When you start using Scrum, interesting things start happening in your brain. Scrum exposes a lot of problems, and you brain tries to make you feel better by automatically sweeping them under the carpet. Unfortunately this also means that improvements achieved will be limited and actually it will make you feel worse rather than better. This talk will shows you how to handle this basic human issues that occurs when you start working on changing and improving. After the talk you will have new skills that you can apply to make progress on any problem you care about.

1. Cedur AB
proudly presents
Is Scrum incompatible with your
brain?
Henrik Berglund, Scrum/Agile coach and PST for Scrum.org
Twitter: @henrikber

2. 45 minute version
All slides in this deck
© 2012 Cedur AB

8. 2011…
The most advanced form of life so far…

9. The Scrum Developer

10. Main Scrum Tool

11. 100 000+ years
v1.0

12. Scrum/Brain compability service pack
Install at your own risk.
Although designed to fix your agile process, may
also cause major life changes in general
Once installed, uninstall is not possible.

13. Who here is using Scrum?
Did Scrum solve all your problems?

14. Scrum is like your mother-in-law
Unworthy…
Here are some
character flaws you
should fix....
Thank you! Come
live with us 24-7!
Used with permission from Scrum.org, source: PSM training material, © ADM 1983-2011 All Rights Reserved

15. What happens when problems are exposed?
Fix problem
Scrum
Responsibility
Problem Process
Keep problem
Independent of part of world,
age, culture, gender, education, …

16. What would you like to change at
work?

17. Why has this not yet changed?

18. The Responsibility Process TM
Christopher Avery & Bill McCarley
“Owning your ability
RESPONSIBILITY to create, choose
and attract”
OBLIGATION
SHAME
JUSTIFY
LAY BLAME

19. The how-to model
Three keys to responsibility
1. Intention
2. Awareness
3. Confront

20. Key one: intention
I will take responsibility for…
My own well-being
My family
The working relations on this team
World peace…

21. Key two: awareness
Ooops, seems like I’m
<blaming, justifying, …>
Look for:
Feelings: Anger, upsets, …
Language: I can’t, I must, I should, that’s just the way it is, …

22. Key three: confront
What can I do
How did I
about this?
What create this?
do I want?
What can I learn
from this?

23. Helping others to responsibility
I can see that
you are justifying
#%&!@!

24. Can only be self applied!
Dissapointingly, you can’t tell others to
change
But on the other hand you don’t need
to!
Problems will be fixed anyway!

25. What is your mindset?
Responsibility
What do I want? What
can I do?
Obligation
(should, have to, must…)
Shame
(blame yourself)
Justify
(blame circumstances)
Lay blame
(blame someone else)

26. What do you think?
Could this responsibility
stuff also apply to
me?

27. I don’t care to fix any problems
I get payed
anyway

28. Fixing problems, what’s in it for you?
Thousands of knowledge
worker diary entries reviewed
- What happened?
- Good day/bad day?
Source: Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer, Harvard
Business Review: “What Really Motivates Workers,
http://hbr.org/2010/01/the-hbr-list-breakthrough-ideas-for-
2010/ar/1

29. What people dislike
#1 reason for bad days at work:
Encountering roadblocks to
meaningful accomplishment

30. What people enjoy
75% of all good days at work
were linked to progress
and overcoming obstacles

31. Thus, to enjoy work more
Download poster
and hang it at your workplace:
www.cedur.se/downloads/rpm.pdf

32. www.christopheravery.com
The Responsibility ProcessTM
20+ years of focus on ”just” this…

33. Pair up, what did you find interesting
or useful?
Problem
fix
keep
TM
The Responsibility Process
RESPONSIBILITY
OBLIGATION
SHAME
JUSTIFY
LAY BLAME

34. PART II
If what you want involves others
What can you do?

35. The illusion of control
Random ticket numbers Picked their own ticket numbers
4x more expensive
Price requested
Source: Langer, Ellen J. (1975), "The Illusion of Control", Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 32 (2): 311–328

36. People do not like other people’s
ideas. They like their own ideas
...4 times as much

37. Spread of agile knowledge on an
average team
Expert
Gap is too wide, very few
can contribute to
discussions
Persons
Clueless

38. Required for buy in and sustainable
change
Common Everyone can
pool of ideas contribute to
discussion!
teams Buy in,
Scrum change Sustainable change
agile
XP Continous improvements
lean

39. Arguments and persuasion
Blah Blah Blah
… and further proof that
agile is awesome…
Now, get started!

40. What people need to change
Laggards:
Innovators: New things
Extreme pressure,
Fool proof
2%
Early adopters: Reasons
16% 14%
34% 34%
Early majority: Success
Late majority:
Safety
Some pressure

41. Have patience
Take it step by step
Don’t take resistance personal

42. Why do people not cooperate?
What’s in it
for me?
Do you know?

43. Innovators
Laggards 2%
Early adopters
People do not like other people’s ideas
16% 14%
34% 34%
Early
Late
majority
majority
What’s in it
for me?

44. Homework…
Put a card like this in
your pocket.
Start with ”lay blame”
- Got off it! (10p)
• It got out! (1p)
Source: Christopher Avery

45. Thank you
I offer life time support on this presentation. If
you have questions, just contact me!
henrik@cedur.se
+46 709 40 08 64
Twitter: @henrikber
www.cedur.se/agile-blog