Leading Teams is not about subscribing to a specific formula or leadership style, says Hackman. Rather, it is about applying a concise set of guiding principles to each unique group situation—and doing so in the leader's own idiosyncratic way. Based on extensive research and using compelling examples ranging from orchestras to airline cockpit crews, Leading Teams identifies five essential conditions—a stable team, a clear and engaging direction, an enabling team structure, a supportive organizational context, and the availability of competent coaching—that greatly enhance the likelihood of team success. The book offers a practical framework that leaders can use to muster personal skills and organizational resources to create and sustain the five key conditions and shows how those conditions can launch a team onto a trajectory of increasing effectiveness. Authoritative and astutely realistic, Leading Teams offers a new and provocative way of thinking about and leading work teams in any organizational setting.

    Completely revised and updated, the second edition is loaded with new tools and techniques.Two powerful new chapters on agenda design A full section devoted to reaching closure More than twice as many tools for handling difficult dynamics 70 brand-new pages and over 100 pages significantly improved

    Is this Scrum? Can you share some tactics to do effective Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, Sprint Retrospective, and Product Backlog Refinement? My designation is development manager. Does this mean I have no role in Scrum? How is Scrum Empirical? Can Scrum Master and Product Owner be the same person? We don’t have a Scrum Master. Are we still practicing Scrum? What does Self-Organization really mean? How does Scrum embrace the four values and twelve principles of the Agile Manifesto? Please share a case study on Scrum based product development? Recommendations for the book from the Scrum champions Take advantage of Hiren’s vast experience and avoid making the common errors people make as they begin their journey. This book contains a wealth of practical information that will be useful to readers as they work to implement the basic theory found in The Scrum Guide—Steve Porter, team member, Scrum.org In his book Scrum Insights for Practitioners, Hiren has extended the core rules of The Scrum Guide with practices he has found useful. Hiren answers questions regarding Scrum that potentially remain unanswered even after one reads The Scrum Guide. Hiren dismantles common misconceptions about Scrum, regardless of the source of such misconceptions. Hiren elaborates on basic information provided in The Scrum Guide, as well as on the principles underlying Scrum—Gunther Verheyen, Author of “Scrum — A Pocket Guide, a Smart Travel Companion” Hiren Doshi has written a fine companion to The Scrum Guide, filling in some of the intentional gaps left in the Scrum framework. Using this companion along with The Scrum Guide will undoubtedly improve the outlook for those teams that internalize its teachings.”—Charles Bradley, ScrumCrazy.com This book will help you understand the nuances of Scrum. It takes a very practical approach toward implementing Scrum without compromising on its values and principles. A useful and handy reference for Scrum practitioners!— Gopinath R, Agile coach and practitioner

    This internationally recognized standard provides the essential tools to practice project management and deliver organizational results.

    Based on the five years of work in the field with companies like Toyota, 3M, Schlumberger, and Autodesk, The Scrum Fieldbook offers a hands on approach to implementing the practices of the Scrum framework among traditional, non-technology companies.In J.J. Sutherland's first book, Scrum, written with his father, Jeff, he laid out the Scrum framework used by almost all of today's leading technology companies, based on Agile software development. The book has gone on to sell over 120,000 copies in its print and ebooks editions, and another 95,000 copies as an audio download. Since publication, the Scrum framework has exploded across the corporate world. J.J. and his team at Scrum Inc. have worked with private space companies, global oil and gas firms, banks, medical device manufacturers, and firms on the cutting edge of genetic science.In the Scrum Fieldbook, J.J. takes leaders, managers, and employees deeper into the specific challenges and opportunities the company has faced in working with major established companies like Toyota, 3M, Schlumberger, and Autodesk. He shows how the simple scrum framework can be successfully applied to any situation, and in every industry, from automobile manufacturers in the USA and Europe, to nonprofits in Africa, from home renovation contractors in Minnesota to gas exploration companies in South America, from building fighter planes to improving the banking industry.

