Agile Amped Podcast - Inspiring Conversations

Latest Episodes:

Expanding Agile to Hiring and Beyond Aug 15, 2019

Show notes

Robert Woods, Founder of MindOverProcess, has found that one of the places we should start when bringing Agile change to the entire organization is revising corporate hiring practices.

Woods shares insights about how to improve hiring strategies to onboard the right people who are engaged and more likely to stay. He warns that if you do not have a good onboarding process, "within the first 45 days you could lose up to 20% of your new hires." This has a large impact on building the persistent high-preforming teams needed to implement lasting change.

Woods also believes that we can experience larger cultural change by starting with "small conscientious adjustments over time" and to be prepared for the long-haul: "like a lifestyle change, cultural changes often take 3-5 years within a company… we don't want to get into the position where we think a few structural changes are going to make everything all better."

Accenture | SolutionsIQ's Chris Murman hosts at Agile2019 in Washington, D.C.

The Agile Amped podcast is the shared voice of the Agile community, driven by compelling stories, passionate people, and innovative ideas. Together, we are advancing the impact of business agility.

Podcast library: www.agileamped.com

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Hyperfocus: Be More Productive in a World of Distraction Aug 08, 2019

Show notes

Self-described productivity geek Chris Bailey is the author of "Hyperfocus: How to Be More Productive in a World of Distraction", and his passion and research into productivity resonates with agilists: we are all working to improve how we work and live.

Bailey's message – bolstered by many statistics – is simple and profound: "The state of our attention reflects the state of our lives."

He offers practical advice for improving productivity at work while also invoking the deeper yearning that each of us feels to get more out of life in our relationships with others and with ourselves. Mindfulness and meditation are in the mix because, as Bailey puts it, "For every minute you meditate, you get ten minutes back, because you notice that your mind has veered off track."

Favorite quotes:* "On average, we only work on one thing for 40 seconds before we switch to doing something else."* "We can do almost anything for a minute besides focus… Your mind will resist even that one minute…"* "We're the most creative when we have the least energy, because our minds are less inhibited."

Accenture | SolutionsIQ's Leslie Morse hosts at Agile2019 in Washington, D.C.

Find the book:https://alifeofproductivity.com/hyperfocus/

The Agile Amped podcast is the shared voice of the Agile community, driven by compelling stories, passionate people, and innovative ideas. Together, we are advancing the impact of business agility.

Podcast library: www.agileamped.com

Connect with us on social media!

Twitter: twitter.com/AgileAmped

Facebook: facebook.com/agileamped

Instagram: instagram.com/agileamped/

The Invisible Brand: Hidden Influence of Marketing Powered by AI Aug 01, 2019

Show notes

William Ammerman's background as an advertising executive, coupled with his post-graduate work in artificial intelligence, gives him a unique perspective on the subject of marketing in the age of AI. He is the author of "The Invisible Brand: Marketing in the Age of Automation, Big Data, and Machine Learning".

Ammerman wants to make people aware of the potential consequences of our constant connectivity and the emotional relationships we are now beginning to form with machines, and their influence over us.

"An AI agent programmed with the science of persuasion, armed with the details of our personality and behavior profiles, and equipped with mass customization, will be able to learn how to sway our decisions and actions."

Accenture | SolutionsIQ's Hanna Gnann hosts.

The Agile Amped podcast is the shared voice of the Agile community, driven by compelling stories, passionate people, and innovative ideas. Together, we are advancing the impact of business agility.

Podcast library: www.agileamped.com

Connect with us on social media!

Twitter: twitter.com/AgileAmped

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Instagram: www.instagram.com/agileamped/

How Scaled Agile Uses SAFe to Run Itself Jul 25, 2019

Show notes

Michael Stump, SAFe fellow and VP of Global Partner Programs at Scaled Agile, advises that agile implementations are not a one-size-fits-all approach. It involves some thinking, and not a copy-paste system. He advocates for experiential learning, making mistakes and using that wisdom as guidance to do better, learning how to apply agile to different situations.

He says, "Creating alignment, creating transparency and having those tough discussions and session points…is really powerful". Stump subscribes to the belief that you can run the whole company using SAFe as the operating model. He discusses the effect of change management and using that as a platform to learn.

"Organizations are not aligned on the goal", he says. Then how do you achieve the goal? Getting buy-in from management, together with support and the commitment to be successful. Mistakes are happening either way, to get to the other side, you have to go through it.

Accenture | SolutionsIQ's Scott Frost hosts at the European SAFe Summit in The Hague, Netherlands.

The Agile Amped podcast is the shared voice of the Agile community, driven by compelling stories, passionate people, and innovative ideas. Together, we are advancing the impact of business agility.

Podcast library: www.agileamped.com

Connect with us on social media! Twitter: twitter.com/AgileAmped Facebook: www.facebook.com/agileamped Instagram: www.instagram.com/agileamped/

How to Hire a CEO | Business Agility Series Jul 18, 2019

Show notes

Businesses have the long-established expectations of how people should work in development teams, but few know how to hire the right people. This is even more difficult when hiring new leadership to helm an Agile business. Geof Ellingham, Chair of the Agile Business Consortium, speaks with us about a refined, more collaborative approach to hiring business leaders. According to Ellingham, a change is required when hiring a CEO and implementing a co-creative process, removing the antiquated power dynamic, and introducing recruitment that is more genuine.

Accenture | SolutionsIQ's Leslie Morse hosts at the 2019 Business Agility Conference in New York City.

