Johanna Rothman

Johanna Rothman, known as the “Pragmatic Manager,” provides frank advice for your tough problems. She helps leaders and teams see problems and resolve risks and manage their product development.

She was the agileconnection.com technical editor for six years. Johanna is the author of these books:

From Chaos to Successful Distributed Agile Teams: Collaborate to Deliver (with Mark Kilby)
Create Your Successful Agile Project: Collaborate, Measure, Estimate, Deliver
Manage Your Project Portfolio: Increase Your Capacity and Finish More Projects, 2nd edition
Agile and Lean Program Management: Scaling Collaboration Across the Organization
Project Portfolio Tips: Twelve Ideas for Focusing on the Work You Need to Start & Finish
Diving for Hidden Treasures: Finding the Value in Your Project Portfolio (with Jutta Eckstein)
Predicting the Unpredictable: Pragmatic Approaches to Estimating Project Schedule or Cost
Manage Your Job Search
Hiring Geeks That Fit
The 2008 Jolt Productivity award-winning Manage It! Your Guide to Modern, Pragmatic Project Management
Behind Closed Doors: Secrets of Great Management (with Esther Derby)

Read her blog and other articles on her site, jrothman.com. She also writes a personal blog on createadaptablelife.com.

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All Stories by Johanna Rothman

The Value of Taking Breaks

Many people think breaks are a waste of time; if you keep working, they reason, you'll get more done. But what is the quality of that work? And how do you feel at the end of the day? Breaks are beneficial to you and to your work. You can refresh yourself, gain a new perspective, and evaluate what you've done.

Make the Effort to Invest in Yourself

To keep relevant in an ever-changing industry, you need training. But many companies don't provide or reimburse for continuing education. That means you're responsible for your ongoing career development. Don't fret; you don't have to spend a lot. And the more you learn and practice, the more value you have.

Agile Does Not Equal Scrum: Know the Difference

Some people say “agile/Scrum,” as though they’re the same thing. They're not! Scrum is just one way to approach agile. Johanna Rothman defines each concept and also addresses kanban and Extreme Programming, two more approaches. Don't write off agile until you've explored different ways it could work for you.

Start the New Year with a Retrospective

This new year, instead of a resolution, consider a retrospective. Rather than just setting one large goal for yourself, you review what you've been doing, what's been working and what hasn't, what you want to accomplish, and what small steps you can take every day to reach your objective.

What Do You Believe?

Many people in the agile community believe their way of doing agile is the only right way. This is supported by confirmation bias, which lets us only see facts that support our beliefs. We deserve data-based approaches to determine what leads to the best outcomes. Can you look beyond your personal beliefs?

Making Time for Reflection

How often do you reflect on your career or life? It can be difficult to examine how you work and live to confirm that you are where you want to be. But using some of the same questions and techniques employed in agile retrospectives can help you evaluate your personal choices, too—and brainstorm ideas.

Self-Improvement, or How to Work Up to Your Potential

Have you ever been told you have “a lot of potential”? It's meant as a compliment, but it can be a little insulting if you feel you're already working up to your potential. Johanna Rothman shares the steps she took to gather data, assess her work, and discover whether she's working up to her full potential.

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