Breaking Down The Clan Mentality In Agile Teams | Mariano Gontchar

BONUS: Software Engineers are Paid to Solve Problems, Not Write Code! With John Crickett In this BONUS episode, we explore a thought-provoking LinkedIn post by John Crickett that challenges a fundamental misconception in software engineering. John shares insights on why engineers should focus on problem-solving rather than just coding, how to develop business context understanding, and why this shift in perspective is crucial in the age of AI. Beyond Writing Code: Understanding the True Value of Software Engineering "A lot of us come to software engineering because we care about building, and missed the goal: solving a problem for a customer." John Crickett explains the fundamental disconnect many software engineers experience in their careers. While many enter the field with a passion for building and coding, they often lose sight of the ultimate purpose: solving real problems for customers. This misalignment can lead to creating technically impressive solutions that fail to address actual business needs. John emphasizes that the most valuable engineers are those who can bridge the gap between technical implementation and business value. In this section, we refer to John’s Coding Challenges and Developing Skills websites. The Isolation Problem in Engineering Teams "We have insulated people from seeing and interacting with customers, perhaps because we were afraid they would create a problem with customers." One of the key issues John identifies is how engineering teams are often deliberately separated from customers and end-users. This isolation, while sometimes implemented with good intentions, prevents engineers from gaining crucial context about the problems they're trying to solve. John shares his early career experience of participating in the sales process for software projects, which gave him valuable insights into customer needs. He highlights the Extreme Programming (XP) approach, which advocates for having the customer "in the room" to provide direct and immediate feedback, creating a tighter feedback loop between problem identification and solution implementation. In this segment, we refer to the book XP Explained by Kent Beck. The AI Replacement Risk "If all you are doing is taking a ticket that is fully spec'ed out, and coding it, then an LLM could also do that. The value is in understanding the problem." In a world where Large Language Models (LLMs) are increasingly capable of generating code, John warns that engineers who define themselves solely as coders face a significant risk of obsolescence. The true differentiation and value come from understanding the business domain and problem space—abilities that current AI tools haven't mastered. John advises engineers to develop domain knowledge specific to their business or customers, as this expertise allows them to contribute uniquely valuable insights beyond mere code implementation. Cultivating Business Context Understanding "Be curious about what the goal is behind the code you need to write. When people tell you to build, you need to be curious about why you are being asked to build that particular solution." John offers practical advice for engineers looking to develop better business context understanding. The key is cultivating genuine curiosity about the "why" behind coding tasks and features. By questioning requirements and understanding the business goals driving technical decisions, engineers can transform their role from merely delivering code to providing valuable services and solutions. This approach allows engineers to contribute more meaningfully and become partners in business success rather than just implementers. Building the Right Engineering Culture "Code is always a liability, sometimes it's an asset. The process starts with hiring the CTO—the people at the top. You get the team that reflects your values." Creating an engineering culture that values problem-solving over code production starts at the leadership level. John emphasizes that the values demonstrated by technical leadership will cascade throughout the organization. He notes the counter-intuitive truth that code itself is inherently a liability (requiring maintenance, updates, and potential refactoring), only becoming an asset when it effectively solves business problems. Building a team that understands this distinction begins with leadership that demonstrates curiosity about the business domain and encourages engineers to do the same. The Power of Asking Questions "Be curious, ask more questions." For engineers looking to make the shift from coder to problem-solver, John recommends developing the skill of asking good questions. He points to Harvard Business Review's article on "The Surprising Power of Questions" as a valuable resource. The ability to ask insightful questions about business needs, user requirements, and problem definitions allows engineers to uncover the true challenges beneath surface-level requirements. This curiosity-driven approach not only leads to better solutions but also positions engineers as valuable contributors to business strategy. In this segment, we refer to the article in HBR titled The Surprising Power of Questions. About John Crickett John is a passionate software engineer and leader on a mission to empower one million engineers and managers. With extensive expertise in distributed systems, full-stack development, and evolving tech stacks from C++ to Rust, John creates innovative coding challenges, insightful articles, and newsletters to help teams level up their skills. You can link with John Crickett on LinkedIn.

