The Impact of Unaddressed Conflict on Agile Team Health | Chrissy Fleming

Anuj Ojha: Helping PO’s Move Beyond User Story Templates to True Customer Understanding 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. The Great Product Owner: The Vision Setter Who Empowers Teams In this segment, Anuj describes an exemplary Product Owner who mastered the art of inclusive product development. This PO excelled at bringing everyone together to discuss the product and potential solutions, while maintaining a clear focus on the vision and problem space. Rather than dictating solutions, they created an environment where team members could freely explore solutions while the PO remained available for questions and guidance. Their success came from building strong relationships with stakeholders and customers, and effectively using the Eisenhower matrix to prioritize work. The Bad Product Owner: The Requirements Translator Anuj discusses common anti-patterns he's observed in Product Owners, particularly those who may have previously been project managers. A crucial issue arises when POs create user stories without first understanding the customer and their journey with the product. Some POs become mere translators, rigidly adhering to story templates instead of truly understanding customer needs. The key to improvement lies in helping POs learn to engage directly with customers, focus on problem exploration rather than immediate solutions, and collaborate with the whole team in solution discussions. Self-reflection Question: How can you help your Product Owner move from being a requirements translator to becoming a true value maximizer? [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] 🔥In the ruthless world of fintech, success isn’t just about innovation—it’s about coaching!🔥 Angela thought she was just there to coach a team. But now, she’s caught in the middle of a corporate espionage drama that could make or break the future of digital banking. Can she help the team regain their mojo and outwit their rivals, or will the competition crush their ambitions? As alliances shift and the pressure builds, one thing becomes clear: this isn’t just about the product—it’s about the people. 🚨 Will Angela’s coaching be enough? Find out in Shift: From Product to People—the gripping story of high-stakes innovation and corporate intrigue. Buy Now on Amazon [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] About Anuj Ojha Anuj is the co-founder & Lead Consultant at Benzne Consulting. With more than a decade of consulting experience & setting up Agile environments. Anuj and his team partner with businesses to unlock their true potential and drive continuous growth. Anuj considers himself framework agnostic, purpose & data driven. You can link with Anuj Ojha on LinkedIn, or via his company’s website Benzne.com.

7 Mars 19min

Anuj Ojha: Building Agile Team Maturity Through Honest Feedback 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. A successful Scrum Master should work towards making themselves unnecessary, but Anuj warns against common anti-patterns in this journey. He emphasizes the danger of viewing Scrum as a universal solution or behaving like a "cult master" who rigidly follows rules instead of listening to team needs. He advises against manipulating conversations or using others' authority to validate decisions. Instead, he promotes viewing Scrum as a continuous PDCA cycle and maintaining an open mind about different approaches. Self-reflection Question: How comfortable is your team with giving and receiving direct, constructive feedback to each other? Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: Team Shared Self-Evaluation This retrospective format focuses on building interpersonal relationships through structured feedback. Using a Google Form, team members answer two key questions about each colleague: what they appreciate about working with them and one change that could make them an even better team member. The format includes a sharing session where team members can process the feedback and discuss it openly. This approach encourages personal accountability by having participants first communicate what they themselves want to change before asking others to change. [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] 🔥In the ruthless world of fintech, success isn’t just about innovation—it’s about coaching!🔥 Angela thought she was just there to coach a team. But now, she’s caught in the middle of a corporate espionage drama that could make or break the future of digital banking. Can she help the team regain their mojo and outwit their rivals, or will the competition crush their ambitions? As alliances shift and the pressure builds, one thing becomes clear: this isn’t just about the product—it’s about the people. 🚨 Will Angela’s coaching be enough? Find out in Shift: From Product to People—the gripping story of high-stakes innovation and corporate intrigue. Buy Now on Amazon [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] About Anuj Ojha Anuj is the co-founder & Lead Consultant at Benzne Consulting. With more than a decade of consulting experience & setting up Agile environments. Anuj and his team partner with businesses to unlock their true potential and drive continuous growth. Anuj considers himself framework agnostic, purpose & data driven. You can link with Anuj Ojha on LinkedIn, or via his company’s website Benzne.com.

