AgileMidwest2018-Grosman-LongDistranceRelationship

1. Long Distance Relationships
Teambuilding when your Agile team is not “all there”
ANDY GROSMAN, PMP, SA, CSM
Andy.grosman@gmail.com
TWITTER: @ANDYISAGILE
Linkedin: Andy Grosman
August 30, 2018

2. Exercise: What are the biggest
challenges you experience with
Remote teams
(5 minutes)

3. My Background
Training Insurance

4. The first project was an Agile Utopia

5. But…the next project was

6. X
X
X
XX
X
X

7. Co-location is getting less common…
•72% said that some of their team works
remotely.
•65% of remote employees have not
been through a team building exercise
•38% of teams were far located in
different countries
•28% said all their entire team worked in
the same office.

8. Yeah, but….

9. There is hope….with a few exceptions

10. As a remote team - Sometimes you feel like this…

11. Exercise 7 minutes
 At your tables – take a blank stick figure and ask the person
next to you to tell you about three things that are important
to them. Family, Hobbies, etc…
 Then change and have the other person ask you questions
 Use the crayons to add details and even a background
 Doesn’t have to be a masterpiece
Be prepared to share….

12. 4 Principles
1.Set Expectations
2.Get Personal
3.Master Technology (including Video)
4.Make it fun

13. Assumptions are the Termites of Relationships

14. Team Charter/Working Agreement
• How will we work together?
• Why are we doing this?
• How do we deal with challenges?

15. Solving challenges that haven’t happened
Exercise (5 minutes)
At your tables – talk about what should be in a
remote team agreement. Pick a spokesman

16. Getting Personal

17. Icebreakers - start the conversation
4 stages of team building - different
Ask new team members to send 3 photos of what is important to them
Going to Groan
Games - 2 truths and one lie
Game: Take a picture of something on your desk
virtualicebreakers.com
Require new team members to read Charter and Standard Operating Procedure to help understand team culture

18. 2 Truths – one Lie (No Dare)
Team members send
through instant message –
two things that are true and
one that are untrue
On a conference call or
through a Home Base. Other
team members need to
determine which one is the
lie
Usually you will get follow-
up questions – i.e. why did
you go bungee jumping over
skydiving

19. New Team Members
Have them send 3
pictures that are
important to them
Most people will pick
family, hobbies, etc….
Expect follow-up
questions
Three Pictures

20. Dream Vacation
Team members send through Instant Message to the
organizer – their best vacation that they went on.
Teams get to match

21. Virtual office Tour
The ideas are there…. Just do it

22. Master Technology and Video

23. Actual Virtual Offices with multiple rooms

24. Embrace Video!!!! – use the tools you are given

25. Have a Homebase or What happened to MySpace?

26. Home base

27. Exercise
•Exercise (5 minutes)
Brainstorm with your teams –
items that you can put on your
home base

28. Make it Fun

29. Celebrate and Build a Reservoir of Trust

30. You are not just an email – you are not just a voice and
neither is your team

31. Putting it all together

33. Checklist for Success

34. Contact
Andy.grosman@gmail.com
Twitter: @Andyisagile
Linkedin: Andy Grosman

35. Next Steps
•QUESTIONS?
•COMPLETE PLAN
•DETERMINE WHAT THAT YOU WILL
IMPLEMENT WITH YOUR TEAM –
EXPERIMENT – IT MAY JUST WORK