Will there be a CMMI Training class in Florida this winter?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser – will you be teaching your CMMI Training Class in Florida this winter? ~ Paul A.

Hey, Paul,

Ohh, yes … now you’re talking!  This February, when most of us from colder climes are struggling through another deep, dark winter, your fun-loving CMMI Appraiser will be off conducting an awesome, warm-weather CMMI training class for YOU to escape to!

So pack your sunglasses and catch up with me in Tampa.  Our popular “Intro to CMMI-DEV” class happens February 1-4, 2016.  Sign up here!

Designed for software and engineering professionals, “Intro to CMMI-DEV” helps you learn about the CMMI, process models, and how to use them to be a great company.  This training class also includes an optional 1-day Scrum Learning Experience supplement, which gives you hands-on and practical experience using Scrum, and making Scrum better with the CMMI.

Why is this CMMI Training better than the other guy’s?

We help you learn to use the CMMI to learn about yourself, so you can get on the path to greatness. With learning as your goal, achieving a Maturity Level of the CMMI will be just one byproduct of your journey.

In addition, professionals can earn 21 PDUs towards your PMP Certification (or 2.5 CEUs) while learning to improve software and engineering performance with the CMMI.

What is the CMMI Training Class all about?

Helping you learn about the way you work, so that you can get better -- that's what the CMMI is all about.  By participating in "Introduction to CMMI" will help you understand how to set the right goals and objectives, and keep asking the right question, such as:

• How do you know you are good at what you do?
• How do you know if you are improving?
• How do you know if the process you use is working well?
• How do you know if your requirements change process is useful?
• How do you know if your products are as good as they can be?

So sign up for "Introduction to CMMI", and tell a friend. Our CMMI training class is hands-on, interactive, practical, and a lot of fun.

Hope to see you in Tampa this winter!

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

Where can I get CMMI training in Michigan at a discount?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser,

We're a supplier to the automotive industry that is adopting CMMI in Michigan, and my boss wants everyone on the Lead Appraisal Team to find a CMMI Training class that goes easy on the budget.  Where can I get a good class for a good price? ~ Al B.

Hey Al,

You've come to the right place!  We still have a few seats left for "Introduction to CMMI" in Southeast Michigan on September 15th -18th.  It's a top-notch learning experience, and your boss is going to love the price!

Register for "Introduction to CMMI" now and save 30%!

"The Introduction to CMMI" training class, which includes an optional 1-day CMMI-SVC supplement, is designed for software and engineering professionals who are interested learning about CMMI, process models, and how to use them to be a great company.

The cool thing about this CMMI Training, versus the other guy’s, is that we help you learn to use the CMMI to learn about yourself, so you can get on the path to greatness. With learning as your goal, achieving a Maturity Level of the CMMI will be just one byproduct of your journey.

In addition, professionals can earn 21 PDUs towards your PMP Certification (or 2.5 CEUs) while learning to improve software and engineering performance with the CMMI.

What is this CMMI Training all about?

Helping you learn about the way you work, so that you can get better -- that's what the CMMI is all about.  By participating in "Introduction to CMMI" will help you understand how to set the right goals and objectives, and keep asking the right question, such as:

• How do you know you are good at what you do?
• How do you know if you are improving?
• How do you know if the process you use is working well?
• How do you know if your requirements change process is useful?
• How do you know if your products are as good as they can be?

So sign up for "Introduction to CMMI", and tell a friend. Our CMMI training class is hands-on, interactive, practical, and a lot of fun.

Hope to see you in class!

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

CMMI-TV: Can we really run the whole company using Scrum?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser, can we really run the whole company using Scrum? Not just software projects? ~ NY-SPIN Attendee

Dear Readers,

I had an opportunity at a recent NY-SPIN event to present on “Agile Resiliency,” our strategy for making agile strong enough to survive, thrive and even scale. Today’s episode of CMMI-TV was filmed ON LOCATION in New York City, where I was asked if it were really possible to run the whole company, not just software projects, using Scrum. Below is a video clip of my answer, followed by a synopsis of my response. Enjoy!

OVERVIEW

If companies are going to decide to adopt agile principles, they can choose not to stop with software engineering. An agile company can be agile in every way.

OTHER AREAS OF THE COMPANY WHERE AGILITY IS REQUIRED

Agile companies can be agile in the way they run other departments, not just software engineering, including:

• Marketing
• Advertising
• Sales
• Accounting
• Operations
• Human resources 

… everything!

AGILE VALUES

The secret to having a successful company is understanding that it is not about the methods you use -- Scrum or XP, etc -- it’s about the values you embrace. When you run your company with agile values, you are constantly asking, ‘Are we operating a collaborative, iterative, transparent and high trust environment?’ Focus on values, and the techniques trickle down.

If you’d like to know more about embracing agile values in your organization, and running your entire company with Scrum, you are invited to participate in one of the most popular webinars in our “Everything You NEED to Know” series: “Agile Resiliency!”

Sign up for “Agile Resiliency” on August 25th at noon EST

It's free, it's useful, and it's a whole lot of fun.  Join us, won't you?

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

CMMI-TV: Be Agile by Tuesday? Huh?!?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser, my manager is frustrated that we aren’t already agile. How do we deal with expectations that are out of alignment with agile values? ~ NY-SPIN Attendee

Dear Readers,

At an NY-SPIN event in New York City, where today’s episode of CMMI-TV was filmed, I presented on “Agile Resiliency.” A participant asked what it means when managers set unrealistic expectations around how long it takes to “go agile.” Below is a video clip with my answer, followed by a synopsis of my response. Enjoy!

