Welcome to the Agile Centre Articles page, your comprehensive resource for learning, insights, and expert guidance on all things Agile. Whether you’re just beginning your Agile journey or looking to deepen your knowledge, our articles are crafted to provide valuable information and practical advice for Agile practitioners at all levels. Covering a wide range of topics, from Agile fundamentals to advanced coaching techniques, our articles are designed to support you in building effective teams, fostering a collaborative culture, and driving meaningful change within your organisation.
Our articles explore the core principles and practices that make Agile successful. They explore methodologies like Scrum, Kanban, and Lean while covering essential skills like leadership, facilitation, and team dynamics. Each piece is written by experienced Agile practitioners who understand the challenges and rewards of working in Agile environments, ensuring you receive practical and actionable insights.
Learn how to apply Agile practices to improve team performance, enhance product development, and create resilient, customer-focused organisations. Discover tips for overcoming common challenges, building high-performing teams, and leading Agile transformations that stick. Whether you’re an Agile Coach, Scrum Master, Product Owner, or Leader, our articles provide the tools and strategies to help you succeed.
Dive into our collection and explore the ever-evolving world of Agile. With articles updated regularly, this page is your go-to destination for staying informed on Agile trends, best practices, and new approaches. At Agile Centre, we’re dedicated to empowering Agile professionals with knowledge and resources that inspire growth and continuous improvement.
Agile Centre Articles
The 6 Enablers of Business Agility – Creating the Organizational Operating system for Success
We live in a world that is more interconnected, more volatile, and more unpredictable than at a…
Powerful Questions in Coaching
A powerful question is a question that evokes or draws out a reaction, an insight, a fact, or an opp…
Benefits of Coaching to the Coachee
As the world becomes more complex, many managers and leaders are turning to certified coaches to hel…
Avoiding Assumptions in Coaching
Assumption is defined as ‘a thing that is accepted as true or as certain to happen, without proof &#…
Product Owner Origins: Liam Neeson or Dragon’s Den?
Product Owner Origins: Product Owners hold a lot on their shoulders. Responsibility for return on in…
5 Levers for Changing Organisational Culture
Organisational culture is one of the most powerful, and misunderstood, concepts around. Leaders and …
Is your Agile getting stale? Take the Mani-fresh-to Challenge!
TLDR; Everything changed in 2020, even the Scrum Guide got an update, but the Agile Manifesto didn’t…
On Agile and Mastery
I’m lucky enough to find my job professionally satisfying. That’s because I think the line of work I…
Introduction to SAFe
SAFe® is an acronym for Scaled Agile Framework® and was introduced in 2011 by co-creators Dean Leffi…
Why OKRs aren’t enough on their own: Goals and Standards
Objectives and Key Results – OKRs – are a well known goal-setting technique; there’…
Essential Skills – Critical Analysis
In a recent conversation with Tyrrell Basson from Manchester University, we explored the topic of ‘e…
Creating Alignment and Autonomy
We know from Dan Pink’s work that high levels of autonomy are a powerful contributor to motivation. …
There Are Sabre-Toothed Tigers in Your Office
An ancient part of our brains that existed to keep us alive in a world of danger has evolved. But ra…
The SCARF Model – How it affects agile teams
In the previous article ‘There Are Sabre-Toothed Tigers In Your Office‘, we discussed ho…
Agile Coaching Capability
Agile Coaching Capability – I’m a bit of a rugby fan and often find myself wanting to run out …
Innovation versus Protectionism
The last time we suffered a global pandemic that brought the world to its knees was in 1918. A littl…
I’m in a Theory X Team, Get Me Out Of Here!
Theory X Team For 20 years, ITV’s “I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here” has been a staple of the UK …
ORCA – A powerful feedback model
Ken Blanchard described it as “the breakfast of champions”; Bill Gates said, “We all need people who…
Where did you get that hat?
In my previous blog post, “Where are all the managers in Agile?”, I discussed why agile doesn’t need…
Where are all the managers in Agile?
The heart of agile is described in the few words of the Agile Manifesto and its accompanying princip…
Bring rigour to your thinking
“Belief is so often the death of reason” – Lord Varys, Master of Whisperers – Game of Thrones …
Genesis: Levels of Agile Capability and Competence
Once upon a time, circa May 2016, the world was a comparatively predictable place. For the most part…
Intention Versus Strategy
Part of our Covid Hack series of articles Small, cross-functional teams working closely together to …
The History of Hierarchies
For 95 percent of the 200,000 years modern humans have walked the earth, there was no such thing as …
Resilient versus Robust
Resilient versus Robust Part of our Covid Hack series of articles Many of the corporations we work w…
Technical Debt
Part of the Covid Hack series by John McFadyen We all experienced massive disruption, complexity and…
Facilitate rapid and effective decision-making
Value Stream Mapping (VSM) is a collaborative, coaching-style workshop that brings together the team…
Hiring
Part of the Covid Hack series by John McFadyen In a recent Zoom session with Laura Howie, CEO of Ree…
Management versus Leadership
Management versus Leadership: During the pandemic, our revenue streams dried up – literally ov…
The Coaching Imposter #2
When I last posted something, before life changed significantly for all of us, I was coming to terms…
Customers and Developers in the same room. WTF?
At the turn of the 20th Century, the father of modern Business Management – Frederick Winslow …
How do I get the senior leadership team to buy into Agile?
‘How do I get the senior leadership team to buy into Agile?’ is a question I’m often asked. It’s a g…
Stealth Agile
I recently connected with Tyrrell Basson from the University of Manchester in one of my ‘Ask me Anyt…
We didn’t do anything wrong, but somehow, we lost”
‘We didn’t do anything wrong, but somehow, we lost.’– CEO of Nokia There’s a moment when the CEO of …
We did not have time for Governance!
Many Agile coaches and trainers often speak about the unicorns of Agile. Spotify. Netflix. Amazon. A…
Building bridges amidst disruption
The Case for Business Agility As an Agile coach, consultant and trainer, I pretty much live in a wor…
Coronavirus and The Corner Shop – A Portrait of Agility?
If ever one wanted the ultimate portrait of a VUCA world – volatile, uncertain, complex, and a…
The Coaching Imposter
Agile Coaching? Hmm, yes I know what you’re thinking, “what does that mean and how is that an actual…
Exploring and Exploiting – Striking the Right Balance
In 1913, Henry Ford implemented one of the greatest innovations ever seen in manufacturing: the movi…
Agile Bootcamp #4 – Using Story Mapping to Teach Agile
Agile Bootcamp: User Story Mapping is a great technique to help teams explore their product scope an…
Agile Bootcamp #3 – Scrum Simulation with the Inception Deck
There are lots of ways to help introduce the concepts of Scrum to teams and to give them a chance to…
Agile Bootcamp #2 – Behind The Scenes at an Agile Bootcamp
The bootcamp is planned, the travel arrangements made and suitcases packed. Now, the hard work start…
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