Archive for the ‘Facilitation’ Category

Power Up Your Agile Planning & Analysis

Friday, November 18th, 2011

I’m pleased to share my podcast with Jochen (Joe) Krebs*, Founder of Agile NYC. The podcast was recorded on October 11, 2011, just before my presentation to the Agile NYC group.

The presentation, entitled, Power Up Your Agile Planning and Analysis:

Deliver Value via Structured Conversations describes how product stakeholders partner to develop a shared understanding of the product needs. I discuss how the partners gain a focused yet holistic understanding of the highest-value requirements and plan the project so that the delivery team builds the right product, at the right time. Continue reading

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Collaboration Works: Ingredients for Successful Workshops

Wednesday, October 26th, 2011

I’m honored to share my podcast with Yaaqub (Yamo) Mohamed of The BACoach. We discuss ingredients for effective requirements workshops described in my first book, Requirements by Collaboration: Workshops for Defining Needs.

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Reflecting on My Personal Learning Journey

Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011


I’m pleased to share with you an “author cast,” a podcast interview of me by Yaaqub (Yamo) Mohamed of The BACoach.

Yamo’s interview got me thinking and reflecting on my own professional learning journey and dig into the two books I’ve written (so far ;-) ). Continue reading | 1 Comment

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Agile Requirements Exploration with Tester Collaboration

Thursday, July 14th, 2011

I’m thrilled to be collaborating with Janet Gregory, co-author with Lisa Crispin of Agile Testing, on a workshop entitled “Agile Requirements Exploration with Tester Collaboration” at Agile 2011 Conference and STARWEST.

I believe that there is a lot of cross-fertilization benefit to be gained when people with skills in different disciplines collaborate closely toward shared ends. This is very true for the disciplines of testing and business analysis. The tester mind-set is crucial for verifying requirements. The business analysis mind-set is crucial for validating requirements. Continue reading | 1 Comment

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This Week’s Business Analysis and Requirements Workshop: 2 Days of Learning in Las Vegas

Tuesday, June 7th, 2011

I was recently interviewed by SearchSoftwareQuality editor Yvette Francino about this week’s Business Analysis and Requirements Workshop at the Better Conference/Development Conference this week in Las Vegas, Nevada (6-7 June, 2011).

Yvette asked me to explain the logistics, if we would be emulating gathering requirements for a particular project and if the workshop be relevant regardless of domain area. Here are my answers: As conference chair, Continue reading | 1 Comment

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The Product Partnership: Using Structured Conversations to Deliver Value

Saturday, May 14th, 2011

In a prior blog post, you learned about the in-progress book Mary Gorman and I are writing. We are thrilled to have our workshop proposal for the Agile 2011 Conference accepted. The workshop will incorporates elements of our book. Here’s our YouTube video on The Product Partnership submission. Continue reading | 1 Comment

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Ways to Understanding Product Functionality in the Absence of Documentation

Tuesday, March 15th, 2011

Have you been in a situation where there’s no documentation, yet you’re expected to understand functionality?

Trial transactions and observing behavior is one answer. But understanding context is also important.

Sue Burk suggests creative solutions in her expert response.

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Agile Product Needs book: Sneak Peek

Wednesday, February 16th, 2011

Mary Gorman and I are in the midst of writing a book.  The title is still a WIP (work in process). A couple of contenders are “Agile Product Needs: <subtitle1:> ” and “The Agile Product Partnership: <subtitle2>”.  We’ll be looking for your help on settling on a compelling title – stay tuned, we can use your creative inspiration!

Our goal is to provide practical guidance on challenges agile teams face. Wrestling the “right” user stories out of the product backlog. Slicing user stories into “right-sized” chunks so they are ready for estimating and planning. Deciding on the next high-value product needs for delivery. Planning more than two weeks ahead (realizing you need a longer time horizon). Using acceptance criteria and examples to deepen shared understanding. Exploring product needs in a holistic way. … Continue reading | 3 Comments

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What Inquiring Minds Want to Know: 120 Brains, 30 Minutes, 13 Themes

Thursday, January 13th, 2011

What Tough Agile Analysis Questions Do Business Analysts Need Answered?

This is the question I posed to the participants in a facilitated workshop at the Building Business Capability Conference (BBC) 2010 this past fall. The BBC conference, held in the Washington, D.C. area, was the first official IIBA ® conference. It offered tracks for business analysis, business rules, and business process management.

Context for the “Tough Agile Analysis Questions” Workshop

As the facilitator, I had 30 minutes to “crowdsource” from an energetic, curious, and motivated group of 120 business analysts. Many analysts in attendance were new to agile practices. All of them cared deeply about the value of business analysis. They were eager to… Continue reading

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Presentation Skills for Technical Professionals

Wednesday, September 29th, 2010

“Oh drat”, you think.

“I’ve got to do a presentation!”

Nevertheless, you smile and ask, “Oh, sure—what’s the date?”

Presentation Skills for Technical Professionals to the rescue!

Out comes Naomi’s Karten’s splendid book. You open it, eager for your sit-down with your personal presentation skills coach.  You are easily captivated by Naomi’s clever style and practical guidance on presentations, and grateful for the online references and resources that supplement the text. Reading this book not only prepares you for your upcoming presentation; it also helps you get in the groove and enables you to gain confidence as you prepare. You actually enjoy the process!

I was flattered when… Continue reading

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