OVERVIEW

In every industry, agile teams are facing the serious challenge of misaligned values within the organization. Management doesn’t seem to understand what agile is all about, and Scrum teams don’t seem to know how to communicate what they are doing. As a result, unreasonable demands are made on Scrum teams, demands that end up taking the agile out of agile, and driving the wrong behaviors.

EXAMPLE DEMANDS

“Let’s be more agile, but let’s have a weekly standup, not a daily standup.”
“Let’s transition all of our projects over to agile by November.”
“Let’s be agile by Tuesday.”
“Sure, go ahead and be agile; just don’t bother the customer.”
“Let’s start doing agile.”

HOW BAD IS THE PROBLEM?

These misinformed statements come from senior management – the people controlling our budgets. And there’s the rub. All over North America, lack of understanding from upper management limits organizations' ability to embrace and scale agile methods.

WHERE DO AGILE VALUES FIT IN?

Choosing to be agile means embracing agile values, such as having an environment that is high trust, transparent, flexible, iterative and collaborative. Managers need to understand that Scrum teams operate very differently from the rest of the company. This is not a transition that can be successful without having everyone on the same page.

So how does the company go agile without destroying the value of the approach, and without disrupting the business?

SOLUTIONS IN TWO WEBINARS

To learn how to transform your company to agile, and strengthen agile within your company, we invite you to sign up for our two upcoming webinars:

Sign up for “Everything You Need to Know: Agile Transformation” on August 18th at noon EST.

Sign up for “Everything You Need to Know: Agile Resiliency” on August 25th at noon EST.

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

CMMI-TV: Why are values a big deal in performance improvement?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser, Why are values a big deal in performance improvement? ~ NY-SPIN Attendee

Dear Readers,

Today’s episode of CMMI-TV was filmed ON LOCATION at an NY-SPIN event in New York City, where I presented on “Agile Resiliency.” A participant asked why I thought values were a big deal in an organization’s performance improvement effort. Below is a video clip with my answer, followed by a synopsis of my response. Enjoy!

OVERVIEW

Companies need to adopt agile principles, or not. Whatever they decide, those values will govern how they run their company, and will filter through the organization from the top-down.

EXAMPLE

In my small company, Broadsword, we run our company using Scrum, and we don’t write software. We do everything with Scrum, including marketing and sales, operations, hiring, training and billing. Everything we do is guided by our agile values.

WHAT VALUES MATTER

It’s something to think about. Why do you want to run your company according to your values? Because that’s what having a successful business is all about. It’s not about Scrum or XP – those are methods. It’s about values that help you determine what kind of company you are running on a day-to-day basis.

AGILE VALUES

Choosing to be agile means embracing values such as:

• Collaborative
• Iterative
• Flexible
• Transparent
• High trust

If we’re going to run our companies using values such as these, the techniques will trickle down.

INVITATION

Anyone interested in learning how to leverage the power of organizational values is invited to attend my keynote presentation in Seattle, WA at the CMMI Global Congress 2015 on May 12-13.

Register here.

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

CMMI-TV: What is the secret to saving agile?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser, what’s the secret to saving agile? ~ NY-SPIN Attendee

Dear Readers,

Today’s episode of CMMI-TV was filmed ON LOCATION at an NY-SPIN event in New York City, where I presented on “Agile Resiliency.” A participant asked for the secret to saving Agile. Below is a video clip with my answer, followed by a synopsis of my response. Enjoy!

OVERVIEW

What we’re really after is getting consistent results by strengthening the Agile ceremonies.

CMMI is a really cool tool for that, because there are over 350 practices in Level 2 and Level 3 that we can apply to make the Agile ceremonies super strong and resilient, such as:

• Planning Poker
• Refractoring
• Velocity
• Sprint Demos
• Pair Programming
• Test-Driven Development

WHY BOTHER MAKING AGILE STRONGER?

Why do we want to make our agile practices strong and resilient?

• So that a retrospectives really makes us better as a company
• So that our planning really is accurate
• So that our estimating really is accurate

MASSIVE CHANGE COMING

A big change is happening in our market and the influence of some of the newer players – such as the federal government, and big defense contractors – who are demanding that their vendors “go agile.” They are bringing $20B a year in pressure to our industry.

In my opinion, this why we need a resilient model. Right now, agile is a loose collection of methods and tools, by definition. And, yes, there’s a lot of fear in our industry that too much structure will cause problems.

But the simple truth is this. If we want agile to remain agile, we need to agree on a resilient model that can withstand all of the attempts of these new players to change our values. It is time to start building resilient agile architecture.

THE SECRET TO SAVING AGILE

The secret to saving agile is not to make it look like Waterfall, which is where we’ve been going. The secret to saving Agile is to make it strong and resilient and powerful, so that it works everywhere, and it’s reliable. We can prove to the Board room that it’s actually an industrial strength approach. We’re not doing that now. Unless you are working in the smallest company, if you think your senior manager is on board with Agile – I can promise you, he’s not.

I’ve been the CIO of three different companies. They don’t know what Agile is. When they hear “Agile,” they think “faster and cheaper.” So if I say, “I can give you software faster and cheaper,” the CIO will say, “I don’t care how you do it – just give it to me faster and cheaper.”

INVITATION

Anyone interested more discussion about Agile and CMMI is invited to sign up for this month’s Webinar, “Everyting You Need to Know: Agile Transformation!”

WEBINAR INFO

What: “Everything You Need to Know: Agile Transformation!”