6 Touko 41min

BONUS: Beyond Frameworks, A Provocative Guide to Real Agility With Erwin Verweij In this BONUS episode, we dive into the provocative world of Erwin Verweij's latest book: 'How the f*ck to be Agile?' Erwin shares his journey from frustration to clarity as he witnesses organizations adopting Agile frameworks without understanding their purpose. With candid stories from his coaching experiences, Erwin reveals what happens when teams wake up to real agility beyond dogmatic practices and how organizations can find their own path to meaningful change. The Wake-Up Call for Agile Adoption "What the f*ck dude! Do you even know what it means? Do you really know what it means?" Erwin's journey to writing this book began with growing frustration at how companies approach agility. He frequently encountered teams proudly declaring "We're Agile!" or "Our department is Agile" without understanding what that truly meant.  This disconnect between label and understanding became the catalyst for his provocatively-titled wake-up call. Erwin describes his exasperation with organizations adopting frameworks halfheartedly, following mindsets that were completely off track, and ultimately "doing stuff without knowing what they're doing and why they're doing it." The F-word in his book title serves dual purposes - expressing his frustration while also functioning as a power word to wake people up from their complacency. Breaking Free from Framework Dogma "We're not gonna do Agile. Forget it. And we're not gonna do Scrum, even though you're doing Scrum. Let's look at what really works for you people." Rather than imposing rigid frameworks, Erwin advocates for teams to discover what actually works in their specific context. He shares a memorable story of tearing down Scrum posters that management had installed, shocking team members who couldn't believe he would challenge the prescribed approach.  In another example, Erwin creatively used a manager's "quarantine" language by posting contamination warnings at a department's entrance with the message: "If you enter this room, you might get contaminated with a new way of working." These disruptive approaches are designed to shake people from blindly following orders and encourage them to think critically about their processes. Finding Your Own Path to Agility "Any coach who goes into a company with a strict plan and a set approach - don't hire them. They don't have a clue what to do." After the wake-up call, Erwin focuses on helping teams discover their own effective ways of working. He believes that the key is to observe what's already working well, emphasize those elements, and discard what doesn't serve the team. This approach stands in stark contrast to consultants who arrive with predetermined solutions regardless of context.  Erwin emphasizes that real transformation happens when teams take ownership of their processes, adapt them to their unique needs, and make them their own. He cautions against hiring coaches who come with rigid, predetermined plans, as they often lack the flexibility to address a team's specific challenges. The Never-Ending Journey of Adaptation "We need to help teams to stay open for the change that is coming." Erwin stresses that agility is not a destination but a continuous journey of adaptation. The world never stops changing, so teams must remain flexible and open to evolving their approaches. He encourages a mindset of experimentation with phrases like "let's try" and "what could we try" to keep teams responsive to new challenges.  According to Erwin, one of the most powerful ways to foster this adaptive culture is to model the behaviors you want to see in the teams you support. By demonstrating openness to change yourself, you help others embrace the continuous nature of improvement. Scaling Without Bureaucracy "Work with the system, learn what is needed, iterate." When discussing scaling Agile across an organization, Erwin questions why companies feel the need to scale in the first place. He uses cities as a metaphor for how complex systems can organize beyond small groups without excessive bureaucracy.  In one organization where he currently coaches, teams have found a pragmatic approach by adopting elements from various frameworks that work for them. They use quarterly planning sessions from SAFe primarily as a networking opportunity that connects everybody and focuses their efforts, even though the planning itself might be "basically bullshit." This practical, results-oriented approach emphasizes what works rather than dogmatic adherence to frameworks. Software as a Creative Process "Software development is basically figuring out how stuff works. It's a creative process that mostly is being dealt with within the brain of people." Erwin views software development fundamentally as a creative process rather than a production line. He explains that it's not about "typing as fast as you can" but about thinking, problem-solving, and creating. This perspective helps explain why iterative approaches with small steps work better than trying to plan everything upfront.  Erwin notes that when complex problems become routine, teams might not need the full framework structure, but they should retain the values that help them coordinate effectively. The essence of frameworks like Scrum, he suggests, is simply "start working, figure it out, and see what happens" - an approach that many organizations have become afraid to embrace. Awakening Organizational Intelligence "We raise children, which is basically programming another human being - it's really complex. And we just take it for granted. And then we go to work, and we don't know how to make decisions anymore." One of Erwin's most powerful insights is how organizational structures can suppress the natural intelligence and decision-making abilities that people demonstrate in their personal lives. He points out the irony that we navigate incredibly complex systems like raising children or driving in traffic, yet when we arrive at work, we suddenly act as if we can't make decisions without higher approval. This disconnect creates frustration and wastes human potential. Erwin challenges organizations to wake up to this contradiction and create environments where people can bring their full capabilities to work, rather than checking their intelligence at the door. In this section, we refer to Jurgen Appelo’s Book Management 3.0. About Erwin Verweij Erwin is a seasoned Agile Coach, Certified Enterprise Coach, and author of Viking Law and How the f*ck to be Agile?. With 15+ years' experience driving meaningful change, he helps organizations embrace real agility through coaching, transformation, and workshops—cutting through complexity to spark courage, clarity, and action. You can link with Erwin Verweij on LinkedIn and connect with Erwin Verweij on Twitter.