    The book is a classic work for consultants, facilitators, managers, leaders, trainers, and coaches--anyonewhose role is to facilitate and guide groups toward realizing theircreative and problem-solving potential. This thoroughly revisededition provides the essential materials for anyone that workswithin the field of facilitation and includes simple but effectiveground rules for group interaction. Filled with illustrativeexamples, the book contains proven techniques for starting meetingson the right foot and ending them positively and decisively. Thisimportant resource also offers practical methods for handlingemotions when they arise in a group and offers a diagnosticapproach for identifying and solving problems that can underminethe group process

    Readers new to Kanban will understand why and how it works, while those with experience will appreciate its fresh perspective and the connections it makes with a range of related models.

    For years, Joel Spolsky has done exactly this at www.joelonsoftware.com. Now, for the first time, you can own a collection of the most important essays from his site in one book, with exclusive commentary and new insights from joel.

    Martin ("Uncle Bob") reintroduces agile values and principles for a new generation of software developers. In this eagerly-awaited book, the best-selling author of The Clean Coder shows how to bring unprecedented levels of professionalism and discipline to agile development -- and thereby write far more effective, successful software. As with his other books, Martin's Clean Agile: Back to Basics doesn't merely present multiple choices and options, and say "use your best judgment": it tells you what choices to make, and why those choices are critical to your success. Writing in the agile context, Martin offers direct, no-nonsense answers to crucial questions like:How and why did Agile begin? What are the costs and benefits of Agile? What are the most effective practices of Agile Development? How should an Agile team be organized? What roles do programmers, testers, and managers play in an Agile team? What is the role of the Agile Coach? What about Agile for large projects? What kinds of projects benefit from Agile? Clean Agile: Back to Basics is essential reading for programmers, managers, testers, project managers and every software professional called upon to lead or participate in an agile project.

    Once groundbreaking and now time-honored, Managing at the Speed of Change has helped countless business leaders learn how to orchestrate transitions vital to their organizations' success. Rather than focusing on what to change, this book's aim is far more valuable: It shows readers how to change.Daryl R. Conner, founder and chairman of the consulting firm Conner Partners, is a leading expert on change management. He has served as "change doctor" for clients that include non-profit enterprises, government agencies and administrations, and Fortune 500 companies in an array of industries such as Abbott Laboratories, PepsiCo, American Express, Catholic Healthcare West, JPMorgan Chase, and the U.S. Navy.Based on Conner's long-term research and his decades of consulting experience, Managing at the Speed of Change uses simple, easy-to-understand language and elegant visuals to explore the dynamics of change, and in doing so, teaches readers- why major change is difficult to assimilate- what distinguishes resilient individuals from those who suffer future shock- how and why resistance forms- how people become committed to change- why organizational culture is so important to the success of change- the roles most central to change in organizational settings- why powerful teamwork is at the heart of achieving change objectives, and how to foster itIn this pioneering book, updated for the twenty-first century, Conner demonstrates how both individuals and organizations can develop the capacity not only to endure change but to thrive on it.

    Companies that embrace Agile Management learn to connect everyone and everything . . . all the time. They can deliver instant, intimate, frictionless value on a large scale.Agile began emerging many decades ago, but truly took off in the software development industry. Sparking dramatic improvements in quality, innovation, and speed-to-market, the Agile movement is now spreading quickly throughout all kinds of companies. It enables a team, a unit, or an enterprise to nimbly adapt and upgrade products and services to meet rapidly changing technology and customer needs. And the process is applicable anywhere — companies don’t need to be born Agile, like Spotify. Even centuries-old Barclays is making the transition and reaping rewards.Filled with examples from every sector, The Age of Agile helps readers:Master the three laws of Agile Management (team, customer, network) ● Embrace the new mindset ● Overcome constraints ● Employ meaningful metrics ● Make the entire organization Agile ● And moreWith this breakthrough approach, even global giants can learn to act entrepreneurially. Their future depends on it.