When: April 15th at noon EDT

Sign up: Here

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

How can we go agile while maintaining visibility into our projects?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser – We are a CMMI Maturity Level 2 rated IT firm in Alexandria, Virginia. We have been experimenting with Scrum and would like to transition the entire organization to agile, but I am concerned that our managers will not be able to know what is happening with agile projects. How do we go agile and keep the visibility we need? ~ Susan T.

Hey Susan,

Great question! In my work with companies large and small all over the world, and as a former CIO and VP of Engineering, I have found that the inability to get good information is at the root of nearly every business problem. No one can make the right business decisions without the right information, and you are wise to assess this risk before going agile.

Here’s how to assure you are successful in your agile transformation. First, understand why this perceived lack of visibility happens on agile projects.

As you may know, Scrum teams operate very differently from teams operating in a traditional Waterfall environment. They tend to be self-organizing, independent, process-light, and quick to adapt. They have an iterative and incremental way of getting work done, which typically does not include things like weekly status reporting and weekly meetings. Most of them don’t even have a project manager (oh, the horrors!).

So, when you go agile, how will you get the information you need to run the business?

Since you've already adopted the CMMI at your company, one solution is to integrate Scrum and CMMI. At my company, Broadsword, we do just that. We strengthen Scrum with the CMMI, based on the needs of our company.

For example, let’s take one popular aspect of Scrum, the Daily Stand-up. Scrum Teams opt for Daily Stand-ups as opposed to the traditional sit-down status meetings. When you go agile, you want to incorporate this behavior because it's a powerful construct for communications and risk management. And you want to use the CMMI as a framework to make sure you are talking, in a very light and agile way, about things in the Daily Stand-up that are really important. Then, most importantly, you’ll want to share that information with the right people in the company.

Applying the guidance of the CMMI to the Daily Stand-up gives us two major advantages. One, by using the simple Daily Stand-up mechanism, we get a really crisp, robust view of the project, so we can understand what’s going on in real-time. We understand it early, and we understand it often. And two, by adopting some of the best practices that the CMMI provides, we get more value out of the Daily Stand-up than we would have without CMMI.

This is just a glimpse of all you can do with agile and CMMI, Susan. For more information on using CMMI to guide your agile transformation, I encourage you to check out the highly popular Webinar in our “Everything You Need to Know” Series: “Agile Transformation!”

What: “Everything You Need to Know. Agile Transformation!”

When: Wednesday, April 15, 2015 at noon EDT
Cost: FREE!

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

One Minute to Performance Innovation - What's the best way to establish a policy?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser, What's the best way to establish a policy? ~ Senior VP, Fortune 500 Company

Dear Readers,

Today’s episode of One Minute to Performance Improvement was filmed ON LOCATION at the airport in Detroit, Michigan, where your CMMI Appraiser just got off the phone with a client, who asked, "What's the best way to establish a policy?"  Below is a video clip of my response, and, below that, a quick summary. Enjoy!

Jeff Dalton from Ask the CMMI Appraiser, on his way to visit a client, on a moving walk.

ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS

What’s the best way to represent a policy?  The answer depends on several other questions, including:

• How you define a policy?
• What is it that you want a policy to do?
• How will you communicate a policy?

GREAT MISUNDERSTANDING 

People often think that adopting the CMMI means they have to have "binders full of processes."  They tend to treat every project – even projects as small as mapping a desktop computer to a printer – as though they were building a space shuttle.  It doesn't have to be that way.

AIRPORT POLICIES

Looking around the airport, one sees evidence of an organization doing a great job of defining and communicating their policies, such as: ‘Do not accept any bags that do not belong to you’ and 'Please watch your step as you exit the moving walk.'

Instead of having a policy in some dusty old binder, put it in a sign on the wall, put it in newsletters, in a video, or in a recording, where it can be useful and used by people.

CONCLUSION:

Whether your goals are to successfully deliver software, achieve a CMMI “certificate” or rating, develop a strategic weapon to help you attract and retain new customers, or get on the path to becoming a great company, the CMMI can help.

Find out more about CMMI on our upcoming Webinar:

Webinar: “Everything You Need to Know. CMMI!"
When: April 22 @noon EDT
Cost: FREE!

Hope to see you on the Webinar!

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

What does it take to have a successful Agile Transformation?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser – A lot of us are frustrated with Waterfall, and momentum is building inside the company for Agile. What does it take for an ML3 organization to transition from Waterfall to Agile? ~ Emily K.

Hey, Emily,

As I say to every software and engineering professional who dreams of escaping the heavy-handed, command-and-control Waterfall practices and embracing all the benefits of being Agile: You CAN get there. You just need a path.

Along your journey are many important steps. Transforming your organization takes training and preparation. It takes being tested with assessments on your readiness to adopt Agile. And it takes professional consulting to guide your Agile Transformation with the rigor and structure of CMMI, since that is the scalable operational framework that your organization has chosen to pursue for your performance improvement model.

What does it take to do it right? Find out by signing up for the newest Webinar in our “Everything You NEED to Know” Series: “Agile Transformation!”

“Everything You Need to Know. Agile Transformation!”

Thursday, March 26, 2015 at noon EDT.

Sign up here

“Agile Transformation” is a practical and timely Webinar that helps you learn to adopt the behaviors and do the work that needs to be done to “go agile” in a way that makes sense for your organization. On the Webinar, you'll begin to understand how to transform the values and behaviors in your organization and take advantage of Agile methods for a lighter, leaner approach to solving business problems incrementally and iteratively.

See you on the Webinar!

