Johanna Rothman

MAY 3, 2019

I started this series discussing the issue of the various product-based roles in an agile organization. And, batching the product planning in one-quarter chunks doesn't encourage us to reduce the feedback loop duration. Back when we started using agile approaches, many teams worked directly with their customers.

Product Research 70

Product Research Feedback Loop User Testing Customer Feedback 70

Johanna Rothman

SEPTEMBER 28, 2021

More of my clients say they want business agility. Yet, we don't share a common definition of business agility. Instead, let's consider how to see management's adaptable and resilient actions. Those actions show that managers change their actions in the face of new information or feedback. That's a good thing.)

Agile 89

Agile Feedback Software Product Research Feedback Loop 89

Johanna Rothman

JANUARY 16, 2019

Is it possible to balance the product innovation and feedback we need, with the commitment our management wants? When does it make sense to ask for more feedback instead? Low Change: Manage the Estimation Costs and Time. If the managers want estimates, make the estimate and explain your assumptions to management.

Product Research 58

Product Research Feedback Loop User Testing Customer Feedback 58

Johanna Rothman

OCTOBER 12, 2020

Of course, there are feedback loops here, too: Notice that we expect feedback from later features back to the previous features. However, if we have “bad” feedback from the last (or interim feature), we don't have the “Kiss of Death” as we did in the serial or iterative lifecycles.

User Testing 112

User Testing Product Research Agile Feedback Loop 112

Johanna Rothman

MAY 24, 2023

Brandon, a senior leader, asked, “What is all this hype about agile frameworks and models and practices? Especially for management.” But for managers, it's a little different. That's a reinforcing feedback loop that encourages management agility. Start with managers. “Nope.

Agile 45

Agile Feedback Loop Management Management 45

Johanna Rothman

JANUARY 16, 2019

Many of my clients are trying to use short feedback loops in agile approaches. That desire bumps up against their management's desires for longer commitments. The more need for product innovation and change, the shorter the feedback loops need to be. High Need for Product Innovation and Change.

Product Research 60

Product Research Feedback Loop User Testing Customer Feedback 60

Johanna Rothman

MARCH 9, 2021

I said that when we focus on individual achievements and deliverables, we ignore the agile system of work. Worse, when we reward individual achievements we prevent an agile culture. That's because agile teams learn together as they create the product. See Multiple Short Feedback Loops Support Innovation for more information.).

Agile 69

Agile Product Research Feedback Loop Feedback Software 69

Johanna Rothman

JANUARY 16, 2019

Your planning feedback loops can be longer. We need short feedback loops in the project/program to see where we are and make small adjustments. Even if you do encounter technical problems, agile approaches help manage those problems with short project feedback loops. We know what we have to do.

Product Research 60

Product Research Feedback Loop Feedback Software User Testing 60

Johanna Rothman

MAY 11, 2022

However, the more often we deliver in short feedback loops, the more often we can make strategic decisions. The more often we iterate strategically, the more we exhibit business agility. The shorter the feedback loops, the easier it is to use what we finished to make a new decision about the next bit of work at all levels.

Product Research 96

Product Research Feedback Loop Strategy User Testing 96

Johanna Rothman

FEBRUARY 27, 2024

For years, managers have been trying to find ways to make software product development faster and easier. “Agile” as a way to do much more work in much less time. (NO! That's because they don't have unplanned feedback loops as in the image on the left. As an industry, we've tried tons of things.

Product Research 83

Product Research Software Review Feedback Software Feedback Loop 83

Johanna Rothman

MARCH 26, 2024

” There's more in Manage It! Your Guide to Modern, Pragmatic Project Management.) I suspect their teams hide their feedback loops. When people create a high-level WBS, no one sees the feedback loops or the dependencies. The feedback loops tend to be late and create chaos in the project.

Data Visualization 70

Data Visualization Product Research Feedback Loop Feedback Software 70

Johanna Rothman

NOVEMBER 10, 2023

No one cares about a team's agility—with the possible exception of the team itself. But managers and customers do care about better products. The managers care when the team can release those products—that's why managers use capitalization metrics. That's why more agility in product development matters.

Product Research 61

Product Research Feedback Loop Customer Experience Agile 61

Johanna Rothman

OCTOBER 2, 2023

” It depends on how your lifecycle manages feedback loops and learning, how collaborative the team is, and how much WIP the team has. Each Lifecycle Manages Feedback Loops Differently Brooks wrote the original version of The Mythical Man-Month in 1975, based on the 1960s IBM 360 project. .”

