Reddit reviews Coaching Agile Teams: A Companion for ScrumMasters, Agile Coaches, and Project Managers in Transition (Addison-Wesley Signature Series (Cohn))

We found 4 Reddit comments about Coaching Agile Teams: A Companion for ScrumMasters, Agile Coaches, and Project Managers in Transition (Addison-Wesley Signature Series (Cohn)). Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.

Coaching Agile Teams: A Companion for ScrumMasters, Agile Coaches, and Project Managers in Transition (Addison-Wesley Signature Series (Cohn))

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4 Reddit comments about Coaching Agile Teams: A Companion for ScrumMasters, Agile Coaches, and Project Managers in Transition (Addison-Wesley Signature Series (Cohn)):

u/J19Z7 · 19 pointsr/agile

>Is there a book/video/training that can give me a really solid understanding of expectations of Agile?

Many. You can spend thousands of dollars and attend hundreds of hours of training. Scrum.org and ScrumAlliance.org both offer certification classes. But that is not what you need at first (unless the company pays, then do it!). The first thing you need is to understand agile is an adjective. You can look up the definition in the dictionary. If you use google though, look at the traditional definition "able to move quickly and easily", not the "project management" bullshit. Agile is not project management. Dictionary definitions are what is in common use, not what is correct, and there are a LOT of traditional managers and PMO "gurus" misusing the term. Agile is about your team/org being agile: responding to the constantly changing project & world quickly & easily.

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Next, read the agile manifesto. The manifesto is the basic description of what the creators identified as the shared reasons their individually designed practices were successful. The actual processes they created were all customized to the creator's individual teams and situations. They all had different ways of doing things, but realized they were all successful because they all valued, for example, "Individuals and interactions over processes and tools".

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Now, get ready to fight the PMO. I say "fight" a little facetiously though, because remember the one value I listed above? VALUE individuals and interactions. If you're "fighting", then you're not interacting very well. If management and their PMO are not on board though, you're going to have a fun time trying to merge stuff because you're going to be violating principles left & right just because they have the authority to beat you up if don't follow their processes.

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I haven't really answered your questions yet, have I? That is because the questions you asked are a little advanced. How do you merge what the agile frameworks are recommending with management & PMO's processes, needs, and expectations? By talking with your org. By training them in the "agile metrics" and how to use them. By getting their support for the agile transition. By setting up many intermediary steps to get them comfortable and familiar with the new way of doing things. By showing them how successful one high performing team can be, and then describing the compounding benefits of getting the entire org on board so you can do that. This is stuff an experienced agile coach can help walk your org through over time.

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So how about a couple solid answers of varying worth to your specific questions/comments?

"IT infrastructure is transitioning to Agile/DevOps." No they aren't. Not really. The "Dev" in "DevOps" is "Developer". The entire point of that portmanteau is to describe the merging of development & operations teams, to eliminate the problems associated with handing off the developer's work to infrastructure to install & manage. If you want a quick, semi-fun fiction style read about this, try The Phoenix Project.
"from what I have been reading, it sounds like I shouldn't be using both methodologies, but I am getting pressure from both sides to do so." It is very difficult, as I alluded to, but is not impossible. If the org is really going agile, there are going to be huge changes at the start. If not, just don't worry about it. Do whatever process they want and take it as yet another process you've "learned", without the backing values. Without management's support actually adopting the agile values, it is not a fight worth having from the trenches.
"How can I provide end deliverable dates if we are living in an Agile framework." To start, pretty much the same way you're doing things now. Sum up the estimates for all the pieces, and that is the estimate for the project. This isn't ideal and you're going to have issues. Work through them as they come up. 😀
"Should/Can I be an effective Scrum Master if I am not a developer?" Absolutely. Scrum separates the roles. In your position I'd be more worried about separating the product owner & scrum master roles. That is where you're going to get pulled in different directions. The product owner has the vision for the product, they decide & communicate to the team what to build. The scrum master is there to help the team improve their practices: identify & remove impediments, train on new practices, ensure teams are talking & healthy, etc. Finally, it is the developer's self-organizing cross-functional skills everybody must trust to get the project done... They will decide the how. Read Coaching Agile Teams, by Lyssa Adkins. As a project manager transitioning, I guarantee that book is right up your alley. That is the transition she made and can help you make. That will help you get on the right page as a scrum master.
Read whatever framework the "project" (i.e., "agile" team) is going to use (scrum, right?) They tend to be short. Just know it's a framework. It is designed for you to fill in all the gaps according to what you identified as your needs.
"Sorry I feel like I am all over the place, but it is indicative of what I am facing at work." Ya, sure sounds like it. Agile stuff is fun if you have the right Abundance Mindset.

u/lwhitit · 9 pointsr/agile

I would highly recommend Coaching Agile Teams by Lyssa Adkins

u/Iammyownmaster · 2 pointsr/agile

Coaching agile teams is amazing. Once you understand the scrum processes read this book. Coaching Agile Teams: A Companion for ScrumMasters, Agile Coaches, and Project Managers in Transition https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0321637704/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_yRv3DbZ9B4YY5

u/Onisake · 1 pointr/scrum