6 Mars 17min

Anuj Ojha: Beyond the Iron Triangle, A Path to True Agility 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. Anuj shares his journey of understanding the complexities behind Scrum implementation, particularly when faced with fixed time and scope demands. He emphasizes the importance of learning to communicate effectively with different stakeholders in their own language. Through experience, he discovered that the traditional iron triangle (fixed time, scope, and resources) is a fiction in agile environments. His key insight is that while you can fix two sides of the triangle, attempting to fix all three undermines agility. He suggests building cases for critical needs like technical debt and ensuring all voices are heard when determining what's possible. Self-reflection Question: How do you handle situations where stakeholders demand certainty in all three aspects of the iron triangle? [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] 🔥In the ruthless world of fintech, success isn’t just about innovation—it’s about coaching!🔥 Angela thought she was just there to coach a team. But now, she’s caught in the middle of a corporate espionage drama that could make or break the future of digital banking. Can she help the team regain their mojo and outwit their rivals, or will the competition crush their ambitions? As alliances shift and the pressure builds, one thing becomes clear: this isn’t just about the product—it’s about the people. 🚨 Will Angela’s coaching be enough? Find out in Shift: From Product to People—the gripping story of high-stakes innovation and corporate intrigue. Buy Now on Amazon [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] About Anuj Ojha Anuj is the co-founder & Lead Consultant at Benzne Consulting. With more than a decade of consulting experience & setting up Agile environments. Anuj and his team partner with businesses to unlock their true potential and drive continuous growth. Anuj considers himself framework agnostic, purpose & data driven. You can link with Anuj Ojha on LinkedIn, or via his company’s website Benzne.com.

5 Mars 17min

Anuj Ojha: Transforming Agile Team Meetings, Less Time, More Value 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. When Anuj started working with a team that believed asynchronous communication could replace their Daily Scrum, it sparked a journey of meaningful transformation. The team was frustrated with meeting overload and took bold steps to evaluate and modify their meeting structure. They questioned the value of Sprint Reviews and Retrospectives, ultimately creating a more focused approach to meetings. A significant breakthrough came when they removed managers from the Daily Scrum, leading to more effective communication and increased quality time for actual work. The team's success came from creating a backlog of improvements and integrating these directly into their sprint work. Self-reflection Question: How might your team benefit from critically evaluating your current meeting structure and making bold changes? Featured Book of the Week: The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni was a game-changer for Anuj, offering a model for understanding team dynamics. The author's five-level model proved especially valuable during challenging periods, providing insights applicable to teams across all domains. The book's framework helped Anuj better understand and address the fundamental dysfunctions that teams commonly face. [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] 🔥In the ruthless world of fintech, success isn’t just about innovation—it’s about coaching!🔥 Angela thought she was just there to coach a team. But now, she’s caught in the middle of a corporate espionage drama that could make or break the future of digital banking. Can she help the team regain their mojo and outwit their rivals, or will the competition crush their ambitions? As alliances shift and the pressure builds, one thing becomes clear: this isn’t just about the product—it’s about the people. 🚨 Will Angela’s coaching be enough? Find out in Shift: From Product to People—the gripping story of high-stakes innovation and corporate intrigue. Buy Now on Amazon [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] About Anuj Ojha Anuj is the co-founder & Lead Consultant at Benzne Consulting. With more than a decade of consulting experience & setting up Agile environments. Anuj and his team partner with businesses to unlock their true potential and drive continuous growth. Anuj considers himself framework agnostic, purpose & data driven. You can link with Anuj Ojha on LinkedIn, or via his company’s website Benzne.com.

