta, Stable, and Long-Term Support (LTS)

Release channels help manage software updates by offering different versions to different groups.
Alpha channel: The earliest phase of software testing, used by developers or internal teams to gather feedback.
Beta channel: Allows a select group of users to try out new features and identify bugs early on.
Stable channel: Fully tested and polished version of the software available to general users.
LTS channel: Aimed at users who prioritize stability, receiving security patches and critical bug fixes over a long period.

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Scrum

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Behind the Bottlenecks: The Root Causes of Dependencies in Teams

Dependencies in product development can lead to major bottlenecks, affecting timelines, costs, and team morale.
They are crucial for collaboration but can become disruptive if not managed effectively.
Common root causes of dependencies include lack of skills, decision delays, tightly coupled architecture, and reliance on external suppliers.
People-based dependencies occur when tasks rely on specific individuals' availability or expertise, leading to delays when needed personnel are unavailable.
Decision-based dependencies involve delays in approvals or strategic decisions, hindering progress and causing misalignments.
Architectural dependencies stem from tightly coupled systems that limit flexibility and scalability, slowing down migrations and new feature development.
External dependencies, such as third-party APIs, introduce risks due to factors beyond the team's control, like delays or limited support.
Managing dependencies effectively requires a structured approach, tailored strategies, and proactive planning to mitigate risks and ensure smoother product delivery.
Identifying, categorizing, and planning for dependencies early on can help teams navigate challenges and improve predictability in their workflows.
Stay tuned for the next part of the series for actionable insights on how to categorize dependencies effectively and enhance your product delivery processes.

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Scrum

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True Leadership: It’s Not the Title, It’s the Impact You Make

Leadership is not just about holding a title, but about the impact you make and the trust you build.
True leadership focuses on unlocking potential, creating opportunities, and giving people the confidence to push past their limits.
To transition from just holding a title to actually leading, start by asking how you can help others deliver their best work.
A culture of safety, trust, and empowerment is key to driving innovation, collaboration, and personal accountability.

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Scrum

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Product Backlog Management with Upstream Kanban – from chaos to clarity

Product Backlog Management can be challenging for Product Owners, leading to cluttered backlogs and inefficiencies in refinement sessions.
Traditional single-column backlog lists may not be the most effective approach for managing backlogs efficiently.
Product backlog refinement involves breaking down items, prioritizing, detailing, estimating effort, and keeping the backlog relevant.
Kanban, as a flow-based strategy, can complement Scrum by optimizing value flow in the process.
Upstream Kanban focuses on managing incoming requests before committing to downstream work, promoting a structured approach to backlog management.
Key stages in Upstream Kanban include triage, exploration, and readiness for effective backlog item delivery.
Challenges of a single-list product backlog include prioritization overload, lack of visibility, limited stakeholder insight, and overwhelming backlog size.
Implementing Upstream Kanban can provide clarity, improve workflow, and empower teams to manage backlog items more effectively.
Adopting practices like STATIK, CONWIP, swimlanes, work item types, and Kanban metrics can enhance product backlog management.
Scaling Upstream Kanban for multi-team setups can help manage complexity and improve end-to-end value flow.

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Scrum-Master-Toolbox

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Anuj Ojha: From Process Police to People Partner, Self-Accountability and Self-Awareness for Scrum Masters

Anuj Ojha, co-founder & Lead Consultant at Benzne Consulting, shares his personal growth journey as a Scrum Master.
He shifted his focus from being process-oriented to being people-oriented, embracing conflict as a natural part of growth.
Anuj learned to deliver value and became more of a listener, understanding the importance of self-awareness and self-accountability.
His transformation led him to connect with and serve his team members better, navigating challenges through self-reflection and feedback-seeking.

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Medium

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The Fall of Scrum and the Rise of Product Management

Scrum, a lightweight software development method, experienced rapid growth from 2010 to 2020, becoming dominant.
However, recent data suggests a decline in Scrum usage, with only 60% of software development teams using it by 2024.
Surveys reveal growing dissatisfaction with Scrum, indicating that teams feel it is not delivering expected benefits.
The decline of Scrum may lead to changes in the role of product managers.