5 Touko 47min

BONUS: Nesrine Changuel shares how to create emotionally connected, delightful products! In this BONUS episode, we explore the concept of product delight with Nesrine Changuel. Nesrine shares insights from her extensive experience at companies like Skype, Spotify, Google Meet, and Chrome to help us understand how to create lovable tech experiences that drive user loyalty and differentiation. We explore the Delight Grid Framework she created, and discuss the importance of emotional connection in product design. We also touch on practical ways to incorporate delight into everyday product decisions. The Essence of Delight in Products "Creating emotional connection between users and products... What I'm usually vocal about is that it's not enough to solve functional needs if you want to create sustainable growth, and more particularly if you want to have your users love the product and create habits using your product." Nesrine explains that while most companies know how to solve functional problems, truly delightful products go beyond functionality to create emotional connections with users. This connection comes from anticipating user needs and surprising them on both functional and emotional levels. She emphasizes that delight emerges when users experience both joy and surprise simultaneously, which is key to exceeding expectations and building brand loyalty. Moving Beyond User Complaints "Most features that are built in products are coming from users' complaints... What I'm trying to be clear about is that if you want to build an emotional connection, it's about opening up a little bit more of your source of opportunities." Many teams focus primarily on addressing user complaints, which puts them in a reactive position. Nesrine encourages organizations to anticipate user needs by engaging with users in comfortable environments before problems arise. She suggests looking beyond direct feature requests and investigating how users feel while using the product, how they experience the journey, and what emotions arise during the experience. This proactive approach opens new opportunities for creating delightful experiences that users may not explicitly request. In this segment we refer to the KANO model for categorizing product features. Understanding Emotional Demotivators: The Zoom Fatigue Example "I tried to interview many users and realized that, of course, with the fact that we all moved into video conferencing, some demotivators started to surface like boredom, low interaction, overwhelm. There was a term that started to show up at the time - it's called zoom fatigue." Nesrine shares how her team at Google Meet tackled emotional demotivators by first deeply understanding them. By investigating "Zoom fatigue," they discovered through Stanford research that one major cause was the fatigue from constantly seeing yourself on screen. This insight led them to develop the "minimize self view" feature, allowing users to broadcast their video without seeing themselves. This example demonstrates how understanding emotional pain points can lead to features that create delight by addressing unspoken needs. The Delight Grid Framework "We want to delight the users, but because we don't know how, we end up only doing performers or hygiene features." Nesrine introduces her Delight Grid Framework, which helps product teams balance functional and emotional needs. The framework begins by identifying emotional motivators through empathetic user research. These motivators are then placed in a grid alongside functional needs to classify features as: Low Delight: Features that only solve functional needs Surface Delight: Features that only address emotional needs (like celebratory animations) Deep Delight: Features that solve both functional needs and emotional motivators She emphasizes that the most successful products prioritize deep delight features, which create lasting emotional connections while solving real problems. Detecting Opportunities Through User Journey Mapping "I use customer journey maps... One of the elements is feelings... If you do the exercise very well and put the feeling element into your journey map, you can draw a line showing peak moments and valley moments - these are pivotal moments for connecting with users at the emotional level." Nesrine advocates for using customer journey maps to identify emotional highs and lows throughout the user experience. By focusing on these "pivotal moments," teams can find opportunities to amplify positive emotions or transform negative ones into delightful experiences. She encourages teams to celebrate positive emotional peaks with users and find ways to turn valleys into more positive experiences. Real-World Example: Restaurant QR Code Payment "The waiter came with a note, and on the note, there is a QR code... What a relief that experience was! I've been very, very surprised, and they turned that moment of frustration and fear into something super fun." Nesrine shares a delightful dining experience where a restaurant transformed the typically frustrating moment of splitting the bill by providing a QR code that led to an app where diners could easily select what they ordered and pay individually. This example illustrates how identifying emotional pain points (bill-splitting anxiety) and addressing them can turn a negative experience into a memorable, delightful one that creates loyal customers. Creating a Culture of Delight Across Teams "It's very important to have the same language. If the marketing team believes in emotional connection, and the designer believes in emotional connection, and then suddenly engineers and PMs don't even know what you're talking about, that creates a gap." For delight to become central to product development, Nesrine emphasizes the importance of creating a shared language and understanding across all teams. This shared vision ensures everyone from designers to engineers is aligned on the goal of creating emotionally connected experiences, allowing for better collaboration and more cohesive product development. Recommended Reading Nesrine refers us to Emotional Design by Don Norman Designing for emotion, by Aaron Walter And Dan Olsen’s The Lean Product Playbook About Nesrine Changuel Nesrine Changuel is a product leader, coach, and author with over a decade of experience at Skype, Spotify, Google Meet, and Chrome. She specializes in designing emotionally connected, delightful products. Her book, Delight, introduces a framework for creating lovable tech experiences that drive user loyalty and differentiation. You can link with Nesrine Changuel on LinkedIn and follow Nesrine’s website.