The Agile Amped podcast is the shared voice of the Agile community, driven by compelling stories, passionate people, and innovative ideas. Together, we are advancing the impact of business agility.

Podcast library: www.agileamped.com

Connect with us on social media! Twitter: twitter.com/AgileAmped Facebook: www.facebook.com/agileamped Instagram: www.instagram.com/agileamped/

From Projects to Products Jul 11, 2019

Show notes

Imagine a world where the same approaches that successful startups follow also worked for Fortune 500 companies. With the right organizational structures, it can be a dream come true.

However, IT organizations tend to think that innovation is one install away and the path is littered with failed agile transformations. Changing from a project- to a product-centric approach may address some the major obstacles preventing the nimble startup-like success larger enterprises crave.

Join us as we speak with Dr. Mik Kersten, CEO of Tasktop and author of "Project to Product: How to Survive and Thrive in the Age of Digital Disruption with the Flow Framework", as he talks with us about a critical disconnect between business leaders and technologists and how enabling a shift from project to product can make all the difference.

Accenture | SolutionsIQ's Skip Angel Hosts

Find Skip's infograph on Twitter.

The Agile Amped podcast is the shared voice of the Agile community, driven by compelling stories, passionate people, and innovative ideas. Together, we are advancing the impact of business agility.

Podcast library: www.agileamped.com

Connect with us on social media! Twitter: twitter.com/AgileAmped Facebook: www.facebook.com/agileamped Instagram: www.instagram.com/agileamped/

Next Level PI Planning Jul 04, 2019

Show notes

Shane Harrison, business focused change agent specializing in enterprise-level digital Lean Agile transformations, takes PI planning to the next level. Harrison offers tips and tricks on how to execute with a higher success rate.

He advocates for aligning PI objectives with solid plans; socialization is only successful when the teams understand the context and vision of the plan. He says, "I'm always looking for the teams to get into a state of flow…any interruption to the team disrupts the flow."

For leadership guests at PI planning, Harrison recommends an "eyes open, ears open, mouth shut" approach – an observation exercise rather than interaction with the teams.

Accenture | SolutionsIQ's Scott Frost hosts at the European SAFe Summit: The Hague, Netherlands.

Privilege is Power Given to You | Women in Agile Jun 27, 2019

Show notes

Brendon Hernandez remembers clearly when he realized his privilege of being a male, of being treated preferentially over the strong and capable women in his life. An Agile coach in business agility transformations today at Accenture | SolutionsIQ, Hernandez is a passionate ally for diversity and inclusion because of his personal experience.

"As a gay male, I rely on heterosexual women to be an ally in the LGBT space, and in return I am an ally to women, because I have the privilege of being male."

In this episode, our own Leslie Morse guides the discussion through hard topics like privilege and guilt as well as diversity, inclusion and allyship.

Accenture | SolutionsIQ's Leslie Morse hosts.

The Agile Amped podcast is the shared voice of the Agile community, driven by compelling stories, passionate people, and innovative ideas. Together, we are advancing the impact of business agility.

Podcast library: www.agileamped.com

Connect with us on social media! Twitter: twitter.com/AgileAmped Facebook: www.facebook.com/agileamped Instagram: www.instagram.com/agileamped/

Techonomy CEO on the Impact of Technology on Business and Society Jun 20, 2019

Show notes

In a world of fake news, where automation is threatening jobs, Josh Kampel remains a techno-optimist. In this episode, the CEO of Techonomy Media shares his views on how organizations can get more value out of technological innovations and disruptions by taking time to understand deeply what they stand for as a company, and what value they provide to their customers and the world at large. Because legacy technological baggage isn't the only thing keeping big organizations from reaping the benefits of new tech: "It's [also] culture, people, it's real estate, it's infrastructure…"

Kampel shares his views on the successes, struggles, failures and opportunities that companies face today and compare them to what other companies have experienced in the past. Kampel insists that CEOs cannot be the only ones leading the charge to transform organizations: the board needs to get involved, as well as the people who work in the organization and are the living breathing representations of that company's culture.

Accenture | SolutionsIQ's Global Managing Director of Innovation Max Furmanov hosts.

The Agile Amped podcast is the shared voice of the Agile community, driven by compelling stories, passionate people, and innovative ideas. Together, we are advancing the impact of business agility.

Podcast library: www.agileamped.com

Connect with us on social media! Twitter: twitter.com/AgileAmped Facebook: www.facebook.com/agileamped Instagram: www.instagram.com/agileamped/

This Transformation Is Not Your Baby | Business Agility Series Jun 13, 2019

Show notes

Agile Transformation is a collective effort requiring much work and dedication from all levels of the business. It's no wonder that some people become very attached to it, whether it's a VP, a coach, a manager, or team member. Carlo Bucciarelli, senior manager at Accenture, reminds us that "this transformation is not your baby."

Further, he says leaders fall into the trap of forcing top-down changes on their reports, which can create resentment in individuals and team. Because the transformation belongs to everyone in the organization – as well as the trainers, coaches, and consultants providing guidance along the way – empathy, inclusion, a powerful guiding coalition, and tons of humility are all necessary on the path to success.

Accenture | SolutionsIQ's Henrik Gruber hosts at the Business Agility Conference in Vienna, Austria.

The Agile Amped podcast is the shared voice of the Agile community, driven by compelling stories, passionate people, and innovative ideas. Together, we are advancing the impact of business agility.

Podcast library: www.agileamped.com

Connect with us on social media! Twitter: twitter.com/AgileAmped Facebook: www.facebook.com/agileamped Instagram: www.instagram.com/agileamped/