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Previous Presentations
When: Thursday December 4, 2008 Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner
Presenter: Ahmed Sidkey Topic: Becoming Agile...In an Imperfect World
How can your organization best adopt agile with so many constraints? This session introduces a new approach to agile adoption efforts covering important concepts such as adopting values not practices, the difference between education and training, readiness assessments, and the process of organizational change. This talk includes an exciting hands-on simulation of an agile adoption engagement. The simulation exposes the attendees to many of the challenges that occur during agile adoption efforts and provides them with insights on possible solutions for these challenges.
Presentation:
When: Thursday Sept 4, 2008
Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner
Presenter: Joe Krebs Topic: Throw-Away But Recycle: How Scrum Affects the PMO
Especially in large organizations, agile practices and processes are often introduced bottom-up where they create pockets of agility. While these pockets exchange agile techniques and practices they also spread out into other units. The network of these pockets creates a sense of unity and camaraderie among the agile workforce. After reaching a critical mass, this agile spirit is extremely infectious and will sooner or later target other units within the organization as well, for example the project management office (PMO). During this session, Jochen (Joe) Krebs will give an overview of common PMO charters in traditionally managed organization. He will then highlight how these responsibilities will change when Scrum is introduced to an organization and what the benefits of such a transformation will be. The speaker, who will raffle a copy of his recently published book "Agile Portfolio Management" during the event, will also present how typical agile metrics can be leveraged on the PMO level. Joe will share real-life examples from past engagements and his current work at AOL. He spoke at the Agile'08 conference and spearheads the New York City chapter of the APLN.
When: Thursday July 10, 2008 Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner
Presenter: Julie Brooks & Bob Screptock Topic: Agile Leadership – It's All About the Team
Agile Leadership is an evolving style of stewardship that incorporates key principles of effective group facilitation. Some hallmarks of this leadership style directly complement and reflect the Agile spirit, including participation and engagement, building the capability of the individual and the team, and creating an environment of trust and openness. We will present an overview of a framework that can help make the agile “dream” team a reality.
Presentation:
When: Thursday June 12, 2008 Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner
Presenter: Kuran "Obi" Thomas Topic: Agile Engineering from a Management Perspective
What exactly is Agile Engineering and how can the principles, approaches, and practices best integrate within and compliment an Agile project management framework, such as Scrum? During this interactive session, we will explore the various Agile Engineering components including Test-Driven Development, Pair Programming, Refactoring, Continuous Integration, and Simple Design. Utilizing real-world examples, we will also discuss various adoption barriers from both the developer and management perspectives. Discussions will also center on the best and most appropriate approaches for getting started with Agile Engineering practices, including some advanced techniques for how to scale once a basic capability is in-place.
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When: Thursday May 8, 2008 Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner
Presenter: Arlen Bankston Topic: Responsibilities and Challenges of the Agile Product Owner
The “Customer” in Agile projects (e.g. Scrum’s “Product Owner”) has the potential to realize greater return on investment and exercise much more control than they might in waterfall software development projects. However, with these benefits comes great responsibility. This presentation will illustrate the role of Agile customers in the context of the Scrum framework, while presenting some useful tools and approaches to dealing with common pitfalls. We will also discuss techniques for how an Agile Project Manager can best align and engage the Product Owner within the Agile process:
- What are the various ways the Product Owner measures value delivery and progress? - What tools, techniques, and approaches does the project manager have at their disposal to ensure the customer is effectively integrated and productive on an Agile team? - What are some challenges the project manager faces getting and keeping the Product Owner fully engaged in an Agile project?
This lecture will be accompanied by real-world anecdotes and interactive discussions.
Presentation:
When: Thursday April 3, 2008 Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner
Presenter: Andy Glover Topic: Agile Behavior Driven Development
This month's APLN DC Chapter topic is an introduction to Agile Behavior Driven Development. In this presentation, we will look at what Agile Behavior Driven Development (BDD) is, how it is an evolutionary result of Test Driven Development (TDD), and how it shifts the traditional testing vocabulary from being test-based to behavior-based. From a manager's perspective, we will investigate how BDD facilitates a stronger bridge between stakeholders and development by using a common vocabulary; plus, we will also discuss how this subtle shift in thinking assists in writing behavior classes first, which is the ultimate goal of TDD-style thinking in the first place.