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

It's Time for "Agile Transformation!" the Webinar

Dear Readers,

Do you dream of escaping the heavy-handed, command-and-control Waterfall practices, and embracing all the benefits of being Agile? A lot of engineering and software professionals I talk to say they do. They want to be able to try new ways of working, such as:

• Using Daily standups, sprint demos and retrospectives to give control that is not illusory, but real
• Expending effort only on things that really add value
• Managing risks more effectively while they teach their teams to “fail fast, fail early”

You can learn to guide your organization’s transformation from a Waterfall to Agile environment by registering for “Agile Transformation!” a new Webinar in our “Everything You Need to Know” Series.

Sign-up now for “Agile Transformation!”

“Agile Transformation” is about changing behaviors and doing the work that needs to be done to “go Agile” in a way that makes sense for your organization. Designed for companies that are dealing with recurring problems such as improving requirements churn and volatility, meeting schedule and budget, and performing the work they do every day, the Webinar shows you how to take advantage of Agile methods for a lighter, leaner approach to solving business problems.

Sign up here.

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

CMMI-TV: Are Scrum and CMMI at Cross-Purposes?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser, are Scrum and CMMI at cross-purposes? I thought Scrum was essentially a free-for-all and CMMI is essentially about everybody doing the same thing. They're in conflict, right? ~ NY-SPIN Attendee

Dear Readers,

Today’s episode of CMMI-TV was filmed ON LOCATION at an NY-SPIN event in New York City, where I presented on “Agile Resiliency.” A participant asked if Scrum and CMMI were at cross-purposes. Below is a video clip with my answer, followed by a synopsis of my response. Enjoy!

OVERVIEW

There’s a misconception that exists in our industry. Organizations think Scrum is about one thing and CMMI is about another. Nothing could be further from the truth. They are both about the same thing

WRONG IDEAS ABOUT SCRUM

Scrum is not a free-for-all where agile teams do whatever they want, don’t write anything down, don’t follow any rules, and just write code. That’s not what it is.

WRONG IDEAS ABOUT CMMI

Likewise, CMMI is not a death march that saps our powers and turns us all into zombies, forcing us all to do everything the same way.  That's not what CMMI is all about.

WHAT SCRUM AND CMMI ARE ABOUT

Both Scrum and CMMI have a marketing problem. Not a feature problem, a marketing problem, because they are both about the same thing. CMMI and Agile are both about solving business problems, including:

• Late requirements
• Misunderstood requirements
• Late projects
• Over budget
• Defects in our software
• In the dark about projects
• Too many meetings

All of these things are problems that exist in every software project. There isn’t a software project on the planet that doesn’t suffer from every one of those problems.

I go to a lot of clients and do CMMI Appraisals, and at the end of 3-4 days of working with them, I say, “Ahem, your projects are little late sometimes, and your requirements aren’t clear …”

It's the same exact problems in every single software project. If you don’t have those problems, you are either not paying attention or you are telling a story. Every software project has these problems. The question is, how do we manage them?

Both agile and CMMI are there for solving problems.

INVITATION

Anyone interested in learning how to lead the transformation of your organization to Agile is invited to sign up for this month’s new Webinar in the "Everything You Need to Know" Series, “Agile Transformation.”

WEBINAR INFO

What: “Everything You Need to Know. Agile Transformation!”

When: Thursday, March 26, 2015 at noon EDT

Cost: FREE!

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

Our 7th eBook Is Now Available on Amazon: “Just the FAQs”!

Dear Readers,

We’re excited to announce the publication of our 7th agileCMMI eBook: “Just the FAQs”!

In “Just The FAQs,” my good friend Pat O’Toole and I join forces to share a series of short stories from different perspectives about process improvement, CMMI, and Agile development. We address common misconceptions, myths, and fundamental misunderstandings that persist with the software and engineering professions. And we have a good time doing it!

Click here for your copy of "Just the FAQs".

“Just the FAQs” is a compendium of stories written in 2014-15 that have been distributed individually as part of a series, right here on Ask the CMMI Appraiser. The stories are now available in eBook format as a collection. To purchase for 99 cents on Amazon, click here.

What you’ll find in the book:

• Why should Agile teams care about the CMMI Practices?
• What can we learn about Process Architecture from Justin Bieber?
• How expensive are SCAMPI A appraisals?
• How to get value from Requirements Development with Agile teams?

Get the facts!  "Just the FAQs"!

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

© Copyright 2015: Process Assessment, Consulting & Training and Broadsword Solutions

“Just the FAQs” is written/edited by Pat O’Toole of PACT and Jeff Dalton of Broadsword. Please contact the authors at pact.otoole@att.net and jeff@broadswordsolutions.com to suggest enhancements to their answers, or to provide an alternative response to the question posed. New questions are also welcomed!

CMMI-TV: What do you do when management doesn't "get" Agile?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser, how do you deal with management not understanding the work of their agile teams? ~ NY-SPIN Attendee

Dear Readers,

Today’s episode of CMMI-TV was filmed ON LOCATION at an NY-SPIN event in New York City, where I presented on “Agile Resiliency.” A participant asked how to deal with a situation where management doesn’t understand what agile development teams are doing. Below is a video clip with my answer, followed by a synopsis of my response. Enjoy!

OVERVIEW OF THE PROBLEM

The problem is, while we’re all off iterating, the business is all off Waterfalling.

In other words, we’re in our development teams, cruising along Sprint 93, doing our backlog, having fun with backlog grooming and everything else we do, and the accountants are up there in the management suite, saying, “I don’t know what those kids are up to down there, but I don’t like it.”

