Some Pitfalls In Experiential Training

Training classes using an experiential approach has more and more become the norm in agile leadership trainings. Check if some of these pitfalls are something you need to design around as you prepare your next class. Many trainers in the agile world are really good at using interactive exercises to engage participants. I’ve been a […]

Experiential Learning (No More “Silentium”)

Over the last five years, I’ve taught lots of classes to lots of people. If I knew it before, I’m convinced of it now: lecturing is not the most effective way to help others truly learn. The problem with lecturing is that it doesn’t really do much to change someone’s behavior, at least not in […]

The Power of Completion: Great vs Excellent Teachers

When I practiced aikido, I was struck by the difference between good and excellent teachers. The good teacher would be more than willing to correct me when I did something wrong. Too willing, in fact. So eager were they to instruct me that they would interrupt me mid-motion to show me how to improve. The […]

Use Improvement Stories to Make Your Retrospectives More Effective

<plug>I teach a one-day class on retrospectives. It’s in Swedish only for now, but if that’s not an obstacle, you should read about it on the Citerus web site.</plug> I love to use the user story format when I help teams plan their work. It can sometimes be hard to break user stories down into […]

Centralized Services in Software Development

Reading a blog post by Tripp Babbitt reminded me of Ackoffs discussion on internal market economies in Re-Creating the Corporation. Babbitt’s blog post talks about how focusing on cost reductions often increases costs. One reason is that cost reductions are often approached by centralizing services in organizations. When this happens, a feedback loop is broken. […]