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People and Teams Stories
Leader asking an employee a question Superior Leaders Ask the Tough Questions

Inspiring quotes can be motivating, but there's more to good leadership. New leaders may feel compelled to find clever and memorable things to say, when in reality, they should probably focus less on what they’re saying and more on what they’re hearing. The best leaders ask good questions and listen to the answers.

Payson Hall's picture
Payson Hall
Team member coaching her senior manager in agile practices Coaching Senior Management to Be Agile

Embracing an agile mindset isn’t always easy, and it can be especially difficult for senior managers who spent most of their careers working in more traditional development methodologies. By trying to speak the same language and demonstrating successful self-organization, teams can help senior management become agile.

Owen Gotimer's picture
Owen Gotimer
Person with his feet up in a hammock Your Vacation Time Should Be Your Vacation Time

Many people can’t take all the vacation time they’re entitled to. Some take it, but they're so constantly in contact that they might as well be in the office. Taking time off reduces stress, improves focus, and even increases productivity once you're back at work, so even if you can't travel, take your vacation time.

Naomi Karten's picture
Naomi Karten
Person's hand on a folder with the word "empower" on it, containing evaluations Use Self-Evaluation to Stay on the Right Career Track

Employer evaluations measure your performance against expected objectives, evaluate you against other employees, and aim to keep you relevant in your company. But it’s also a good idea to perform a self-examination in relationship to your place of employment, to ensure you stay attractive to potential future employers.

Richard Estra's picture
Richard Estra
People raising their hands at a conference How to Make the Most of Your Conference Experience

You researched the conference you want to attend and gained approval to go—now what? These tips will ensure you make the most of your conference experience, from planning who and what you want to see while you're there, to starting to network ahead of time, to making sure you bring back the most valuable information.

Allison Scholz's picture
Allison Scholz
ScrumMaster facilitating communication between an agile team and stakeholders Understanding the ScrumMaster's Role in Team Communication

Some agile teams believe the ScrumMaster is the sole point of communication between them and the product owner, so the team can abdicate any responsibility to communicate with stakeholders. That couldn't be more wrong. It's actually the ScrumMaster's job to enable communication and coach or guide the team to solutions.

Alan Crouch's picture
Alan Crouch
Four quadrants of citrus fruit Effectively Measuring Agile Leadership

Culture drives performance, and agile leaders set a team's culture, so leaders should be measured at how effectively they’re doing just that. The challenge is, what might that look like? Here’s an idea for a four-quadrant measurement approach for leaders' organizational and personal effectiveness in agile contexts.

Bob Galen's picture
Bob Galen
Evolution of light bulbs Making DevOps Evolution Happen

It takes effort to evolve an organization’s culture, processes, and technology to optimize performance for a DevOps environment, and it all comes down to the people. Large-scale mobilization requires a focus on people at all levels, empowering them to discover and make the changes that will help them most. Here's how.

Helen Beal's picture
Helen Beal