4 Mars 21min

Anuj Ojha: From Process Police to People Partner, Self-Accountability and Self-Awareness for Scrum Masters 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. In this insightful episode, Anuj shares a powerful story of personal growth as a Scrum Master. Initially caught up in the mechanics of Scrum, he found himself trying to control situations and please everyone while rigidly adhering to the Scrum Guide.  Through a three-step journey of self-awareness, feedback-seeking, and actualization, Anuj discovered that his true challenge lay in understanding himself and his purpose. He learned to shift his focus from velocity and burndown charts to delivering value, and from being process-oriented to being people-oriented. This transformation led him to become more of a listener than a talker, embracing conflict as a natural part of growth. Self-reflection Question: How might your current focus on processes or metrics be affecting your ability to connect with and serve your team members? [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] 🔥In the ruthless world of fintech, success isn’t just about innovation—it’s about coaching!🔥 Angela thought she was just there to coach a team. But now, she’s caught in the middle of a corporate espionage drama that could make or break the future of digital banking. Can she help the team regain their mojo and outwit their rivals, or will the competition crush their ambitions? As alliances shift and the pressure builds, one thing becomes clear: this isn’t just about the product—it’s about the people. 🚨 Will Angela’s coaching be enough? Find out in Shift: From Product to People—the gripping story of high-stakes innovation and corporate intrigue. Buy Now on Amazon [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] About Anuj Ojha Anuj is the co-founder & Lead Consultant at Benzne Consulting. With more than a decade of consulting experience & setting up Agile environments. Anuj and his team partner with businesses to unlock their true potential and drive continuous growth. Anuj considers himself framework agnostic, purpose & data driven. You can link with Anuj Ojha on LinkedIn, or via his company’s website Benzne.com.

3 Mars 16min

BONUS: How To Build Trust and Manage Conflict, With Maria Arpa In this BONUS episode, we dive deep into the art of building trust and managing conflict in the workplace with Maria Arpa, an expert mediator and creator of the Dialogue Roadmap. Maria shares powerful insights on transforming workplace dynamics through compassionate communication and authentic dialogue. Understanding Power Dynamics in the Workplace "What we don't talk about openly, most people end up acting out." Power imbalances exist in every workplace and cannot be ignored. Maria emphasizes the importance of exposing and addressing these power dynamics openly, particularly the unspoken contracts that govern our interactions. These implicit agreements often drive behavior and can lead to conflict when left unaddressed. The Dialogue Roadmap: Moving Beyond Debate "We give children prizes for debating societies. We don't give children prizes for collaborative behavior." The Dialogue Roadmap offers a structured approach to authentic conversation that moves away from the traditional debate model. Maria explains how our societal conditioning toward debate and competition can hinder genuine communication and collaboration. Creating Safe Spaces for Difficult Conversations "You can't have these conversations while you're trying to do the work and meet a deadline." One key aspect of effective conflict resolution is creating dedicated spaces for challenging conversations. Maria emphasizes that these discussions cannot happen effectively while trying to meet deadlines or during regular work activities. The Power of Empathic Connection "Empathy drives change. It drives change from the inside out." Building trust starts with establishing empathic connections. Maria shares how this approach drives change from the inside out, rather than trying to force external changes. Managing Conflict as a Resource "Conflict, when approached compassionately, is our biggest free resource that opens the door to creativity." Rather than viewing conflict as a problem to be solved, Maria suggests seeing it as a valuable resource for positive change. When approached compassionately, conflict can open doors to creativity and innovation. Language and Trust-Building "Words can be windows or walls... language is the software in our brains that we use to tell us what to do." The words we choose can either build bridges or create barriers. Maria introduces the concept of "enforcement mentality" and its impact on workplace relationships. In this segment, we refer to the episode with Michelle Pauk on the importance of language in our work. Practical Tools for Leaders Maria shares several practical approaches for leaders to build trust and manage conflict: Slow down conversations using techniques like the metronome Use phrases like "If I understand you, what you really want me to hear is..." Create opportunities to restart conversations with "This isn't the conversation I meant to have. Can I start again, please?" Maintaining Accountability Without Enforcement "You can say 'What conversation should I be having with you?' - how the person answers tells you everything you need to know." Creating accountability without falling into an enforcement mentality requires clear communication about expectations and consequences. Maria emphasizes the importance of making contracts explicit and inviting people to take ownership of their responsibilities. About Maria Arpa Maria Arpa is an expert mediator, counselor, and advocate for meaningful workplace change, and the creator of the Dialogue Roadmap - a communications tool that moves away from accusative/blaming ways of communicating to a much more compassionate and collaborative way of working. In her book "Mindfulness at Work", Maria offers powerful strategies to transform stressful, conflict-ridden workplaces into environments of harmony and collaboration. You can connect with Maria Arpa on LinkedIn, or visit Maria Arpa’s Workplace Huddle website.

