What do football or a submarine command have to do with agile success? At first, you might say, "Nothing." But football coaches, submarine captains, and their teams all have to establish a clear vision, analyze and prepare, and manage risks and adapt. Metaphors from other fields can motivate agile teams.

Sometimes, an employee's ability just falls short of what your team needs. Talking to an employee about his performance can be uncomfortable, but it doesn't need to be. You need to make sure they know what’s expected of them, what kind of improvements you’re seeking, and how you’ll gauge their improvements.

Automation projects often start by tackling the technical issues, but Linda Hayes says a specific data environment should be established first. If you can’t control, define, and predict your data, you won’t have the repeatability that makes test automation practical—but it makes sense for manual testing, too.