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Medium

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How OKRs inspire

OKRs help leadership clarify what is important and facilitate alignment, collaboration, and self-organization.
OKRs provide a framework for teams to understand their accountability and contribute to the Objectives measured by Key Results.
OKRs foster both teamwork within product teams and cohesiveness within the leadership team.
The use of OKRs in training and small team case studies is an example of how organizations are investing in them.

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Medium

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80% of Features in Products Are Rarely or Never Used — Here’s Why!

A fast-growing software company spent 18 months building and launching new features.
However, when they analyzed how customers were actually using the product, they found that 80% of the features were rarely or never used.
The company realized that they were making the product worse by building everything upfront with no time for iteration and improvement.
To eliminate waste, the company adopted a continuous learning approach, focusing on small releases, testing, and improvements based on customer feedback.

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Dev

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The DevOps Revolution: Driving Agile Software Development & Continuous Delivery

Traditional software development models often hinder progress, creating bottlenecks and delays.
DevOps is a cultural shift that promotes collaboration, automation, and infrastructure management.
DevOps practices accelerate release cycles, improve software quality, and foster a cohesive team.
DevOps transformation is necessary for business survival, enabling agility, innovation, and trust.

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Scrum

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Reflect On The Empirical Pillars Of Scrum

In complex work, more is unknown than known.
Key pillars of Scrum: transparency, inspection, and adaptation.
Scrum artifacts create transparency of future, present, and past work.
Reflecting on the empirical pillars of Scrum enables improvement and effective usage of Scrum events.

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Scrum-Master-Toolbox

BONUS: How To Build Trust and Manage Conflict, With Maria Arpa

Maria Arpa shares insights on building trust and managing conflict in the workplace.
Recognizing and addressing power dynamics in the workplace is crucial for effective communication.
Creating safe spaces for difficult conversations is important for conflict resolution.
Empathic connection and viewing conflict as a resource drive positive change.

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Dev

392

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Code Review: Best Practices

Code Review is a crucial part of the software development process, helping improve code quality and efficiency.
Key benefits of Code Review include easier reviewing, faster approval of pull requests, and receiving better feedback.
Tips for writing code that's easy to review include committing frequently with small changes and using rich commit messages.
Visual enhancements like screenshots and videos can help provide context for changes in the code.
Effective code reviewing involves carefully reading PR descriptions, avoiding nitpicking, and prioritizing reviews to aid team members.
Adding references to suggestions and praising good work during reviews can create a positive environment.
Creating useful PR templates, checklists, and implementing automation can streamline the code review process.
Encouraging a positive code review culture leads to continuous learning, collaboration, and software improvement.
A structured Code Review process facilitates knowledge sharing, strengthens team relationships, and enhances code quality.
Adopting best practices in Code Review can transform it into an enriching experience that benefits the entire project.

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Alvinashcraft

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Dew Drop – February 28, 2025 (#4372)

The Dew Drop for February 28, 2025, features top links in technology including podcasts, software releases, and coding updates.
Notable mentions in the web and cloud development section cover topics like TypeScript, Azure Functions, and Dapr v1.15 release.
In WinUI, .NET MAUI, and XAML, Uno Platform updates its Todo Sample while Visual Studio 2022 v17.13 introduces AI-powered enhancements.
AI-related highlights include OpenAI's GPT-4.5 system card, Microsoft Copilot developments, and discussions on AI in gaming.
Design, methodology, and testing articles focus on mental health in IT, CI/CD best practices, and serverless computing.
Mobile development updates include Amazon CEO's hint at new Alexa hardware, the Raspberry Pi Official Magazine, and EA's release of old game source code.
Screencasts, podcasts, community events, and database management also find mentions in this technology roundup.
Miscellaneous news includes reports on Microsoft potentially discontinuing Skype, DOGE's impact, and Trump's tariffs taking effect.
Additional links collections provide quick access to Oracle Database news, Windows updates, and daily reading lists.

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