The Latest

Performance Factory for Agile and Lean Organizations[article]

Implementing agile and lean performance appraisals presents some unique challenges. This article discusses how to do so in a way that helps to enhance the agile and lean practices that so clearly result in excellent team and organizational performance. The good news is that agile and lean performance management is much more effective than other methods.

Leslie  Sachs's picture Leslie Sachs
How Does One Measure Agile-Lean Product Development Progress or Results?[article]

Every project measures progress using metrics (or at least should). Agile is no exception and powerful techniques exist within agile to track and measure your project’s progress. However, agile goes a step further by regularly using metrics to adapt and improve with the constant goal of how we can be better today.

TechWell Contributor's picture TechWell Contributor
Making Multi-Team Agile Programs Successful[article]

Many people have questions about how to manage multi-team projects, and Ronica Roth explains how this can be accomplished in this article. Through coordination and open, constant communication, your multi-team projects will no longer cause head headaches, but will result in positive productivity.

Ronica Roth's picture Ronica Roth
Performance Management for Agile People[article]

Performance appraisal is difficult and perhaps even counterproductive, but many employers still require it. Here are a few tips on making it work a little better with agile teams.

TechWell Contributor's picture TechWell Contributor
How to Lose a Sale[article]

A vendor left me a phone message. He began by thanking me for visiting his booth at a conference at which I was a speaker. He told me his product was just what I needed—it would solve some of my biggest problems—and he assured me I’d benefit in many ways. He then asked if I’d call him back so we could continue the conversation.

Conversation? What conversation? This fellow had mastered the Art of the One-Way Dialogue!

Naomi Karten's picture Naomi Karten
A Tale of Two Product Owners[article]

The product owner role on agile projects is critical to the team and the project. The product owner's influence, performance, and behavior can set the stage for smooth sailing—or sink a project. In this article, Anupam Kundu shares two different product owner experiences to drive home the argument how their behaviors and practices can shape organizational culture—specifically for new product development and start-ups.

Anupam Kundu
Measure the Measurable: Improving Software Quality Through Telemetry[magazine]

Observing customers in a usability lab can be invaluable for improving product design. But, once your software leaves the lab, do you know what your customers are actually doing and whether or not your software meets their expectations? Learn how engineers on the Microsoft Office team apply a variety of software telemetry techniques to understand real-world usage, how the results drive product improvements, and how you can apply similar techniques.

Jamie Campbell's picture Jamie Campbell
Mobile Challenges for Project Management: The Project Factors[magazine]

Developing software for mobile apps requires a different mindset from developing for computers. Some concepts transfer directly, but there are many device-related challenges managers must overcome. In part one of this two-part series on mobile challenges, Jonathan Kohl addresses some of the project factors managers should take into account during mobile application development.

Jonathan Kohl's picture Jonathan Kohl
Weekend Testing Comes to the Americas[article]

Inspired by the success of India’s Weekend Testing movement, Michael Larsen saw a need for a group closer to home. The Weekend Testing Americas chapter invites testers from across the Western Hemisphere to join an informal, distributed group of their tester peers to learn and perfect their craft.

Michael Larsen's picture Michael Larsen
Agile Palooza DC 2010 - Sanjiv Augustine - Intrinsic Motivation and Agile Performance Management[article]
Podcast

Agile Palooza DC 2010 - Sanjiv Augustine - Intrinsic Motivation and Agile Performance Management

Bob Payne's picture Bob Payne
How to Create the Perception of Urgency[article]

My lunch-mate and I were seated quickly. Time passed, yet no one took our order. I’m not the most patient person in the world, but on this occasion, I was willing to wait my turn.

Why? Because the waitresses were dashing about breathlessly. They never just sauntered. They never moseyed. They never even dillydallied. They hustled and bustled, racing from table to table, into the kitchen, out of the kitchen, somehow managing never to spill a drink or drop a tray.

Naomi Karten's picture Naomi Karten
Reducing Surprise: Another Feature of Good Project Management[article]

The portions of projects that are not yet complete occur in the future. Since the future is an uncertain place, there will always be surprises. Some surprises are so obvious that they should hardly be called surprises at all. This is the kind of surprise that project management helps to avoid.

Payson Hall's picture Payson Hall
2011 Prediction: Organizations will Continue Applying Agile Strategies at Scale[article]

With all of agile's documented successes, the methodologies are being used in areas never before seen. Scott W. Ambler looks into why agile is as popular as it is, and why its popularity will only increase in the future.

Scott W. Ambler's picture Scott W. Ambler
Writing Good Test Cases[article]

We all know writing test cases is an integral part of the testing activity. In order to write good test cases, we must first understand what a test case is and why we need to write test cases. Can’t we live without writing test cases?

Anand Gupta's picture Anand Gupta
The Seven Dimensions of Agile Software Projects[article]

Looking for an agile refresher? Here, Jurgen Appelo applies his seven dimensions of software projects—people, functionality, quality, tools, time, value, and process—to what he believes are the fundamentals of agile. And, for those who might disagree, he suggests an eighth dimension that brings its own value to agile: conflict.

Jurgen Appelo's picture Jurgen Appelo

Pages

AgileConnection is a TechWell community.

Through conferences, training, consulting, and online resources, TechWell helps you develop and deliver great software every day.