Coach Dan's Blog

  I was doing some reading on the topic of "servant leadership" last week, and I rediscovered an article in  Harvard Business Review  that I'd read a couple years back.  In it, the author explores the concept of leaders serving the people they lead rather than trying to exert control.   The author really highlights the point that the true value managers bring to an organization is not necessarily being a gatekeeper or order-giver, but rather creating an environment where team members (people actually creating value the customers consume) are enabled and empowered to innovate, solve problems, grow and improve.  This, of course, helps us all to create a culture that reinforces an   agile mindset !  Key Excerpts from the article ,  How Humble Leadership Really Works   "When you’re a leader — no matter how long you’ve been in your role or how hard the journey was to get there — you are merely overhead unless you’re bringing out the bes...

  The  first  shared agile principle is - “Our highest priority is to  satisfy the customer  through early and  continuous delivery of value.” - The Agile Manifesto When was the last time  your  team... talked about  your  customer?  Who is your customer?  Is  everyone  on your team working for the same customer? Is the work you're doing  today  creating value for your customer?  How do you know? How will the work you do today help to  satisfy  your customer? If your customer saw the top of your team's backlog,  would they agree  it's important and valuable? Is your team regularly engaging with the customer to inform the product direction? In the hustle and bustle of our day, it can be easy to lose sight of the "why we're doing this." Take some time this week, and invest in your team.  Talk about who your customer is and what problem you're solving for  them ...