CONSEQUENCES

As a result, we’re starting to see companies build in multiple layers of management. It might look something like this:

Let’s say you’ve got five Scrum teams. Now the company layers on two project managers. The project managers create a MS Project work plan. They create a risk log. They do all the documentation. They manage everything. They even translate story points into hours. This is a bad idea, but they do it.

In consequence, we now have companies in Washington saying, “One story point is one day of work.”

UNHAPPY OUTCOME

As engineers, let’s reverse engineer what that type of behavior does to agile. If we are going to create story points and time, and put them in the same box, we’re going to destroy the equilibrium of agile completely – and that’s exactly what we don’t want to happen.

INVITATION

Anyone interested in learning how to lead a proper transformation your organization to agile is invited to sign up for this month’s new Webinar, “Agile Transformation.”

WEBINAR INFO

What: “Everything You Need to Know. Agile Transformation!”

When: Thursday, March 26, 2015 at noon EDT

Cost: FREE!

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

JUST THE FAQs: How do the Generic Practices help us make Agile better?

[Dear Readers, "Just the FAQs” is our monthly series of CMMI-related posts. Over the recent months, our good friend Pat O’Toole, CMMI expert and seasoned consultant, has been collaborating with us on these posts. Our goal here is to provide answers to the most frequently asked questions about the CMMI, SCAMPI, engineering strategy and software process improvement. This month, I discuss how the Generic Practices guide your Agile implementation ~ the CMMI Appraiser]

Reader: I’ve read some articles about how the CMMI can help make Agile better, but I don’t really see how the generic practices fit in, or how we should comply with them. Should I just ignore them?

Jeff: Not only do the generic practices “fit,” they should have been named the Most Important Practices in Agile! **Note to self: send that suggestion in to the CMMI NextGen team!

While the CMMI can help any organization improve and identify their “state of maturity,” the Generic Practices represent solid value to Agile teams – they are what make it real. 

It has been said that Agile teams don’t like process. It’s too heavy, top-down and “command and control” for their style of software development. But “ceremonies,” like sprint planning, daily standups, retrospectives, and sprint demos are simply group behaviors, and behaviors are nothing more than processes – so OF COURSE they like process! Furthermore, if Agile ceremonies are processes, and the Generic Practices are intended to enable them, it follows that these are the precise tools we need to instill a higher level of capability to Agile methods. So bring them on!

Here are 12 ideas that you can take back to your office right now to improve the state of your Agile implementation:

Idea #1: Work with your management team to establish a clear set of common values that include: transparency, collaboration, failing–fast, iterative and incremental, and a strong bias towards spending more effort writing software than writing documentation.

This, of course, is an Agile implementation of Generic Practice 2.1 “Establish an Organizational Policy” that can leverage practices in Organizational Process Focus and Organizational Process Definition to make it real with supporting processes and tools. So, instead of saying “Policies? We’ve got binders full of ‘em!” focus on the values instead.

Idea #2: Establish a precise model for the different levels of planning that your team is going to perform. Release Planning, Sprint Planning, and planning for the tasks associated with each User Story are a few examples. Those plans include the who, what, where, and how of each level. Develop a clear requirements architecture for customer needs, epics, and user stories, including a “definition of ready” for each one, as well as the estimation methods that are going to be used for each. Establish an agreement with your team on how each aspect of the software engineering process is going to work: how is code going to be written? How are code reviews going to be conducted? How is testing going to work within each Sprint?

I call these “the “CMMI Questions.” Instead of slavishly complying with the practices, turn them into questions to be answered by the team.

In this case, the questions are about Generic Practice SP2.2 “Plan the Process,” supported by Project Planning, Project Monitoring and Control, Integrated Project Management, Risk Management, Technical Solution, and almost every other Process Area in the CMMI!

Idea #3: Procure all of the resources to support the items identified in Idea #2. These might include: co-located workspace, planning poker decks, pair programming desks, software tools such as Sharepoint, Jira or Team Foundation Server, and the funding for the various tools, resources, facilities and other components required to execute the ceremonies and events.

This idea is an Agile manifestation of Generic Practice 2.3 Provide Resources, along with its related Process Areas Supplier Agreement Management, Project Planning, Integrated Project Management, Technical Solution, and others.

Idea #4: Some are under the impression that because Agile teams are “self organizing,” that means that it is less disciplined, but nothing could be further from the truth. A crisp understanding of each person’s role, responsibility, and authority is essential to any successful Agile team, even more than in a traditional software development environment. Product Owners must be free to make product decisions, Scrum Masters need to be able to freely coach teams during each ceremony, and team members need to step-up as they self-subscribe to each story or task. Personal responsibility is everything for an Agile team, and without a clear definition of roles teams cannot be successful.

You guessed it! The CMMI called this one, too, with Generic Practice 2.4 Assign Responsibility, along with the related practices in Project Planning and Integrated Project Management.

Idea #5: Suck it up and train people. Train them to be Product Owners and Scrum Masters. Most importantly, train teams to be self-disciplined, empowered Agile citizens that trust the process and live the Agile values from Idea #1 everyday. 

This is Generic Practice GP2.5 Train People, with the related Process Area Organizational Training. If you do nothing else, do this. Do. It. Now.

Idea #6: Agile teams like to use “information radiators.” No problem! If you make a decision to use sticky notes and a scrum board, use a camera to capture that information and store it in a repository so that other parts of your organization can benefit from that information. If not, use a tool like Jira or TFS to record information while you create (and share) burn-down and burn-up charts, epics, stories, and tasks. The same goes for the information that is generated from Idea #2. Record your process definitions in a common repository so that you, and other teams, can benefit from the assets you’ve developed.

