"Yeah don't hold backTrust your gut reactionBe bold, be bold babyIf you don't take chancesYou won't make advances"– The Rolling Stones, Hold Back. As economies around the world slowly emerge from the devastating effects of the pandemic, most, if not all businesses are reflecting on their pre-COVID business models and business goals to forge a … Continue reading What’s Holding Managers Back from More Agile?
"In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities, in the experts mind there are few"- Shunryu Suzuki. I walked up to the window and peered in. There were a few customers lined up, each neatly occupying a social distancing dot on the floor. The baristas were busily preparing drinks and food while chatting with co-workers … Continue reading Awakening the Beginner’s Mind
“Agile, what value art thou now that we are remote and apart?” I, like many Agile practitioners, have been and continue to be impacted by this endemic pandemic. Degrees of impact ranging from digitizing interactions, events and Post-it notes to a dearth of jobs. It’s been all fun and games as I have enjoyed the … Continue reading 4 Plus 12 Reasons Why Agile Now More Than Ever
Agile team members working apart or remotely from the rest of the team have long been a thorn in the side of Agile purists. Those who staunchly stood by the Agile Manifesto principle touting the efficiency and effectiveness of in-person face to face conversation, would often rail against the few team members who personally preferred … Continue reading Work From Home: Privilege to Policy?
When I was growing up, I consumed a steady diet of spaghetti westerns. My favourites were the ones starring Clint Eastwood. The protagonist of those movies was usually a veteran gun slinger who had seen better days and was weary of having to defend his reputation as the best in the west - #1. The … Continue reading Is Better Best?
How will physical safety impact and affect the psychological safety equity built up over time within our teams? Will psychological safety become a casualty of physical safety? I had a chance to ask these questions and more at a recent virtual Toronto Open Space. I proposed a session titled “The Death of Psychological Safety” [...]
“If a sea lion claps at the Bronx Zoo, and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? There is plenty of time to ponder koans these days at the animal park, where the coronavirus pandemic has left the sea lions, and the rest of its roughly 6,000 creatures, without an audience.” (New York Times, “Coronovirus Live Updates: Global Cases Exceed 1 Million.” April 3, 2020)[...]
“I thought I was playing unconscious, but Borg beat me 6-4, 7-6 tonight, and he is in what we call the zone. (That comes originally from “twilight zone” and translates, more or less, into “another world.”) The kid has no concept of what he is doing out there—he is just swinging away and the balls … Continue reading What Will Flow Look Like Post Pandemic?
“When pigs fly.” According to Wikipedia, this phrase is known as an adynaton - a figure of speech so bizarre that it describes an impossibility. Here are some more examples of adynatons: “It’s raining cats and dogs” “I’m so hungry I could eat a horse” “If my significant other catches me, I’m dead!” All adynaton … Continue reading When Will Chickens Become Pigs?
“It’s just basically a failure to adapt to the battlefield as the battlefield changes that has left us really flat-footed.” – David Fisman, Professor of Epidemiology, University of Toronto. During this protracted period of COVID-19, it goes without saying that we are living in interesting and uncertain times. Not only more so than ever before, … Continue reading What Kinda Feet Do You Have?
