A Kaizen blitz, also known as a Kaizen event, is an intensive, short-term project focused on making significant improvements in a specific area. This approach can yield quick wins and significant results when implemented correctly. Here are the practical steps to execute a Kaizen blitz effectively within a Scrum team: 1. Planning the Kaizen Blitz…
As a Scrum Master, you’re tasked with more than just facilitating meetings and tracking progress; you’re responsible for the emotional pulse of your team. While servant leadership asks you to serve others, empathy takes that idea to a whole new level. It’s not just about helping when someone struggles—it’s about feeling their struggle and standing…
In the Scrum world, measuring team performance is a heated and ongoing debate. How do you determine whether your team is performing at its best? Velocity, sprint completion rates, and individual contributions are all potential metrics, but they often miss key elements of team dynamics. Taking a page from industries where teamwork has matured over…
Look, let’s be real—Agile can be exhausting. The constant pressure to deliver, sprint after sprint, while simultaneously improving processes, communicating with stakeholders, and staying focused on the team’s goals is a lot. Add in the psychological strain of “always being on” in the name of continuous improvement, and burnout isn’t just a risk—it’s a reality.…
Let’s cut to the chase—telling leadership you’re planning your sprint capacity at 50% might sound like you’re committing career suicide. In organizations that have grown accustomed to squeezing every last drop of productivity out of their teams, suggesting less than 100% can be met with blank stares, raised eyebrows, or outright pushback. But here’s the…
Welcome to the final post in our series on the 11 characteristics of a servant leader. Throughout this series, we’ve explored crucial traits including active listening, empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion, conceptualization, foresight, stewardship, commitment to the growth of people, and building community. In this concluding post, we focus on the final characteristic: Calling. What is…
As Scrum Masters, we often find ourselves in the challenging position of managing stakeholders who aren’t accustomed to Agile’s iterative, non-linear delivery. They’re used to traditional project management with fixed timelines, clear deliverables, and predictable outcomes. So, how do you manage stakeholder pushback when Agile’s fluidity doesn’t fit neatly into their expectations? Here are some…
Welcome to the tenth post in our series on the 11 characteristics of a servant leader. In earlier posts, we’ve covered essential traits such as active listening, empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion, conceptualization, foresight, stewardship, and commitment to the growth of people. Today, we focus on the vital characteristic of Building Community. What is Building Community?…
In the fast-paced world of agile development, setting clear and achievable objectives is crucial for driving continuous improvement. This is especially true during a Kaizen Blitz, where teams work intensively to solve specific problems and implement improvements rapidly. To ensure success, it’s essential to set SMART objectives—Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. In this blog…
This is a common concern for Scrum Masters, especially those without a technical background. Here’s how you can navigate such situations effectively: 1. Embrace the Role of a Facilitator 2. Focus on Outcomes and Value 3. Leverage Team Knowledge 4. Expand Your Technical Understanding 5. Clarify Your Role in Ceremonies 6. Engage with the Product…