3 Touko 39min

Carmen Jurado: Beyond the Backlog—How Great Product Owners Embrace Team Collaboration The Great Product Owner: Standing with the Team  Carmen shares that the best Product Owners she's encountered are those who stand with their teams. Drawing from her own recent experience as a Product Owner, she emphasizes the importance of being there for your team, recognizing that they make you look good. Great Product Owners understand that achievements are team efforts, not individual accomplishments. Carmen also highlights that exemplary Product Owners have a deep understanding of the goals, values, and principles of Agile methodologies, allowing them to better support their teams and leverage agile practices effectively. In this segment we refer to the book Generative AI in a Nutshell. The Bad Product Owner: The Novice Who Does Everything Carmen describes a common anti-pattern she encountered: the inexperienced Product Owner who attempts to handle everything independently. This particular PO was preparing reviews and planning sessions alone, feeling that these events wouldn't happen otherwise. The team wasn't engaged, and the backlog had ballooned to over 300 items. Carmen helped this PO sort through the backlog to start with a clean slate and conducted a stakeholder mapping session to manage difficult stakeholders, particularly a CFO who was treating the PO as merely a scribe. They also worked to involve the team in Scrum events, reducing the burden on the PO. Carmen emphasizes the importance of keeping the team updated on process changes and the value of having a PO who can openly discuss their challenges. Self-reflection Question: As a Scrum Master, how can you help both experienced and novice Product Owners find the right balance between taking ownership and enabling team participation? [Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] 🚀 Global Agile Summit 2025 Join us in Tallinn, Estonia, from May 18th – 20th, 2025, for an event that will inspire, challenge, and equip you with real-world Agile success stories. 🌍 Connect with global Agile leaders. 💡 Learn practical strategies for impact. 🔥 Break free from Agile fatigue and become a Pragmatic Innovator Check Full Program [Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] About Carmen Jurado  Carmen describes herself as an "agile storyteller" and has spoken at multiple agile conferences, covering topics such as psychological safety and imposter syndrome. Known for her enthusiasm and creativity, Carmen enjoys designing her own gamified retrospectives. She is an agile coach and business agility trainer, and is also active in the non-profit organization Women in Agile. You can link with Carmen on LinkedIn.

