Recently, we stumbled upon a 2006 white paper by Ken Schwaber, co-creator of Scrum, outlining 15 reasons why Scrum can be hard and disruptive. The goal? To see if these principles still hold water in today’s fast-paced development environment.
In the first episode, Todd and Ryan delve into the foundational concept that Scrum is a framework for iterative and incremental development. This framework thrives on cross-functional, self-managing teams. These teams are about having the right mix of skills and the ability to make real-time decisions. Ryan beautifully illustrates this with a personal anecdote from coaching youth football, where players, despite their young age, are empowered to adapt and make decisions on the field.
A core takeaway from this episode is the emphasis on lean thinking and empirical process control. Iterative development means working in short cycles or sprints, continuously delivering small, valuable product increments. This ensures that teams are always moving forward, making adjustments based on frequent inspections and feedback.
What’s fascinating is how these ideas from 2006 remain relevant today. The Scrum framework’s reliance on transparency, inspection, and adaptation allows teams to align closely with customer needs and market changes. As Todd and Ryan highlight, every Scrum event and artifact is an opportunity to inspect and adapt, ensuring the team is always improving.
It’s refreshing to see that Scrum’s core principles still resonate in a world where methodologies come and go. This series promises to be a valuable journey through Ken Schwaber’s timeless insights, reaffirming that while Scrum may be challenging, its structured approach to iterative and incremental development remains a powerful tool for modern teams.
Stay tuned as Todd and Ryan continue to explore the remaining 14 points from Schwaber’s white paper. If you’re navigating the complexities of Scrum in your organization, this series is a must-watch. See you next time.
⏩ Join Ryan and Todd for a Scrum.org course: https://buytickets.at/agileforhumansllc
Check out their books:
📖 “Unlocking Business Agility with Evidence-Based Management: Satisfy Customers and Improve Organizational Effectiveness” on Amazon — https://amzn.to/4690qJy
📖 “Fixing Your Scrum: Practical Solutions to Common Scrum Problems” on Amazon — https://amzn.to/46dAQTC