Product Research 94

Product Research Customer Feedback Feedback Loop Feedback Software 94

Johanna Rothman

APRIL 18, 2024

See Flow Metrics and Why They Matter to Teams and Managers for why this happens.) Eliminate the Backlog in At Least Two Ways Large backlogs create aging and a too-high cognitive load for managing that backlog. (I That's why aging is a part of the flow metrics feedback loop on the top of this post. Those feedback loops.)

Product Research 72

Product Research Feedback Loop Data Visualization Reporting Tools 72

Johanna Rothman

FEBRUARY 6, 2023

Strategy and Product Feedback Loops About 20 years ago, I taught a project management workshop to IT people. That's why the duration of the internal feedback loops is so important. I used the image above in Multiple Short Feedback Loops Support Innovation. Thanks, bye. See you then.”

Product Research 125

Product Research Feedback Loop Workshop User Testing 125

Johanna Rothman

JULY 25, 2018

I’m working on my roadmapping talk for Agile 2018. I finally had the transforming idea about how to position the talk: Roadmapping and product planning are about feedback loops. The shorter the feedback loop, the faster and more often we can learn. How little can you do to get some feedback on the product?

Product Research 41

Product Research Feedback Loop User Testing Customer Feedback 41

Product Innovation Educators

JANUARY 3, 2022

How product managers can use the Modified Agile for Hardware Development Framework. They think they have the answer for applying Agile principles to hardware projects, and they call it the Modified Agile for Hardware Development (MAHD) Framework. Summary of some concepts discussed for product managers. [2:56]

Agile 112

Agile Development Feedback Software User Testing 112

Johanna Rothman

JANUARY 16, 2019

And, if management doesn't need to change more frequently than the iteration duration, the team might spend time estimating in the small for the stories in the iteration backlog. Management doesn't need to see the estimates because the estimates are not for the entire feature set. Too Much Estimation is Waste.

Product Research 56

Product Research Feedback Loop Agile Consulting 56

Johanna Rothman

MARCH 11, 2021

That often creates a problem: great technical people become insufficient managers. Let's not blame these people—many of them didn't want to become managers However, if people want more responsibility, the career ladder often forces people into management. Offer and receive feedback that you use. Ask for help.

Agile 95

Agile Product Research Feedback Loop Leadership 95

Johanna Rothman

NOVEMBER 9, 2021

Strategy and Product Feedback Loops. Instead, what if managers told the team when the managers want to make a decision? The team could deliver enough to help the managers make those decisions. We change the feedback loops. That's the point of all those feedback loops in the image above.).

Product Research 105

Product Research Feedback Loop Feedback Software Agile 105

Johanna Rothman

OCTOBER 15, 2020

Which levers does your team need to manage risk in your project? Maybe you need feedback from customers. Isn't every iterative and incremental approach an agile approach? We often hear agile approaches are a mindset. Agile approaches change what we discuss, how we work together, and what we reward. Release trains.

User Testing 70

User Testing Agile Product Research Weak Development Team 70

Johanna Rothman

AUGUST 14, 2019

In Part 1 , I wrote about how “Agile” is not a silver bullet and is not right for every team and every product. This post is about how management fits into agile approaches. Too often, managers think “agile” is for others, specifically teams of people. Managers Create and Refine the Culture.

User Testing 69

User Testing Agile Product Research Feedback Loop 69

Agile Velocity

MAY 14, 2020

Did you know you can maximize your chances of achieving desired business outcomes by combining DevOps with an Agile transformation? When you hear “Business Outcomes,” “DevOps,” and/or Agile transformation” – what comes to mind? Agile Transformation. Agile transformations and DevOps initiatives are complementary.

Feedback Software 98

Feedback Software Agile Analytic Tools Data Visualization 98

Johanna Rothman

MAY 16, 2019

I suggested ways to think about more agile budgeting in part 1. That's because I manage my company in a similar way as your managers manage your organization. That's because I manage my company in a similar way as your managers manage your organization. My feedback loop is one month at the outside.

Data Visualization 60

Data Visualization Agile Product Research Feedback Loop 60

Johanna Rothman

APRIL 21, 2021

See Agile FM – Johanna Rothman. We spoke about a number of ideas from the Modern Management Made Easy books: How to recognize and avoid micromanagement. Feedback loops and delays for managers. appeared first on Johanna Rothman, Management Consultant. What it might mean to engage people at work.

