Aleksandra (Ola) Bisanz

Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of delivering the Scrum.org Professional Scrum with Kanban course in collaboration with TheScrumMaster.co.uk. This course covers - how Kanban can complement Scrum - How we can bring life to Scrum events - How we can make data-guided decision The course provides actionable insights, and our learners agree! A big thanks to Nick Sullivan for sharing this fantastic review. The highlight of the review for me is "the improvement i can bring into my teams." This encapsulates what the training is all about—focusing on actionable learning and real-world application, not just certificates.

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The biggest challenge product leaders face is how to influence change and get their peers on board with what they're trying to achieve within the organisation. But you don't have to do it alone. Discover the Brainmates' Product Leaders Network – an exclusive, peer-to-peer community where senior product leaders can connect, support, and grow. This is what good leaders do – they seek out supportive networks and resources to continuously grow. How would you describe a good product leader in one word? 🎯 #ProductLeadership #ProfessionalGrowth #ProductLeadersNetwork #PLN

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Join me and John Coleman, co-author of the Kanban Guide, for a ProKanban.org 'Applying Metrics for Predictability' class on 10-12 June, 2-7pm each day (friendly for US timezones!) This guaranteed to run course is for anyone looking for strategies to answer the number one question any customer or stakeholder will always ask when you start something: “When will it be done?". If you're struggling with work that is endlessly late, an inability to accurately forecast and you're relying on guesses about the future on when you will deliver, this is for you. In this hands-on class, we will give you the tools that can be used at a team, department or company level to help you answer these questions and more. We will cover: 💥 Flow metrics: a deep dive into WIP, Cycle Time, and Throughput 💥 Flow analytics: an introduction to cumulative flow diagrams, scatterplots, histograms and other supporting charts - including how to utilise them for better predictability 💥 Forecasting using a Monte Carlo Simulation: how to use flow metrics to answer “When will it be done?” 💥 Quantifying risk and risk management: how an understanding of risk is crucial to developing accurate forecasts and how to communicate that risk to your customers in terms they can easily understand 💥 How to get started: immediately apply these techniques to your current project or process to achieve the results you are looking for. You will get: ✅ Hands-on training with real strategies and tools you can take away ✅ An exam token for two attempts to take the industry recognised Professional Applied Metrics (PAM) certification ✅ A digital copy of the course materials ✅ One hour of additional individual or team coaching from me to help you further embed these awesome ways of working. Sign up link in the comments below 👇 #datadriven #flow #metrics #flowmetrics #training #kanban #scrum #agile

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How can visual storytelling affect/improve your performance in the #ProductOwner role? Stuart Young shares his ideas, and tips on the next #POSummit session: https://lnkd.in/dEDuEYWX

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Continuous Learning - how can you help me learn what I got wrong? After attending a successful Scaled Agile, Inc. PI at Skipton Building Society and comparing this to how we did Big Room Planning Lloyds Banking Group I wonder if you would share your biggest learnings from your PI experiences? My top 3 observations are: 1> Preparation of people and not work( to be done in the PI) is crucial 2> Diamond clarity on roles and responsibilities ( as we know this is the single most point of conflict) 3> Outcomes and quality of outputs defined, shared and examples available Sorry the #4 Motivated, active and focussed #agilecoaches to support and facilitate the ARTs.

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Interested in Agile? We’ve got big news… 📢 the second edition of ‘Agile Business Analysis’ is out now! In this latest #BABrew Mike Williams chats to authors Lynda Girvan and Debra Paul about what readers can expect from the revised and updated edition, including:  ⭐ the latest Agile developments  ⭐ new techniques  ⭐ new thinking  ⭐ real-life case-studies where experienced practitioners share challenges and lessons learned.  This is a short clip, you can watch the full BA Brew on AssistKD’s YouTube channel, the link is in the comments.  #agile #IT #businessanalysis #businessanalyst #businesschange #digital #agilebusinessanalysis

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Can Agile still work if your team doesn’t have all the official roles? Absolutely! In our latest blog post, we explore how teams can still benefit from Agile principles—even if they don’t have a dedicated Scrum Master or Product Owner in place. It’s not about being perfect, but about adapting roles, fostering collaboration, and maintaining a holistic mindset to achieve innovation goals. Key takeaways: • How team members can take on additional responsibilities • Why maintaining a bias for decision-making is crucial • The difference between small and large teams tackling this challenge • Why this flexible approach is better than doing nothing at all If your team is missing roles but still wants to innovate, this post is for you. Check it out here https://lnkd.in/edhQeTcj #Agile #TeamCollaboration #Leadership #Innovation #ProjectManagement #Productivity #AgileMindset