2 Touko 18min

Carmen Jurado: The Power of Constructive Feedback in Building Trust in Agile Teams Read the full Show Notes and search through the world's largest audio library on Agile and Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. Carmen identifies the hallmark of a successful team as one that allows itself to be vulnerable. Success isn't just about positive feedback but creating an environment where team members feel safe to discuss mistakes openly. She shares an experience where a team member made an error that caused a significant project delay, prompting other team members to complain. Instead of allowing this to create division, Carmen facilitated an open discussion where the team member acknowledged their mistake and received constructive feedback from colleagues. This exchange built trust and demonstrated that the team had developed the psychological safety needed to hold each other accountable. Carmen emphasizes that this accountability for work and agreements is a responsibility that belongs to the entire team, not just the Scrum Master. Self-reflection Question: How can you foster greater psychological safety in your team so members feel comfortable addressing mistakes directly with each other? Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: Golden Apples Carmen recommends the "Golden Apples" retrospective format, which draws inspiration from Greek mythology. This creative format incorporates feedback questions about sprints and the team, with game elements that introduce friendly competition. Carmen typically reserves this format for festive times of the year to boost team morale. She also mentions her fondness for movie-themed retrospectives and encourages Scrum Masters to invest time in creating fun, creative retrospective experiences that engage the team. In this segment, we refer to Norm Kerth’s Retrospective Prime Directive. [Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] 🚀 Global Agile Summit 2025 Join us in Tallinn, Estonia, from May 18th – 20th, 2025, for an event that will inspire, challenge, and equip you with real-world Agile success stories. 🌍 Connect with global Agile leaders. 💡 Learn practical strategies for impact. 🔥 Break free from Agile fatigue and become a Pragmatic Innovator Check Full Program [Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] About Carmen Jurado  Carmen describes herself as an "agile storyteller" and has spoken at multiple agile conferences, covering topics such as psychological safety and imposter syndrome. Known for her enthusiasm and creativity, Carmen enjoys designing her own gamified retrospectives. She is an agile coach and business agility trainer, and is also active in the non-profit organization Women in Agile. You can link with Carmen on LinkedIn.

1 Touko 15min

Carmen Jurado: Lean Change Management, How to Design Change with Those Affected Read the full Show Notes and search through the world's largest audio library on Agile and Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. Carmen discusses the critical mistakes organizations make when implementing change without adequate communication and employee involvement. She highlights how employees are often simply informed of new methods without any prior communication, creating resistance and disengagement. Carmen advocates for involving employees early in the change process, suggesting that representatives participate in the design phase and provide feedback on change plans. She emphasizes that Scrum Masters can grow by facilitating this involvement, encouraging co-creation of change through approaches like Lean Change Management. Carmen also shares a practical tip: involve your biggest critics in the change design, transforming them from obstacles into co-creators of the solution. Self-reflection Question: How might you better involve team members in designing change processes rather than simply announcing changes to them? [Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] 🚀 Global Agile Summit 2025 Join us in Tallinn, Estonia, from May 18th – 20th, 2025, for an event that will inspire, challenge, and equip you with real-world Agile success stories. 🌍 Connect with global Agile leaders. 💡 Learn practical strategies for impact. 🔥 Break free from Agile fatigue and become a Pragmatic Innovator Check Full Program [Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] About Carmen Jurado  Carmen describes herself as an "agile storyteller" and has spoken at multiple agile conferences, covering topics such as psychological safety and imposter syndrome. Known for her enthusiasm and creativity, Carmen enjoys designing her own gamified retrospectives. She is an agile coach and business agility trainer, and is also active in the non-profit organization Women in Agile. You can link with Carmen on LinkedIn.

