Running Agile

6 weeks to LSSC11. Have you booked your hotel yet?

Christophe — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 01:41:17 +0000

Yes, LSSC is coming around the corner, and if you haven’t got your hotel yet, well, it’s time to.

The program is packed with goodies. You wouldn’t want to miss it, do you?

You can get a discounted room at the Hyatt, with arrival starting May 3rd. Contact Kelly Wilson at lssc@sep.com for earlier arrivals.

SoCal Lean/Kanban Meetup @ CityGrid Media – 1/25/10

Christophe — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 05:04:49 +0000

Come see @FlowChainSensei as our first international speaker at the next SoCal #Lean #Kanban #meetup at CityGrid Media http://bit.ly/goGUdW

LSSC11 – early bird registration

Christophe — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 05:43:46 +0000

Registration to the Lean Software & Systems Conference 2011, rare Agile conference in SoCal, is open. Early bird until February 28th.

I spent the evening with David Anderson, Janice Linden-Reed, and a few other friends, discussing the management of the volunteers. We toured the Hyatt hotel in Long Beach; I can say the setup is even better than last year in Atlanta.

The speakers and program will be announced next week.

I’m already looking for the event.

Next SoCal Kanban / Lean Software meetup on 8/24 @ CityGridMedia: Lean Ancestry & Lean Games

Christophe — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:29:21 +0000

Next SoCal #Kanban / #Lean Software #meetup on 8/24 @ CityGridMedia: Lean Ancestry & Lean Games http://bit.ly/a9qH7B

LSSC10 talk – Through The Lean Looking Glass

Christophe — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 06:24:29 +0000

My talk at LSSC10 on infoQ: Through The Lean Looking Glass

Summary
Christophe Louvion tells the story of an online advertising company which had to give up using Scrum because it did not create enough business value although the development was delivering working software. They chose to use Kanban instead, applying Lean principles at all levels of the organization, resulting in true self organizing teams, accelerated rate of change, and better financial results.

Lean Software/Systems SoCal meetup: Feel the flow!

Christophe — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 05:14:44 +0000

The first Lean Software and Systems SoCal meetup is organized by Pascal Pinck, on July 13th, at my company, CityGrid Media.

See you there.

Quote – When managers don’t understand the work

Christophe — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 05:53:32 +0000

When managers don’t understand the work, they tend to reward the appearance of work. (long hours, piles of paper, …)

From @JerryWeinberg

Mary Poppendieck on Lean Software @ LSSC10

Christophe — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 06:13:36 +0000

LSSC10 was a great conference.

InfoQ filmed many presentations.

I’m waiting for mine to be released. Meanwhile, check out Mary Poppendieck.

What is this about? Lean of course.

A few weeks of Kanban

Christophe — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 06:35:19 +0000

I’ve been pretty silent on this blob the past few weeks. Starting a new job is quite a tow.

After doing Kanban for over a year at my previous gig, and enjoying it, it was quite natural for me to introduce it to my new teams.

The first team that jumped into it (from scrum) decided -on its own- to put a presentation for the other teams after a few weeks.

Unfiltered tidbits:

Stand ups differ – going story by story, not based on individuals
Less Rules: No roles prescribed, More Dynamic
Backlog more Flexible
Pros: Better Team Focus, Less Meetings More Time to Deliver, More Flexible Work Process
Cons: Less Structure Could Cause issues with Some People
How Its Working Out: Feels Good, Increased Our Collaboration, Communication Has Increased, Forces Follow Up to Eliminate Blockers

The team loves the reduced prescription list. This may only be a sign that they like change – this is a proactive team.

Half of my teams have now introduced Kanban changes to their scrum. Some have directly abandoned iterations and everything coming with them, some have simply added limits and changed a few things.

Having David Anderson in the office for a few days was a big catalyst. BTW, Check out his new book on Kanban.

PS: for the picture in the post? I don’t know. Ask my team. They put it in their presentation

Agile Calories

Christophe — Thu, 06 May 2010 04:52:04 +0000

Displaying calories on the menu is about to become mandatory for restaurant chains with more than 20 locations.

The idea is simple: showing a 700 calorie burger will get people to eat better, and will decrease obesity.

The reality?

Unfortunately, a recent study shows calorie display has extremely low to no impact on the consumers. While critical, this information doesn’t curb old habits and bad behaviors.

What’s that to do with agile?

I know most people swear by them. They ensure things happen; they guide the team day after day; they promote decision making.

Really? Is your iteration burn down working that well?

or is it suffering the same problem calories on the menu have?

Scary information, not much action?