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Ready to Transform Your Product Vision? 🚀 As we round off our #TalkInTen series from Lean Agile London 2024, we have a special treat: our insightful host, Ben Maynard, steps into the spotlight for the first time as both the interviewee and the focus of his own episode. In this debut TalkInTen, Ben delves into the essential role of having a clear product vision and how to navigate organisational complexities to achieve it. Episode Highlights: - Radical Product Thinking: Discover how to implement radical product thinking to reduce organisational complexities and enhance your product strategy.   - Systems Thinking: Learn about the integration of systems thinking to understand and address the root causes of cloudy product visions.   - OKRs for Clarity: Understand how to use Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) to maintain a focused and measurable product vision. 🎙️ This episode is packed with valuable insights and practical strategies for achieving a clear and actionable product vision. Tune in now to be inspired by Ben's unique perspective and expertise! We’d love to hear from you if you're enjoying the show! Your reviews help us grow and bring more valuable content to agile enthusiasts everywhere. Use code 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐃𝐀𝐆𝐈𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐘𝟐𝟒 for 𝟓𝟎% 𝐨𝐟𝐟 interactive slides at AhaSlides - Audience Engagement Platform📝 #LeanAgileLondon2024 #ProductVision #OKRs #ProductManagement #AgileCoaching #OrganisationalClarity #BusinessAgility

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How do we in the role of an agile coach supported a brand new Engineering Manager (EM) and Product Owner (PO) who are on the same team, in helping their team becoming more effective? Recently we discussed how they’re 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗹𝗼𝗴 and what the two of them do to 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺. 🤷‍♀️ 𝗔𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 🤷‍♂️ • The difference between a user story, a task, and a sub-task.   • Who is responsible for what and  • How these three elements co-exist within a team’s workflow.   • How to deal with the overhead of a somewhat awkward workflow to link tasks to user stories dictated by JIRA. 🧠 𝗔𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹𝘀 🧠 Without such an alignment you will find repeated discussions about this and inconsistent ways of breaking down work.   It’s well worth the time 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺𝘀, perhaps coming up with your own hierarchies and definition, and, over time, using the data to make better informed forecasts about “when will it be done.” It’s amazing to see how different teams get hung up on trying to align their diverse mental models about something that on the surface appears so simple.  𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝗼𝗻 𝗛𝗶𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗺𝘀: 👤𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: User stories are short, simple descriptions of a feature told from the perspective of the user or customer.   They are intended to define the “𝗪𝗵𝘆” 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 “𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁” and provide a clear understanding of what needs to be developed. ⛑️ 𝗧𝗮𝘀𝗸𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Tasks are more granular work items derived from user stories.  They represent the 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗲 to implement a user story.   Ideally tasks would cover end-to-end implementation slices rather than be split along lines of specialty such as BE or FE. 🪛 𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘁𝗮𝘀𝗸𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Sub-tasks are the smallest units of work, breaking down tasks into even finer details. They are often used to 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸. Ideally a sub-task could be easily completed within a day. How do you break the work down with your team? And who is responsible for the breakdown? #agilecoaching #productowner #EngineeringManager #planning

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There are no easy answers on the Arguing Agile Podcast today as we react to a provocative LinkedIn post that pits UX Researchers against Product Managers. Listen or watch (links in the comments) as Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Business Agility Coach Hemant (Om) Patel engage in a delightfully balanced discussion about product management, UX professionals, and agile teams, asking: 🌶 Are UX researchers a must-have or a luxury? 🌶 Can product managers develop research skills? 🌶 Does short-term thinking undervalue UX research? 🌶 How might UX researchers upskill product teams? #uxresearch #productmanagement #agile #productdiscovery #userresearch #arguingagile

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At #agile2024 in Manchester we got to meet and hear from the founders of DSDM and the Agile Manifesto. Two important elements of the story of Human Agility. Naturally we had various conversations about when Agile actually started. Here I trace human agility as far back as 1620 (yes, sixteen twenty). Next time I will take it back even further to pre-agricultural times. 😀 And then I will introduce Natural Agility or Natural Agile. I believe that we are born agile, and have it smothered as we reach our teens. Unplugging Agile from the Matrix is the work David Michel and I are doing on how to return to that state.

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If you missed Lean Agile London 2024 and all the great talks, they’ll be coming online very soon. I was honoured to speak at this brilliant event. If you want to find out why you can’t trust what customers tell you and how to become ‘antifragile’ in product management, you can catch up with my talk online: https://lnkd.in/eBdmfBqk My talk wasn’t entirely original. The reason for highlighting it is to point to ProKanban.org’s new Accelerating Product Value course, which my talk is based on. The course gives strategies product managers and teams can use to protect investments and drive towards greater product value. I’ll be teaching this course again later this year. If you’re interested in finding out more, please send me a message. #product #productmanagement #value #kanban #strategy #lean #agile #london

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Tomorrow on the Agile Network! Paul Goddard and I will give a presentation, so controversial it has been turned down by multiple conferences! Well, if I mean by "controversial" - I mean "didn't sound as interesting as it actually is when written down for a submission." It is on Pairing - The secret and forgotten Agile skill that could up your game... whoever you are! It is at 3pm BST and is exclusive to the network! Sign up now using my codes: One is a free month for people who purchase a monthly membership. The other is 20% off the annual membership. AGILEBEAR8CM - 1 Month Free AGILEBEAR8C20 - 20% off Annual Membership Link in the comments!

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