    Presentation software is one of the few tools that requires professionals to think visually on an almost daily basis. But unlike verbal skills, effective visual expression is not easy, natural, or actively taught in schools or business training programs. slide:ology fills that void.Written by Nancy Duarte, President and CEO of Duarte Design, the firm that created the presentation for Al Gore's Oscar-winning film, An Inconvenient Truth, this book is full of practical approaches to visual story development that can be applied by anyone. The book combines conceptual thinking and inspirational design, with insightful case studies from the world's leading brands. With slide:ology you'll learn to:Connect with specific audiencesTurn ideas into informative graphicsUse sketching and diagramming techniques effectivelyCreate graphics that enable audiences to process information easilyDevelop truly influential presentationsUtilize presentation technology to your advantageMillions of presentations and billions of slides have been produced -- and most of them miss the mark. slide:ology will challenge your traditional approach to creating slides by teaching you how to be a visual thinker. And it will help your career by creating momentum for your cause.--back cover

    This tremendous time investment yields only modest returns. No organization made up of human beings is immune from the all-too-common meeting gripes: those that fail to engage, thosethat inadvertently encourage participants to tune out, and those that blatantly disregard participants' time.Most companies and leaders view poor meetings as an inevitable cost of doing business. But managers can take heart: researchers now have a clear understanding of the key drivers that make meetings successful. In The Surprising Science of Meetings, Steven G. Rogelberg, researcher and consultant tosome of the world's most successful companies, draws from extensive research, analytics and data mining, and survey interviews with over 5,000 employees across a range of industries to share the proven practices and techniques that help managers and employees enhance the quality of their meetings.For those who lead and participate in meetings, Rogelberg provides immediate direction, guidance, and relief, offering a how-to guide to change your working life starting today.

    It’s not about to-do lists and accountability charts. It’s about creating a framework for regular check-ins, key results, and most of all, the beauty of a good fail – and how to take a temporary disaster and turn it into a future success. In this book, Wodtke takes you through the fictional case study of Hanna and Jack, who are struggling to survive in their own startup. They fight shiny object syndrome, losing focus, and dealing with communication issues. After hard lessons, they learn the practical steps they need to do what must be done. The second half of the book demonstrates how to use Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) to help teams realize big goals in a methodical way, leaving nothing to chance. Laid out in a practical but compelling way, she makes the lessons of Hanna and Jack’s story clear and actionable. Ready to move your team in the right direction? Read this, and learn the system of creating your focus – and finding success. "Busy grinding without purpose is the secret death of too many startups. In this memorable story, Christina gives us a glimpse of a more satisfying kind of startup--still hard and chaotic but full of purpose and the chance to build something great." James Cham, Founder, Bloomberg Beta "This book is useful, actionable, and actually fun to read! If you want to get your team aligned around real, measurable goals, Radical Focus will teach you how to do it quickly and clearly." -Laura Klein, Principal, Users Know "Someone once told me that 'problems are just opportunities that haven’t presented themselves'. Since I was introduced to OKRs, they've been an invaluable tool for me, and our company. Christina's ideas have been instrumental, allowing me to better navigate the often ambiguous approach to goal setting and along the way creating a more open and accountable team and a clearer path for myself professionally. I personally can't thank her enough for the guidance." Scott Baldwin, Director of Services, Yellow Pencil "Radical Focus illustrates how to implement OKRs in an engaging, compact, realistic story. Best of all, Wodtke proves OKRs can be fun!" Ben Lamorte, OKRs.com

    Emphasizes possible, realistic and "best practice" approaches for managers, technical leads and self-managed teams. The author emphasizes efficient development concepts with an examination of rapid development strategies and a study of classic mistakes, within the context of software-development fundamentals and risk management. Dissects the core issues of rapid development, lifecycle planning, estimation and scheduling. Contains very good and practical discussions of customer-oriented development, motivation and teamwork. Explains such fundamental requirements as team structure, feature-set control (the dreaded feature creep in every project), availability and use of productivity tools and project recovery options. Relevant case studies are analyzed and discussed within the context of specific software development problems. Over 200 pages in this publication are devoted to a summary of best practices, everything from the daily build and smoke test, through prototyping, model selection, measurement, reuse, and the top-10 risks list. This publication is definitely recommended and will become a classic in the field, just as the author's prior publication, "Code Complete" already is.