30 Huhti 15min

Carmen Jurado: The Power of Being Heard, Turning Critics Into Agile Advocates Read the full Show Notes and search through the world's largest audio library on Agile and Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. Carmen shares how she was asked to step in as a Scrum Master for a struggling team that had a particularly vocal and critical lead developer. This developer had experienced multiple transitions and transformations, leading to significant resistance that was affecting the entire team's morale and creating unresolved conflicts. Carmen focused on building individual relationships with each team member and setting clear expectations. She discovered that the lead developer simply didn't feel heard. By listening and addressing these concerns, Carmen was able to transform her biggest critic into one of her strongest advocates. She emphasizes that resistance is often a sign of loyalty to something else and that understanding this can help transform a dysfunctional team into a high-performing one. Self-reflection Question: How might you address resistance in your team by focusing on individual relationships and understanding what team members feel loyal to? Featured Book of the Week: Joy Inc. by Richard Sheridan Carmen recommends Joy Inc. by Richard Sheridan, highlighting its practical insights for creating a motivating and enjoyable workplace. The book covers everything from hiring practices to team collaboration and experimentation, yet never explicitly mentions "Agile." Carmen appreciates the inspiring stories about understanding users in their environment and how these principles can be applied to create better working environments. [Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] 🚀 Global Agile Summit 2025 Join us in Tallinn, Estonia, from May 18th – 20th, 2025, for an event that will inspire, challenge, and equip you with real-world Agile success stories. 🌍 Connect with global Agile leaders. 💡 Learn practical strategies for impact. 🔥 Break free from Agile fatigue and become a Pragmatic Innovator Check Full Program [Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] About Carmen Jurado  Carmen describes herself as an "agile storyteller" and has spoken at multiple agile conferences, covering topics such as psychological safety and imposter syndrome. Known for her enthusiasm and creativity, Carmen enjoys designing her own gamified retrospectives. She is an agile coach and business agility trainer, and is also active in the non-profit organization Women in Agile. You can link with Carmen on LinkedIn.

29 Huhti 17min

Carmen Jurado: Scrum Masters, Your Team Needs to Know Which Hat You're Wearing Read the full Show Notes and search through the world's largest audio library on Agile and Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes. Carmen shares a valuable learning experience from her early days as a Scrum Master when she was assigned the additional responsibility of being a compliance officer for her team. During a retrospective, she noticed an uncomfortable atmosphere but didn't address it. After the session, the team requested a private meeting where they expressed their discomfort, explaining they weren't clear when Carmen was acting as their Scrum Master versus when she was enforcing compliance. This experience taught Carmen the critical importance of explicitly stating which role she was performing at any given moment and creating an environment where team members feel safe to provide honest feedback. Self-reflection Question: How clearly do you communicate your different roles and responsibilities to your team, and have you created an environment where they feel comfortable giving you direct feedback? [Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] 🚀 Global Agile Summit 2025 Join us in Tallinn, Estonia, from May 18th – 20th, 2025, for an event that will inspire, challenge, and equip you with real-world Agile success stories. 🌍 Connect with global Agile leaders. 💡 Learn practical strategies for impact. 🔥 Break free from Agile fatigue and become a Pragmatic Innovator Check Full Program [Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] About Carmen Jurado  Carmen describes herself as an "agile storyteller" and has spoken at multiple agile conferences, covering topics such as psychological safety and imposter syndrome. Known for her enthusiasm and creativity, Carmen enjoys designing her own gamified retrospectives. She is an agile coach and business agility trainer, and is also active in the non-profit organization Women in Agile. You can link with Carmen on LinkedIn.

28 Huhti 16min