Scrum has an accountability called “Product Owner”, but you’ll also come across people with the title of “Product Manager”. Are they the same thing? Related to each other? Is one better than the other? PST'S Gregory Crown, Jason Malmstadt, and Robert Pieper shed some light on this confusing topic in...

The Product Owner is the bridge between corporate strategy and the Scrum Team. The Product Owner must balance the demands of users against the need to ensure that the product remains up to date from a technical perspective. This often means that the Product Owner may need to choose between developin...

🎯📝 Master the delicate balance of crafting a #ProductBacklog! 🚀 Our latest blog post guides you through the path of keeping it lean💡, but not too lean, anticipating the future🔭 without overcrowding. 🔄 Embrace the power of regular reflection meetings to turn surprises into golden insights! 🤔💼 Be the ...

In this article, we will explore some complimentary practices which the Product Owner might use to as an input when deciding how to order the Product Backlog.

What are the biggest reasons to use Scrum? What should a team or an organization expect to gain when implementing this framework? Why should anyone care? In this short Q&A session, PST'S Robert Pieper and Jason Malmstadt tackle the value proposition of Scrum, exploring the real, tangible benefits...

By understanding its customers and users, a Scrum Team can identify opportunities, be more innovative and create products that people need and use. Here are different techniques ways to do this.

The Scrum Team should invite customers and users of their product to the Sprint Review. This is a perfect opportunity to engage with them to gather feedback and insight. Rather than using this time to dig into detail, focus on outcomes and gathering feedback and insight. Also, keep in mind that t...

Evidence-Based Management (EBM) helps organizations work toward their goals in a complex environment. It focuses on measurable outcomes and desirable things that a customer or user of a product wants and experiences. EBM applies an empirical approach and serves as a foundation for Scrum Teams and or...

Surveys are one of the most common research methods and another way Scrum Teams can find more about their customers and users. For example, to determine customer satisfaction. Although surveys can be a cost effective way to gather data and insights from a large group of people, if they are not...

Focus groups are a popular tool in market and user research. You can think of a focus group as a large scale interview as they typically consist between 5 and 10 users in a group. When running a focus group, the focus group moderator asks questions of the group and encourages discussion among th...

One to one interviews are an easy way to gather insights. They can help the Scrum Team find out what their customers think about their product and what is important to them versus what is not. While conducting a one to one interview sounds straightforward, it requires discipline and practice in ...

Customer reviews are another way for the Scrum Team to gather feedback on the product. Reviews provide insights into what customers find useful, what they are struggling with, and what they don’t like. Reviews can be found in many places like the company website, social media, and on third-part...

By taking the time to observe users in their environment, you can learn a lot about how they interact with your product allowing you to explore how to make it better. During an observation session, ask users to interact with a lightweight prototype or observe them using the latest product Increm...

User role modeling is a lightweight way to categorize what roles users take when interacting with your product. Knowing these roles and how they impact how the user interacts with the product gives the Scrum Team more context when creating and refining their Product Backlog items, especially if ...

Product Owners are accountable for maximizing the value of the product that the Scrum Team builds. Therefore, as a Product Owner, you want everyone in the Scrum Team, including yourself, to have a shared understanding and be aligned on who the people are that would buy (customers) and use (users) yo...

A proto-persona is a fictional character based on what you currently know about the people that would buy and or use your product. Creating proto-personas collaboratively is a lightweight and quick way to build conversation and shared understanding within the Scrum Team about who they believe their ...

Coaching plays a pivotal role in guiding teams toward greater efficiency, collaboration, and overall success. It’s important to remember that you can't coach people out of every bad practice all at once. This article explores the wisdom behind focusing on the highest impact opportunities rather than...

🔥 Navigating the Product Backlog just got more exciting! 🚀 Unravel why hierarchy might be your ship's anchor ⚓ in the stormy seas of complexity. 🔍 This article unveils the pitfalls of hierarchy and demystifies the complexities in product development. Learn how streamlining your backlog enhances inno...

Those newly introduced to the Scrum framework often have the same first question: What’s the difference between Scrum and traditional project management? Most people are familiar with the basics of traditional project management, so the question is a great place to start for understanding Scrum and ...

Anyone who is impacted by the outcome of the product and is interested in its success is considered a stakeholder. Examples of a Scrum Team’s stakeholders may include: Customers - users and buyers of the productInternal stakeholders - company management and other organizations such as Human Resource...

Scrum encourages frequent collaboration with stakeholders, and customers in particular. Understanding how to identify and learn about the challenges that key stakeholders face will help the Scrum Team better deliver the value they are seeking.

Here are some common challenges Scrum Teams face when engaging with stakeholders and ways to overcome these challenges.