For more information see Generic Practice 2.6 Control Work Products, and the related Process Areas Configuration Management, Project Planning, and Organizational Process Definition.

Idea #7: Most of what’s been written about Agile teams focuses on the “nuclear” scrum team, but every project has external stakeholders who need to have input and participation with the project. For instance, you might have a group of people who focus on continuous build/continuous integration, or attendees at a Sprint demo that need to be in attendance to provide useful and meaningful input.

Generic Practice GP2.7 Identify and Involve Relevant Stakeholders, along with the related Process Areas Project Planning, Integrated Project Management, Validation, and Verification can provide some of the guidance you’ll need.

Idea #8: How was your Agile team performing? Are they meeting Sprint commitments? Are customers satisfied with the prioritization of user stories? Are they inserting stories mid-sprint? Do the user stories meet the definition of done? Inquiring minds want to know! 

This is my favorite practice in the CMMI model: Generic Practice GP2.8 Monitor and Control the process, along with its related Process Area Measurement and Analysis. Without this, how do we even know that we’re doing the right things? Special note: If Maturity Level 4 or 5 are in your future, pay close attention to this one!

Idea #9: Since Agile requires personal discipline it makes sense to me that we occasionally evaluate the behaviors of Agile teams to ensure that healthy self-discipline exists. Given the value that Agile teams place on a “high-trust” environment, they are usually loath to accept the idea of project audits, but there are many ways to objectively evaluate team performance. With a focus on mentoring, coaching, and improving the discipline of Agile teams, look to the values from Idea #1 to ensure you are getting at what’s important.

The CMMI nails this with Generic Practice GP2.9 Objectively Evaluate Adherence, and the related Process Area Process and Product Quality Assurance.

Idea #10: While Agile has grown exponentially across project teams, it hasn’t been quite as successful at persuading management to join revolution. Sharing successes (and failures) of Agile teams more proactively with upper management will bring more agility to the entire organization. The key to Agile success is the implementation of the Agile values described in Idea #1 throughout the company – and if management isn’t involved it isn’t going to happen. Ever.

The authors of the CMMI had the foresight to include Generic Practice GP2.10 Review Status with Higher Level Management, a practice that can be leveraged for this purpose, and is relevant and critical for the success of Agile teams.

Idea #11: Once size never fits all, and this goes for Agile teams as well. I’ve always said that the authors of the CMMI intended for it to be Agile, and this is demonstrated in Generic Practice GP3.1 Establish a Defined Process and the related practices in Integrated Project Management that scream BE AGILE and do what’s right for your project! So create guidelines that will allow Agile teams to deviate, when it makes sense. Creating those guidelines is tough so look to Organizational Process Definition for guidance. It’s well worth the effort.

Idea #12: Agile teams are well versed in the use of the Retrospective, but since Agile ceremonies focus primarily on the nuclear team those lessons don’t usually get shared with the larger population. The organization that can expand the concept of Retrospectives beyond the Agile team, so that lessons can be systemically collected, indexed, and used by all, is the organization that wins!

The CMMI’s Generic Practice GP3.2 Collect Process Related Experiences provides guidance for systemically sharing lessons, along with its related Process Areas Integrated Project Management and Organizational Process Definition.


So there you have it. Twelve ideas (and twelve Generic Practices) that can improve Agile performance right away. The rest is up to you!

Anyone interested in a more in-depth discussion on the topic is invited to sign up for this month’s new Webinar, “Agile Transformation.”

WEBINAR INFO

What: “Everything You Need to Know. Agile Transformation!” Webinar

When: Thursday, March 26, 2015 at noon EDT.

Sign up: Click here

© Copyright 2015: Process Assessment, Consulting & Training and Broadsword Solutions

“Just the FAQs” is written/edited by Pat O’Toole and Jeff Dalton. Please contact the authors at pact.otoole@att.net and jeff@broadswordsolutions.com to suggest enhancements to their answers, or to provide an alternative response to the question posed. New questions are also welcomed!

So your customers want you to “Go Agile!” … NOW what?

Dear Readers,

Have you been hearing customers say they want their suppliers to “Go Agile?”

Are you a CMMI Maturity Level 2 or Maturity Level 3 organization with a Waterfall approach that is struggling to improve requirements churn and volatility, meet schedule and budget, and perform the work you do every day?

Learn to solve both of these problems at the same time, by participating in our ALL NEW Webinar in the “Everything You Need to Know” Series: “Agile Transformation!”

What: “Everything You Need to Know. Agile Transformation!”

Where: LIVE on your screen

When: Thursday, March 26, 2015 at noon EDT.

Why are customers asking you to “Go Agile”?

In the last decade or so, the software engineering community has begun to embrace a set of iterative and incremental delivery methods known collectively as “Agile.” The specific methods include names like Scrum, Extreme Programming (XP), Spiral, and some distant cousins including Kanban. Sometimes customers will ask you to “go Agile” without fully understanding what they are asking.

What does this mean for a Waterfall company with a CMMI Maturity Level?

The really neat thing about CMMI is that, since both CMMI and Agile are frameworks for improving delivery, CMMI is very effective at guiding and improving your Agile transformation! This means you can get more out of your investment in CMMI while using its guidance to “go Agile.”

What can you do NOW that will make a difference?

One thing we can do is get informed. “Agile Transformation” is a practical and timely Webinar that helps you learn to adopt the behaviors and do the work that needs to be done to “go agile” in a way that makes sense for your organization. On the Webinar, you'll begin to understand how to transform the values and behaviors in your organization and take advantage of Agile methods for a lighter, leaner approach to solving business problems incrementally and iteratively.

Get started with Agile Transformation! Sign up here.