When: Thursday March 6, 2008 Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner
Presenter: Ken Clyne Topic: Agile Risk Management
With larger scale iterative, incremental development, risk reduction is a key driver in the planning exercise. With the correct prioritization, the iterative, incremental project will resolve critical risks early. Sadly many organizations take a "process first" approach to risk management and as a result miss a marvelous opportunity to address the real risks and build consensus at the team level.
During this session we will present an agile risk management technique that is simple, collaborative, inclusive, and promotes a tight feedback loop where all team members continuously drive focus on the key areas of project risk. We will discuss how risk factors into every decision either directly or indirectly. We will also use examples from other industries to illustrate well proven and scientific methods for drawing on the knowledge that even experts are not consciously aware they have. Additionally, we will discuss how to leverage this technique to scale our agile team by striking the correct balance between feature driven and architectural driven approaches. We will wrap-up by demonstrating a typically agile low ceremony approach to implementing this technique.
When: Thursday February 7, 2008 Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner
Presenter: Michele Sliger Topic: Agile in the Waterfall Enterprise
In large organizations, it’s often not practical to just “flip a switch” and have your software development department start doing Agile all at once. In these situations, Agile pilot teams and non-Agile teams/departments find themselves having to figure out how to work together during the transition. Attendees will learn about the common hurdles the new Agile teams will have to overcome, and leave with ten tips to a successful adoption and coexistence. If you find yourself saying “We want to try Agile, but….” or “We’ve implemented Agile and we’re struggling with…” then this presentation is one you’ll enjoy. Michele will discuss such topics as overcoming resistance, corporate culture issues, vendor relationships and contracting, and meeting auditing requirements while still being Agile. As not all companies will choose to move every single software development project to an Agile paradigm, learning to be Agile in a non-Agile enterprise becomes increasingly important.
Presentation:
When: Thursday January 10, 2008 Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner
Presenter: Michael Spayd Topic: Why Culture Matters: How Your Organization's Culture Type Can Help (or Hinder) Your Agile Implementation
There is a large body of definitive research showing that organizational culture--and its alignment with strategy and leadership--is the single most important factor in achieving organizational success. This presentation will outline some of this research and present a typology of four primary culture types (it's rather like a Myers-Briggs for organizations). We will explore the specific organizational culture types which easily accommodate Agile (Collaboration and Cultivation) and those where it may strain prevailing attitudes, beliefs and practices (Control and Competence). We will particularly focus on the implications for Control culture organizations adopting Agile due to the inherent cultural perspective conflict with Agile.
There are many Control cultures out there: much of government, the defense industry, nuclear power plants, McDonalds / many fast food restaurants, etc. Should they attempt to adopt Agile or is it a lost cause? Can their cultures be changed? Are there workarounds or mitigations for an 'against the cultural grain' adoption effort? We will explore these and other topics in this presentation (and most likely a few more based on your interests). Plan on a highly interactive and fun session.
Presentation:
When: Thursday December 6, 2007 Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner Presenter: Kent McDonald Topic: Helping Product Owners Determine Value and Prioritize Features (Agile Product Owner Commitment and Engagement)
The agile community has provided teams with excellent guidance on how to build things right (or at least in the most appropriate manner). But when it comes to whether we are building the right things, that task has been passed to the Product Owner without a great deal of guidance. It becomes a matter of understanding what job we want done and what value that adds to the organization. We will take a look at some ways to help the Product Owner define the business value that a project produces and use regular reevaluation of that value to understand what features should be completed, and perhaps more importantly, what features should not be built at all.
