Many organizations use teams spread worldwide to develop valuable business applications. These organizations expect the teams to work as one harmonious unit without missing a beat—or should we say, a story point. A few organizations do it well; many not so well. Betsy Kauffman and Oscar Rodriquez share their experiences in working with globally distributed teams, discussing team models implemented in many organizations. They discuss how to transition from a model that may not be optimal (developers onshore and testing offshore) to a model where teams work together to deliver high quality working software regardless of their location. Along the way, explore “non-negotiables” and sustainable software engineering practices, i.e., DevOps and managing/maintaining solid team health, needed for building strong teams. Leave with a set of guiding principles you can implement day one that encompass agile leadership qualities, common sprint cadences, and “rules” to build strong successful teams.

1. 6/2/2015
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Building Successful Agile Teams in a
Global Environment
Betsy Kauffman and Oscar Rodriquez
∗ What does a strong agile team look like?
∗ Team models-the good, the bad, and the ugly
∗ Non-Negotiables
∗ Supporting teams for sustainability
∗ Open Discussion
2
Journey

2. 6/2/2015
2
Betsy Kauffman
ICP-ACC, PSM, CSM, SPC, PMP
Process Agile Coach
Agile Coach, Trainer, Release Train
Engineer, and Scrum Master at
multiple Fortune 500 companies.
Background in project and program
management with experience in the
Financial, Retail and Healthcare
sectors with teams based in the US,
India, and Mexico.
Oscar Rodriquez
CSDP, CSM, SA, SPC
Technical Agile Coach
Previously moved through the roles
of architect, consultant, manager,
trainer, and coach.
Worked in various domains such as
manufacturing, enterprise consulting,
billing, healthcare, and finance with
teams across the U.S. and in Mexico,
India, and Switzerland.
3
“Reality” of Teams Today
4
What does a strong agile team look like?

3. 6/2/2015
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“Textbook Team”
5
What does a strong agile team look like?
6
What does a strong agile team look like?
Developer
Development
Team
Developer
UX
Analyst
QA
Test Engineer
Developer
Regardless of Location
• Typical development team size
is 6-9 cross-functional
individuals working together to:
• Iteratively deliver potentially
shippable products in the form
of working software by:
• Adopting critical practices, as
appropriate to the team, e.g.
Test Driven Development,
Continuous Re-factoring, Simple
Design
Scrum Master
Product
Management

4. 6/2/2015
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7
Team Models-The Ugly
Management On Shore/Development Team Offshore
QA QA
Test
Team
Dev
Team
Product
Management
UX
8
Team Models- The Bad
Blended (Split Roles in Different Locations)
QA QA
QA
QA
Dev
Team
Test
Team
Test
Team
Product
Management
Product
Management
Product
Management

5. 6/2/2015
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9
Team Models- The Good
Co-Located Teams in all Locations
Dev
Team
Product
Managemen
t
Dev
Team
Dev
Team
Dev
Team
10
Non-Negotiables for a Strong Agile Team
Guiding
Principles
Working
Software
Definition of
Done
Quality over
Quantity
Leadership
Protecting
the Team
Servant
Leadership
Trust the
Team
Cadence
Ceremonies
and Practices
Collaboration
Team
Sustainable
Pace
Work/Life
Balance
Fun at Work

6. 6/2/2015
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11
Understand Your Realities
∗ Team Health
∗ Cut Out the Bad Apples
∗ Meaningful Reflection and
Action
∗ Take Your Victories & Lick Your
Wounds
∗ Work within your corporate
realities
∗ Team Efficiency
∗ DevOps
∗ Software Engineering
Practices
∗ Consistency Parades
∗ Coding Standards
∗ Test Automation
∗ Philosophies
12
Supporting Teams for Sustainability

7. 6/2/2015
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13
Questions/Comments?
Agile Pi takes an “ALL IN” approach by coaching and training
clients on both process and technology in order to build a
sustainable agile organization.