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

Do we need to stay with Waterfall to get a CMMI Rating?

Dear CMMI Appraiser, we’re stuck between a rock and a hard place. We have always used Waterfall, and now the customer is asking us to "go Agile." Meanwhile, our CMMI consultant told us we need to focus on documentation to get a CMMI rating, which makes us a bad fit for Agile.  But we need a CMMI rating to keep the customer! What should we do? ~ Phil B.

Dear Phil,

I'll tell you exactly what to do.  First we'll remove the rock, since that’s easiest. Then we’ll deal with the hard place.

Now, who was this rock-headed CMMI consultant? The very first thing he or she should have told you is that adopting the CMMI is 100% about solving business problems. It’s not about documents. It’s not about passing an audit. It’s about following a model that's about how great companies perform. Remove that “rock” by firing the rockhead and talking to CMMI consultants who actually have a head on their shoulders.

As for your “hard-place,” I see this happening more and more. Agile has become so popular that large federal government and commercial organizations are exerting pressure on their suppliers to “go agile” – even before they fully understand what they are asking for. Account reps promise the sun and moon. So upper management turns around and exerts the same pressure on their teams to GO AGILE.

What should you do? Get the facts! Whether you are part of the leadership or on the team of a CMMI-focused Waterfall organization, you’ll have a clear idea of how to solve your business problems with “Agile Transformation,” the next presentation in our popular “Everything You Need to Know” Series.  Check it out!

What: “Everything You Need to Know: Agile Transformation!” Webinar

When: Thursday, March 26, 2015 at noon EDT.

Registration: FREE

The Webinar is even cooler than it sounds.  It's hosted by Broadsword’s Director of Strategic Solutions, Tim Zeller. Tim will help you learn new ways to do useful things like these:

• Move away from top-heavy, document-focused, command and control structure 
• Get more rapid delivery
• Preserve all the "good" things you did with CMMI, while being more lean and Agile
• Retain employees who want to work for a great Agile organization
• Get products to market faster

And much more.  So get out from between the rock and the hard place, and get started with Agile Transformation! Sign up here.

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about engineering strategy, performance innovation , software process improvement and running a successful CMMI program.

CMMI-TV: Do Agile Teams Use Process?

Hey, CMMI Appraiser, Do Agile teams use process? ~ SEPGNA Attendee

Dear Readers,

Today’s episode of CMMI-TV was filmed ON LOCATION at SEPG North America in Tyson’s Corner, Virginia, where I delivered the keynote address on “Values-based Engineering.” An attendee asked if Agile teams use process. Below is a video clip with my answer, followed by a synopsis of my response. Enjoy!

OVERVIEW

There is a misconception that Agile teams don’t use process. They do. They don’t call them processes; they call them ceremonies, or behaviors, or techniques, or methods. Each one has very specified behaviors in Agile.

EXAMPLE PROCESSES

Planning Poker

The Daily Stand Up (sometimes called the Daily Scrum)

Refractoring

Velocity

Sprint Reviews

Sprint Demos

Backlog Grooming

Story Time

Pair Programming

Test-Driven Development

Everything on this list is a process, also known as a technique, or method, or ceremony, or behavior. And for every one of these processes, there is a CMMI equivalent that we use to make it better.

WHAT REALLY MATTERS

There are many, many different behaviors. I doesn’t matter what you call them. Just do the work in a way that makes sense.

THE IMPORTANCE OF CMMI

Think of the CMMI almost like a checklist for doing what you are trying to do – whether that’s improve Waterfall methods or “go agile” or strengthen agile. This checklist applies to all the behaviors (or ceremonies, etc.) listed above, and helps us do the following:

1) Think about the right things

2) Do the work the way it makes sense

CONCLUSION

Use CMMI as a guide for improving the way you do your work. That’s the way to make process – or whatever you call it -- better.

INVITATION

Anyone interested in a more in-depth discussion on the topic is invited to sign up for this month’s new Webinar, “Agile Transformation.”

WEBINAR INFO

What: “Everything You Need to Know. Agile Transformation!”

When: Thursday, March 26, 2015 at noon EDT.

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.

Party time! It’s Our 10-Year Anniversary!

Dear Readers,

Time flies when you’re having fun! It seems like only yesterday when a customer gave us our name in 2005, saying we “cut through the noise and politics like a Broadsword.” From that point forward, engineering and software organizations continued to engage us because they knew we brought a practical, agile, and incremental way to improve performance without disrupting their business – and they told us so. For example:

“Our experience working with the Broadsword team was exemplary. They quickly understood our business and helped us to lay out a plan to achieve our CMMI Level 3 goal.” ~ President, PI Innovo

So we kept cutting through the noise and politics to help put more companies on the path to greatness. Now we look up to discover it’s our 10-year anniversary!

To mark the happy occasion, we’re throwing a year-long party.

That’s right, a whole year of hanging out and sharing the good times! We will introduce you to Tim, Ross, Julie, Laura and all the great people we know, and all the great things we’ve been doing together. We’ll laugh. We’ll talk. And we’ll show you how to learn to use the Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI), a model that helps you build better software and run better projects. It’s going to be the jam of the decade!

So come along! We’re letting the good times roll by giving more companies more access to our proven AgileCMMI solutions, Broadsword’s original approach to helping organizations like yours get better at what they are ALREADY doing.

It all starts right here, with the people, products and services that Broadsword is proud to make available to you. We’re handing out plenty of door prizes in 2015, so plan on bringing home lots of valuable take-aways in the weeks and months ahead.

