Joel Bancroft-Connors
Member for
12 years 5 monthsJoel is a Principal Consultant with Applied Frameworks, whose mission is helping its clients find the best framework for their success, instead of making an existing framework fit them.
Joel loves tackling tough issues no one wants to deal with that are killing teams and organizations. He is dedicated to solving challenges associated with enterprise programs and projects. Having worked in such roles as customer support, product management, and program management, Joel understands challenges across the business, helping organizations navigate change while guiding teams to happiness.
His writing can also be found at AppliedFrameworks.com and TheGorillaCoach.com
All Articles by Joel Bancroft-Connors
All Stories by Joel Bancroft-Connors
|
What Kind of Agile Coach Should I Hire?Having your organization make the mental shift necessary to adopt agile is the first important step in an agile transformation. But once you decide you want to change, now what? Should you attempt your agile adoption yourselves or hire an expert? Joel Bancroft-Connors details the benefits and downsides of going it alone and of using contract, consultant, and full-time agile coaches so you can decide what's best for you. |
|
The Ideal Workspace for an Agile Team If your agile team is all wearing noise-canceling headphones and stepping outside for conference calls, you have a problem. An agile workspace doesn't only mean putting everyone in the same room. The layout, configuration, and seating must be conducive to sustainable teamwork. Here are some tips about what an agile workspace is—and isn't. |
|
Using Agile to Lead Your Agile TransformationThere's something ironic about starting an agile transformation by spending six months creating a detailed transformation plan. We have to move away from a prescriptive playbook and toward a more responsive transformation model. Why not use the agile transformation as your first opportunity to be agile? |
|
Are You Agile? An Assessment Can Tell YouPlenty of companies want to be agile and go through the motions but are not really agile. An agile assessment allows you to evaluate how teams or even organizations are doing in their agile journey. But like any useful tool, there is no shortage of assessment options available. Here are the acceptance criteria to look for and a framework for using an agile assessment. |
|
5 Principles for Using Agile Team Metrics ResponsiblyWith the transparency of agile and the granularity of team-based metrics, it's important to be responsible in how you use your measurements. There are five principles Joel Bancroft-Connors adheres to when dealing with metrics: start collecting early and often, be consistent, stay focused, measure the project and the teams separately, and—most importantly—measure responsibly. |
|
4 Balanced Metrics for Tracking Agile TeamsWhatever your feelings on metrics, organizations will expect them for your team. You don't want to measure only one aspect to the detriment of other information, but you also don't want to measure too many things and scatter your team's focus. Here are four metrics that balance each other out and help gauge an agile team's productivity, work quality, predictability, and health. |
|
Building Team Relationships as an Agile CoachOnly by creating a relationship based on trust can agile coaches be effective in aiding teams with an agile adoption. Joel Bancroft-Connors says the best start is actually to do nothing. Spend time observing the team first. This helps you understand the people and processes, which will help you determine the best course of action. |
|
For a Successful Agile Adoption, Put Education FirstEducation is a vital ingredient in transformations, and it should be one of the first steps you take in moving to agile. Regardless of anyone’s level of agile experience, everyone should go through the same training because the real value of training isn't the lesson plan; it's the shared experience. Everyone across teams having the same foundation is essential. |
|
The Agile Cookbook: Recipes for Enterprise Agile TransformationsScaling agile across a large, enterprise organization is different from dealing with just a handful of teams. Though you have the same key ingredients, there are several recipes for how to put those ingredients together. Enter The Agile Coach’s Transformation Cookbook. You can whip up an organization-wide agile transformation by finding your own recipe for success. |
|
The Test Manager's Survival Guide to Going Agile Joel Bancroft-Connors presents a survival guide for testers going to agile. Joel explains what happened when he had to make the switch from waterfall to agile. Welcome to the world of being an agile manager, in which your team is a top performer, doing more in the same amount of time as before. |