We all have a natural inclination to take pride in our work. It's human nature to want to believe that our creations hold value. However, the danger lies not in pride itself but in blind pride. This is when we take pride in something without genuinely measuring its outcome.
For Product Owners, it's essential not to build features haphazardly. Instead, one should collect data, analyse, and create hypotheses. It's not enough to assume that what you've built will automatically deliver the value you anticipate. That's where pride can mislead. It's crucial to analyse the data to determine if it genuinely provided the expected value. If not, it's time to reconsider your investment.
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A poignant example is the case of Satya Nadella writing off the cost of Windows phone and Nokia for a whopping 8 billion. Sometimes, it's essential to set aside our pride and not pour more resources into ventures that won't yield a return.
I recall my time at a bank near Edinburgh, where a massive software was developed. Its primary function was to create forms for customers. Despite the 2 million spent on its development, it was convoluted and didn't meet the necessary features. Yet, due to the sunk cost fallacy, closely tied to pride, there was a compulsion to continue using it.
Pride can lead us to make assumptions. Whether it's a product owner believing their feature ideas are top-notch or developers building features more for entertainment than value, pride can cloud judgement. I've been there, working on features because they were enjoyable, not necessarily valuable.
It's vital to ensure that pride doesn't cloud our view of reality. Otherwise, we risk focusing on vanity metrics and missing the bigger picture. So, let's not allow our pride to prevent us from seeing what's genuinely transpiring.
NKDAgility can help!
If you find it hard to navigate the pitfalls of pride in agile, my team at NKDAgility can assist. Should you face challenges that hamper your value delivery's effectiveness, don't dilly-dally. Seek help posthaste!
You can request a free consultation with my team right now: https://nkdagility.com/agile-consulting-coaching/. Or perhaps sign up for one of our upcoming professional Scrum classes: https://nkdagility.com/training-courses/course-schedule/?scope=Public. After all, you don't just need agility; you need Naked Agility.