Short-form insights you can read in under 5 minutes.
Today is about heavily leaning into accepting myself for who I am and getting some of the important but not urgent stuff off my work and life todo list. Sometimes it’s good to size the ambition of a day into a me shaped receptacle.
I am excited to share that the US and UK governments have issued 'The Atlantic Declaration', committing to a Joint Clean Energy Supply Chain Action Plan. We will work together to enhance energy security and affordability while engaging with the private sector. Although no direct investments are promised, the focus on collaboration and public-private consultations is a significant step towards a sustainable future.
It’s notable First Solar made public the labor abuse hidden in their supply chain and is putting in measures to try to avoid it in future. Whatever about intentions, we need to acknowledge and reward ethical actions.
It’s notable First Solar made public the labor abuse hidden in their supply chain and is putting in measures to try to avoid it in future. Whatever about intentions, we need to acknowledge and reward ethical actions.
Reflecting on how important it is to start a user story discussion with the output of the work and why that is valuable to the user. Skipping to how details is simply chunking traditional specification into small bites. It feels efficient but skips past the creative problem solving that saves time and money in an agile process.
In lieu of my own writing time this week, I’m focusing on co-authoring and providing writing support for colleagues. In my mind, thought leader is best conceived as a collective noun.
As much as the story template Mike Cohn taught me 20 years ago can feel repetitive, the reminder to frame stories from a specific users intent and need is genuinely beautiful.
As a < type of user >, I want < some goal > so that < some reason >.
Just put sufficient thought into each blank. Which user persona? What is the actual thing they need/want to do? What value/joy does that create for them? Once you have those answers, you don’t literally have to write it out in the template. But do write it out.
Story writing, grooming, mapping 30 min each day with the team takes me about an hour of prep and an hour of followup each day. So much more sustainable than doing a large planning session each iteration.
Here’s why we should master software delivery practices. The best way to address stakeholder concerns is to deliver – dive into teamwork, perform practices as habit, and use broad and deep experience to adapt. We need to run faster than people expect without stumbling or running out of breadth. We need to avoid flailing about to signify we are working hard. This way we stand the best chance at addressing concerns, maintaining quality, preserving team culture, and creating an outcome.
That a human system challenge you’re facing is a solved problem gives you a scenario, some tools and a first step. It doesn’t make navigating the challenge easy or success likely. Such is life and the limitations of thought leadership.
When facing project challenges, I reflect on agile principles and how they inform which practices to use to achieve necessary outcomes. With that, I try not to get lost in activities I’m being asked to do and rather do what I need to do while finding ways to better communicate.
In a product role, restate the business outcome in conversations over technical decisions. Give the engineers context even if it seems obvious. Rather than, “What is the best engineering approach?” “What is the best engineering approach given the potential customer has invested time getting to this point and we risk losing them if they get frustrated or blocked? If we lose them at this point they may never come back.”