The Human Side of Agile

Does your Agile team experience the following common problems?

• Members use established Agile practices and tools, yet with little motivation or buy-in.
• Even though the team is cross-functional, members don't collaborate effectively or leverage everyone's abilities.
• Rather than act empowered, they wait for permission and approval.
• Improvement has stalled -- the team performs okay, but it can do so much better.

You can't solve these problems with more practices, rules, and tools. These are people problems.

If you're a Scrum Master, project manager, delivery lead, or manager - or you aspire to be - you can make all the difference to your Agile team. Not by being a taskmaster, administrator, or process enforcer, but by leading your team to greatness. Take this book on your Agile leadership journey, and it will help you to:

• Build and cultivate an engaged team that can handle almost any challenge
• Catalyze team communication, collaboration, and continuous improvement
• Establish yourself as a confident and capable leader who adds value
• Reap the full benefits of Agile in the real world with real people

"I've rarely seen so much useful, concrete advice packaged in such a simple and accessible way."

Henrik Kniberg, Agile coach and author, Lean from the Trenches

"I just found the next must-read book for our entire leadership team."

Tricia Broderick, Director of Development, TechSmith

"Agile teams need effective leaders who 'get' the people stuff. Without that you're merely going through the Agile motions."

Scott W. Ambler, co-creator of Disciplined Agile Delivery

While readable from cover to cover, the book is written as practical answers to the 80+ most relevant and pressing questions that team leaders ask, such as:

• "How Can I Help the Team Buy In?"
• "What If I Can't Work Full-Time as the Team's Leader?"
• "What Actions Will Build the Team's Trust in Me?"
• "How Can I Mitigate the Damage of Performance Reviews?"
• "What If a Member Doesn't Fit With the Team?"
• "How Can We Focus on Our Work With So Many Meetings?"
• "How Do I Get Stakeholders and Managers on My Side?"
• "How Do I Defuse Resistance?"
• "How Can I Make Changes Stick?"
• "How Do We Avoid Reverting to Old Behaviors?"

The book's forewords are by Jim Highsmith and Christopher Avery.