Presentation:
When: Thursday August 2, 2007 Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner Presenter: Neil Chaudhuri and Natalia Vainshtein Topic: Agile Project Management: PMBOK vs Agile
Referencing personal experiences as well as thought leaders on both sides, this discussion explores the theoretical foundations of both PMBOK and agile methods. Points of commonality and points of conflict between the two are examined and explained. Finally, this discussion concludes with an analysis of whether both PMBOK and agile software project management methods can co-exist on the same project to yield software, on schedule and on budget, that generates value for customers.
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When: Thursday July 5, 2007 Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner Presenter: Hillel Glazer Topic: Agile and CMMI: Keys to Making Agile and CMMI Compatible
The purpose of this briefing is to describe how to make CMMI agile, and how to appraise agile methods to CMMI. Discussion includes a hands-on exercise to demonstrate the compatibility of Agile & CMMI on the same team.
Presentation:
When: Thursday June 7, 2007 Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tyson's Corner Presenter: David Rico Topic: Effects of Agile Methods on Electronic Commerce: Do They Improve Website Quality?
The purpose of this briefing is to present a model for measuring the relationship between the use of agile methods to manage the development of Internet websites and their quality. Agile methods are a general purpose approach for managing the development of new products, which are often associated with Internet software. Agile methods may be used for improving website quality by obtaining early customer feedback on a large number of frequent software releases. Agile methods are characterized by early customer involvement, iterative development, self organizing teams, and flexibility. This model may help managers better understand the business effects of adopting or failing to adopt agile methods for the $2 trillion U.S. electronic commerce industry.
Presentation: Agile_Methods_and_the_Effect_on_Website_Quality.ppt
When: Thursday May 3, 2007
Where: Best Western Westpark Hotel - Tysons Corner, VA
Presenters: Sanjive Augustine and Roland Cuellar Topic: The Lean-Agile PMO
Despite adopting Agile methods, many organizations are still challenged in the delivery of individual projects as well as the effective management of the entire project portfolio. Slow project throughput, constant delays, budget variance, poor value, and low customer satisfaction are unfortunately still the norm. How can such organizations reap the full benefits of their investments in Agile? How should project portfolios and supporting program management organizations and processes be adapted to deliver significant time-to-market and customer satisfaction improvements across multiple Agile projects? How can executives, portfolio managers and program managers best support and drive Agile initiatives in their organization?
In this session, Sanjiv Augustine and Roland Cuellar lay out defining principles for a Lean-Agile Program Management Office (PMO), and then present the practical details for managing a blended project portfolio via the Lean-Agile PMO. Participants will learn how setup and organize a Lean-Agile PMO to keep their project portfolios:
- Focused on the highest priorities
- Responsive to the business in managing changing priorities
- Delivering the highest possible value to the organization - In alignment with organizational strategy
- Delivering project at the greatest possible speed
Presentation:
When: Thursday April 5, 2007 Where: Courtyard by Marriott - Tyson's Corner, VA Presenter: Ahmed Sidky Topic: Agile Adoption Process Framework
Today many organizations aspire to adopt agile processes in hope of overcoming some of the difficulties they are facing with their current software process. As the demand for agile adoption grows, key questions are repeated frequently within the agile community. What does it mean to be agile? When is an organization considered agile? How to successfully aid an organization to adopt agile practices? Are there any guidelines or resources to help with the agile adoption efforts? Was anything overlooked during the adoption effort? The Agile Adoption Process Framework complements these experiences by providing a structured yet flexible approach to agile adoption efforts. The objective of the Agile Adoption Process Framework is to guide and assist agile coaches and organizations in their agile adoption efforts. The Agile Adoption Process Framework is made up of 3 phases; (1) Discontinuing factors, (2) Project Level Assessment and (3) Organizational Assessment. The framework also introduces a new measurement index for agility, the 5 Agile Levels.
Presentation:
When: March 1, 2007
Presenter: Arlen Bankston, Director, Lean Six Sigma Practice, CC Pace Topic: Combining Lean Six Sigma and Agile
Lean and Six Sigma have long been lauded for their potential at improving business processes, while Agile has proven itself a powerful way to approach project delivery. However, they can be combined to greater effect than the sum of their parts. This presentation will offer up several methods for implementing a complementary Lean Six Sigma and Agile approach.
Presentation:
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