Feedback Loop 101

Feedback Loop Agile Consulting Books 101

Johanna Rothman

FEBRUARY 14, 2020

They've started to use agile approaches. Capitalization for Agile Work. Let me walk you through an example of a 5-person agile team. I would add demoing in as value creation, but I'm not sure how accountants categorize feedback loops. But, what happens if you don't have an agile project? Why Capitalize?

Feedback Software 74

Feedback Software Agile Product Research Finance 74

Johanna Rothman

MARCH 10, 2020

(This is any lifecycle, not just an agile approach.). Shorten Feedback Loops. Next, I suggested that the team find ways to shorten their feedback loops , in Part 2. I suggested that first, you see your feedback loops. (I When we shorten feedback loops, we can tell if we're working on the right work.

Product Research 84

Product Research Technical Review Systems Review Feedback Loop 84

Johanna Rothman

JUNE 17, 2022

If I stretch that analogy a little, managers need to see where we are predictable for the next bit of time, and the options we see for the future. Too often, I see very predictable roadmaps for managers. Most teams use agile approaches because they want some feedback, internal and external, to guide the future product development.

Roadmap 94

Roadmap Product Research Feedback Software Customer Experience 94

Johanna Rothman

FEBRUARY 25, 2019

Some of my clients have struggled with their project governance as they move to agile approaches. See my series on Balance Innovation, Commitment, & Feedback Loops: Summary. This kind of measurement is antithetical to agile principles. Agile approaches allow us to do that. That productivity thing.

Agile 68

Agile Government Customer Experience Product Research 68

Johanna Rothman

AUGUST 21, 2019

I started asking if you actually need an agile approach in Part 1 and noted the 4 big problems I see. Part 2 was why we need managers in an agile transformation. Part 4 was about how “Agile” is meaningless and “agile” is an adjective that needs to be applied to something.

Agile 65

Agile Product Research User Testing Customer Experience 65

Johanna Rothman

OCTOBER 20, 2020

I discussed the origins of the agile approaches in Part 5. In this post, I'll discuss how you can create an agile approach that fits your context. Why should you create your own agile approach? You deserve an agile approach that helps you achieve the business outcomes you need. What do you need? Start with the Team.

User Testing 60

User Testing Agile Technical Review Feedback Software 60

Johanna Rothman

NOVEMBER 18, 2022

We manage the risks of long-term commitments (decisions) by gaining experience with that person in many circumstances. (I Create a yearly budget as a guideline for our specific goals, but manage that budget every week and month to manage our risks. That's how we manage all our decisions: the Important and the Urgent.

Customer Experience 98

Customer Experience Product Research Consulting Management 98

Johanna Rothman

MAY 10, 2019

The teams, PO, management, all think they need big planning. They're not living the principles of the agile manifesto. That was in Product Roles, Part 1: Product Managers, Product Owners, Business Analysts. It's the team's job to use an agile approach to define the strategy, discover ways to deliver that strategy and replan.

Product Research 60

Product Research Feedback Loop Customer Experience Agile 60

Mind the Product

NOVEMBER 24, 2020

Feedback loops. Matt’s Mind The Product talk, Be in a Band, not an Orchestra: how to Grow an Agile Product Team. Management tools at 15Five and Trello. Lily enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers.

Product Research 93

Product Research Feedback Software Feedback Loop Technical Review 93

Johanna Rothman

MARCH 8, 2022

In Agile and Lean Program Management , I suggested two other views of large products. See Create Feedback Loops (Agile Approaches) for Hardware Products.). The post See and Resolve Team Dependencies, Part 4: All Component Teams, Complex Product appeared first on Johanna Rothman, Management Consultant.

Data Visualization 116

Data Visualization Feedback Software Product Research Customer Experience 116

Johanna Rothman

NOVEMBER 30, 2020

Steve, a software development manager, thought John was a “10x” developer. Managers can support their teams in many ways. You might create an image of the feedback loops, as in Unearthing Your Project's Delays. You now realize that if you want an agile culture, you want the team to collaborate.

Weak Development Team 99

Weak Development Team Feedback Software Development Product Research 99

Johanna Rothman

AUGUST 11, 2022

Many agile teams and product leaders assume they can make many product decisions on their own. A product HiPPO, such as a senior manager, might change the order of the backlog, or add more problems/features to it. I'm fond of multiple short feedback loops so people can change their minds in the face of new data.

Fractional CTO 103

Fractional CTO Data Visualization Weak Development Team Product Research 103