Why throw a bash that lasts all year? Well, you hardly need a reason to party when you see CMMI as we see it - as an ongoing celebration, a model for being joyful in the quest for becoming a great company.

So grab that special software lady or an engineering buddy or two, and join us for a glass of birthday cheer that lasts all year. It’s our CMMI birthday, and we’re bringing the party to you!

Here’s your first door prize. Find out your true baseline and get back some data about how your team aligns with CMMI by taking our complimentary Micro Assessment. Get started with CMMI success! Click here: www.broadswordsolutions.com/micro-assessment.

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec! 

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about engineering strategy, performance innovation, software process improvement and running a successful CMMI program.

To download eBooks about CMMI, visit Jeff’s Author Page on Amazon.

Broadsword Expands Automotive Supplier Capability with the Addition of Ross Timmerman as Senior Consultant

Hey, CMMI Appraiser – I work for a major automotive manufacturer (you’ve heard of us) and those of us in engineering who are agile have come to loggerheads with our management team. It’s pretty clear that their perception of us is completely wrong. They think we don’t have the capacity to share information. We think their decision-making is questionable, as well as their strategy and tactics. In short, we don’t get each other. How can we bridge this gap? ~ Nick S.

Nick, I hear this a lot from agile teams in the automotive industry. So often, I sometimes just want to lock you guys and your management teams into a room with a case of beer and get you talking to each other. Really talking! You would have good business conversations about how you are going to run your business, without getting all caught up in ego, agile purity or the blame-game.

It’s really not too difficult to have these frank conversations, Nick. All it takes is a strong desire to improve on what you’re already doing. From that point, you simply decide to take the best of both models. You adopt a flexible, agile approach to the CMMI, that fits within your company’s particular situation.

Easier said than done? Perhaps. Because we are so passionate about seeing this transformation happen for our clients, we’ve recently expanded our automotive supplier capability by adding Ross Timmerman to our team, as Senior Consultant.  Ross possesses an extremely useful gift for facilitating these conversations.

Please join me in welcoming Ross Timmerman to the company, and wishing him great success!

With more than 18 years in the automotive industry as an electronics engineering design and management professional, Ross has experience with embedded hardware and software design, project management, process improvement and electronics manufacturing. His broad range of familiarity in the automotive supplier sector, in particular, adds additional capability to the Broadsword team. Prior to joining Broadsword, Ross worked at Johnson Controls and Visteon.

As a Senior Consultant with Broadsword, Ross will focus on assisting clients in the automotive, aerospace, defense, and federal government sectors using Broadsword’s AgileCMMI methodology, which is based on the industry leading Capability Maturity Model Integration, or CMMI.

“One of the things I am most excited about is that I will be able to take the engineering and process improvement knowledge I have learned and help Broadsword clients to improve,” Ross said.

As we continue to expand our presence with automotive suppliers and in the government, manufacturing, and IT sectors, we welcome Ross’ depth and breadth of experience. His passion and focus on business transformation and process improvement will have a significant impact on helping our clients achieve their goals.

Read the full press release here: Broadsword Expands Automotive Supplier Capability with the Addition of Ross Timmerman as Senior Consultant

If you would like more information about using CMMI to strengthen agile and help you communicate agile values to the management team, Nick, you are invited to participate in our upcoming Webinar: “Agile Resiliency – Scaling Agile so that It Thrives and Survives,” February 12, 2015 @ noon EST.

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about engineering strategy, performance innovation, software process improvement and running a successful CMMI program.

To download eBooks about CMMI, visit Jeff’s Author Page on Amazon.

Grab a cup o’ hot cocoa and enjoy the “Agile Resiliency” Webinar, winter edition!

Dear Readers,

Winter is here, and your fun-loving CMMI Appraiser is throwing another virtual log on the fire and pouring virtual cups of hot cocoa for everyone who joins the presentation of our popular Webinar, “Agile Resiliency” on Thursday, February 12 at noon EST.

Registration is now open: "Agile Resiliency: Scaling Agile So That It Thrives & Survives."

Click HERE to register for the Live Webinar (Thursday, February 12, noon EST)

Why attend?

They say agile won’t scale due to opposition. We say, yes, it can! … as long as engineering and software professionals understand the concept of “Agile Resiliency.”

What is “Agile Resiliency?” It’s a term we’ve coined for a new way of thinking about scaling agile by taking a look at your agile methodology through the perspective of the “Agile Resiliency Architecture,” which keeps you focused on what's most important to your business and your process, and ultimately, your product. In this practical, interactive, fast-paced Webinar, you’ll learn the following:

• How to think of agile in terms of a 3-tiered Architecture consisting of your values, your methods and your techniques
• How to start with agile values and see them as guiding your work
• How to apply the Architecture as a method or framework for managing the work of Scrum
• How to use the Architecture to focus on the techniques for doing the work, such as Planning Poker, Continuous Builds, Story Time, Backlog Grooming, Retrospectives, etc.
• How to integrate the architectural strengths of the CMMI with your agile approach to bring about the transformation of the culture of your company

… Plus, many more strategies, tips and insights for improving ourselves and making our agile methodology scalable.

Space is limited ... sign up now!

Register for the FREE Live Webinar.

Like this blog? Forward to your nearest engineering or software exec!

Jeff Dalton is a Certified SCAMPI Lead Appraiser, Certified CMMI Instructor, author, and consultant with years of real-world experience with the CMMI in all types of organizations. Jeff has taught thousands of students in CMMI trainings and has received an aggregate satisfaction score of 4.97 out of 5 from his students.

Visit www.broadswordsolutions.com for more information about running a successful CMMI and performance improvement program.