What is release planning? When is it done? How do we manage stakeholder expectations and answer the infamous "when will it be done" question? How do we forecast? What numbers and methods can we use to forecast more accurately?

Explore a series of carefully curated collections of essential books, newsletters, podcasts, and tools to elevate your agile expertise.

Unleash Scrum's Potential: Discover Where to Start for Efficient Value Delivery (Product) and Continuous Improvement via Value Stream Mapping

Quel est le rôle du product owner dans scrum ? Product Owner définition ? Que doit-il faire ? Quelles sont ses responsabilités? Quelles sont les erreurs très souvent commises? Dans cette vidéo nous répondrons à toutes ces questions. Ce sont des informations basées sur le guide scrum 2020.

One way a Scrum Team can create some understanding and transparency into who needs to be involved during product delivery, is by collaboratively creating a lightweight stakeholder engagement approach to help guide the team.

A personal experience and a tangible exercise to show why complexity requires ‘doing’ instead of ‘thinking’

How does your Product Owner support adaptation in order to minimise deviations from agreed goals? Each of the Scrum Accountabilities has a role to play. So does the Product Owner. Check it out!

The order of the Product Backlog is incredibly important. How is a Product Owner supposed to prioritize such a critical artifact well? In this lightning round, PST's Robert Pieper and Jason Malmstadt discuss a few tactical tips to help get you started.

Warren Buffett once said: “Price is what you pay, value is what you get.”

If you are not getting the value you hoped for from your Scrum transformation, try adding a couple of Kanban practices to your Scrum implementation.

Explore a series of carefully curated collections of essential books, newsletters, podcasts, and tools to elevate your agile expertise.

How does your Increment support adaptation in order to minimise deviations from agreed goals? Each of the Scrum Artifacts serve to adapt. So does the Increment. Check it out!

Product Backlog Management is the act of adjusting and ordering items on the Product Backlog so that the Scrum Team can deliver the most valuable product possible. This learning series explores Product Backlog Management.

For Product Backlog management to be effective, consider these following tips: Review, reorder and refine the Product Backlog frequently The Product Backlog is emergent; it evolves and changes. Feedback, learnings from experiments and changing market conditions are just a few factors that in...

An effective Product Owner ensures valuable items that improve the product and the customer experience are included in the Product Backlog. This means they must make decisions on what should be or should not be included in the Product Backlog. To do this well, they spend time with customers and stak...

Product Goals are intermediate goals that help a Scrum Team learn and progress toward their Product Vision. When formulating a Product Goal, it should be: Aligned with and makes progress toward the Product Vision Clear and concise Outcome-driven to reflect a customer want or need Mea...

Organizations have a habit of setting Product Owners up for failure. In this episode, Jeff and Mike discuss common anti-patterns and what to do about them.

Explore the challenge of 'Escaping the Product Owner’s Trap' in this insightful blog post. Learn how Product Owners often find themselves entangled in component thinking, losing sight of broader objectives and value delivery. Uncover key principles such as Vision, Value, and Validation, and discover...

This case study analyzes the transformation journey using Org Topologies™ Scans and focuses on the Business Banking Hub. The article is valuable if you want to understand how Org Topologies™ can help improve organizational design.

The Scrum Anti-Patterns Guide, nearing completion, categorizes over 180 anti-patterns by roles, events, artifacts, and commitments. However, it lacks a meta-level taxonomy to address Scrum anti-patterns on broader levels, raising the question of developing such a comprehensive strategy.

How does your Sprint Backlog support adaptation in order to minimise deviations from agreed goals? Each of the Scrum Artifacts serve to adapt. So does the Sprint Backlog. Check it out!

In this webinar, Professional Scrum Trainer Mary Iqbal shares how the Scrum Team can navigate emergencies that come up mid-Sprint.

Does your Scrum Team often find itself with carryover work from the previous Sprint? Does that make your team an unproductive one? Whose fault is it? In this episode, Jeff and Mike share how to limit sprint-to-sprint carryover.  Listen and share with your team so things get DONE.

Find a better balance between solving problems and enabling growth and autonomy

🚀💥#UsableWorkingProduct: Your Ultimate Weapon Against Risks in Agile💥🚀 ⚠️ Ever wondered why some Agile projects falter? Is your fortress of documentation crumbling against the relentless tides of market change? 🌊 Here’s the secret sauce - It’s all about Usable Working Products! 🎯🔧 Too many Agile tea...

In this article, we have crafted interview questions to help identify the best Product Owner for your Scrum team.

Learn how Scrum Product Owners and Scrum Masters can employ techniques to enhance the user experience and ensure product success.

ATTITUDE is the composition of our way of thinking, feeling, and acting. Every team member has an attitude defining their way of being in the Scrum Team. The question is if it is a constructive attitude or not.