1 Mars 37min

Season Hughes: From Defensive to Collaborative Product Ownership 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. The Great Product Owner: Building Team and Customer Connection A great Product Owner demonstrates deep care for both the product and the team members, understanding their challenges and experiences. Season highlights how exceptional POs actively advocate for customer involvement in sprint reviews and consistently conduct customer interviews, creating a strong bridge between the development team and end-users. The Bad Product Owner: The Defensive Questioner Season describes a challenging situation where a Product Owner would respond to team proposals with defensive "why" questions, creating an atmosphere where developers felt they needed to justify their suggestions. This approach led to team defensiveness and reduced collaboration, highlighting the importance of asking questions in a way that promotes understanding rather than creates tension. Self-reflection Question: How do you ensure your communication style encourages collaboration rather than defensiveness? [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] 🔥In the ruthless world of fintech, success isn’t just about innovation—it’s about coaching!🔥 Angela thought she was just there to coach a team. But now, she’s caught in the middle of a corporate espionage drama that could make or break the future of digital banking. Can she help the team regain their mojo and outwit their rivals, or will the competition crush their ambitions? As alliances shift and the pressure builds, one thing becomes clear: this isn’t just about the product—it’s about the people. 🚨 Will Angela’s coaching be enough? Find out in Shift: From Product to People—the gripping story of high-stakes innovation and corporate intrigue. Buy Now on Amazon [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] About Season Hughes  Season is a strategist and creator who empowers customers and teams to excel. From designing clever, fandom-inspired apparel at Tomorrowland Transit Authority to coaching high-performance teams, Season is passionate about delivering value and driving growth. Now focused on ecommerce success, Season's mission is to turn goals into epic adventures. You can link with Season Hughes on LinkedIn.

28 Feb 15min

Season Hughes: How To Be A Data-Driven Scrum Master Or Agile Coach 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. Season approaches Scrum Master success by regularly referring back to the Scrum Guide and measuring progress against its principles. She emphasizes the importance of collecting data and measuring key indicators like self-management, which she tests by occasionally stepping back from daily Scrum meetings to observe team autonomy. Season also stresses the value of one-on-one conversations to understand individual goals and assess team event effectiveness. Self-reflection Question: How do you measure the effectiveness of your role as a Scrum Master beyond just following ceremonies? Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: Lean Coffee Season recommends the Lean Coffee format for retrospectives as it puts control directly in the hands of participants who decide the discussion topics. This approach naturally increases engagement and ownership of the retrospective process. She emphasizes the importance of including warm-up activities to set the right mood and ensuring everyone speaks early in the session, while also following up on previous retrospective actions. [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] 🔥In the ruthless world of fintech, success isn’t just about innovation—it’s about coaching!🔥 Angela thought she was just there to coach a team. But now, she’s caught in the middle of a corporate espionage drama that could make or break the future of digital banking. Can she help the team regain their mojo and outwit their rivals, or will the competition crush their ambitions? As alliances shift and the pressure builds, one thing becomes clear: this isn’t just about the product—it’s about the people. 🚨 Will Angela’s coaching be enough? Find out in Shift: From Product to People—the gripping story of high-stakes innovation and corporate intrigue. Buy Now on Amazon [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends] About Season Hughes  Season is a strategist and creator who empowers customers and teams to excel. From designing clever, fandom-inspired apparel at Tomorrowland Transit Authority to coaching high-performance teams, Season is passionate about delivering value and driving growth. Now focused on ecommerce success, Season's mission is to turn goals into epic adventures. You can link with Season Hughes on LinkedIn.

27 Feb 15min