Facilitating meaningful conversations in large groups can be challenging. Thatโs where the World Cafรฉ technique comes in! It’s a structured, interactive method to foster collaborative dialogue, uncover insights, and build consensus. Hereโs how to run it effectively: ๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐ญ ๐๐จ๐ซ๐ค๐ฌ: ๐๐ญ๐๐ฉ ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ญ๐๐ฉ ๐ 1๏ธโฃ ๐๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ฉ:Divide participants into small groups and assign each group to …
Category: Scrum
Oct 30
Unleashing Creativity with the Marshmallow Challenge: The Power of Prototyping
The Marshmallow Challenge is a simple exercise with profound lessons: teams get spaghetti, tape, string, and a marshmallow and are challenged to build the tallest possible structure with the marshmallow on top. Surprisingly, kindergartners often outperform business students! Why? They prototype. Rather than planning endlessly, they test and iterate quickly, learning from each attempt. This …
Oct 17
๐ก Introducing Agile with the Agile Ball Game!
When introducing Agile or Scrum to teams with no prior experience, I like to kick things off with a fun and interactive game that explains key concepts like iteration, teamwork, and continuous improvement: The Agile Ball Game. ๐ Hereโs how it works: Grab 20-30 small balls.Everyone is part of one big team.Each ball must have …
Oct 15
Measuring to Improve in Project Management
“You canโt improve what you donโt measure.” โ Lord Kelvin โ Why Measurement MattersMeasuring key metrics like cycle time, lead time, and bug counts helps you spot bottlenecks and areas for improvement. Without solid data, you might rely on guesses, but accurate measurements lead to informed decisions and real results. ๐ What Should You Measure?According …
Oct 04
Product Prioritization: Prepare a birthday party ๐
Beyond MoSCoW, ROI, or Cost of Delay product prioritization tools, will talk another day, one fun technique is buy-a-Feature. When planning a product, the Buy-a-Feature prioritization technique can help teams align on the most valuable. This method assigns a virtual “budget” to stakeholders, who then “buy” the most important features. Imagine organizing a birthday party! …
Oct 02
The Panic Zone
14 years ago, I received an unexpected call: “We need a Project Manager in London.” Without hesitation, I said yes, and within minutes, I found myself jumping from my comfort zone into the panic zone. In just two days, I became the Infrastructure Project Manager at Burberry’s headquarters, the iconic fashion brand. The catch? I …
Sep 30
Prioritizing product features with RICE
When managing multiple tasks, the RICE scoring model helps prioritize based on four key factors: The formula is simple:(Reach x Impact x Confidence) / Effort = RICE Score This allows teams to focus on high-impact, low-effort tasks that maximize value and efficiency. Itโs a great tool for balancing workloads and making smart decisions on what …
Sep 25
Sustainable Pace in Projects
In March 2014, I ran my first marathon. I followed a structured training plan for four months, and by the end, I felt nervous but ready. Three weeks before race day, I completed 30K at a pace of 5:20/Km, feeling great. But on marathon day, we had an unexpectedly strong heat in mid-March in Barcelona. …
Sep 23
Daily Scrum common mistakes
The daily scrum is part of the empirical control process in Scrum.ย Some of the common mistakes that avoid inspection and adaption. 1. Status Meeting vs. Goal-Oriented Focus:Teams often fall into reporting completed tasks (e.g., โI finished tasks A, B, and Cโ). The daily meeting should be more goal-driven. Instead of focusing on tasks, try …
Sep 19
Mixing roles in Scrum
Mixing roles in Scrum, like having one person act as both Product Owner and Scrum Master, can lead to challenges. It’s like a two-headed dragonโone role focuses on driving the team’s direction (Product Owner), while the other ensures the team’s well-being and process (Scrum Master). When these roles conflict, especially under pressure from stakeholders, there’s …
- 1
- 2