Agile Complexification Inverter

Here's an interesting study - where are people at there best (as measured from a Dr Who perspective) at the top or bottom of the stairs? Why Escalators Brings out the Best in People A curious connection between altitude and goodness By David A. Schroeder  | March 29, 2011  Mind Matters, Scientific American So this has me wondering if we could see the same results at the top of an elevator - I doubt it.  Therefore, I suggest you place your team room at the top of an escalator - to infuse the most cooperation within the team.

I was sitting with some colleagues at the pub the other night, talking about one of my favorite subjects - Apple computer's highly innovate nature.  One person reflected that the one thing that made the iPhone successful was the touch screen.  That other devices had used a touch screen, but had not gotten in quite right.  Other devices that were using touch screens were clunky to use. He had apparently used several different devices with touch interfaces.  A benefit of the company he works for that has a loner program (want to try their software on a mobile device - borrow it for a few weeks).  I chatted with the person that runs the program, they have all the new toys and every week its like Christmas morning opening new packages.  What a brilliant program. Yes, I'd have to agree that one of the keys to the iPhone's success is the new user experience it allows.  Along with the wonderful opportunity for people (mere babes) to use a computer with abso...

Information is Beautiful is taking a survey on the inner workings of the mind. What is Consciousness? Click the link "Make up your own Mind" to take the interactive survey.  One to join the fun, two to see how good a survey tool could be with interactive graphics. I'm revealing my inner truth.

I am in search of collaborative place - the context of innovation that is embodied in the space we choose to inhabit. Having noticed how some people decorate their cubie with personal artifacts and the boundary that the artificial wall creates, I'd like to "tear down that wall." I attempted to study the habits of people in transition from structured space to open space. I bought a time lapse camera with the intent of photographing the big picture patterns of movement. My vision was to mount the camera to a column in the space. Record the deconstruction of cubicles into the open space. Then watch the organization of Place, via the context of a Scrum work teams, within the space. The people vetoed the idea. Lack of trust is the motive. They were uncomfortable with the organization having photographic proof that they were talking with each other rather than pressing keys on their keyboard. While I understand the feelings of the people, the organization should ...

I think the Doctor would be at home in the lands beyond. "Pardon me," said Milo to the first man who happened by; "can you tell me where I am?" "To be sure," said Canby; "you're on the Island of Conclusions. Make yourself at home. You're apt to be here for some time." "But how did we get here?" asked Milo, who was still a bit puzzled by being there at all. "You jumped, of course," explained Canby. "That's the way most everyone gets here. It's really quite simple: every time you decide something without having a good reason, you jump to Conclusions whether you like it or not. It's such an easy trip to make that I've been here hundreds of times." The Phantom Tollbooth      by Norton Juster, illustrated by Jules Feiffer

Time Machine I'm trying to restore my Apple Time Machine - after a hard disk upgrade my time machine backup has choked on the extra large data set.  It gets quite complicated but in the end, the machine can not reconcile that the new data is just a continuation of the old data and it should just piece it all together in one continuous flow of information.  At last the machine breaks down.  It can not see the forest for the trees.  It has no big picture overview of the scene. This same day my father-in-law sends me this YouTube video of the "Human Camera" Beautiful Minds: Stephen Wiltshire  Watch the video and be awe struck at what a human mind can do. This is a power and skill we all have - but very few have ever nurtured this ability. Stephen can connect both the detail and the big picture and flow all that data into the information to recreate the image.  Many artist can do this same feat, they have practiced endless hours to master the skills. H...

Will you buy an iPad?  That was the question. 8 reasons to buy an iPad for your team room. Easy to carry to meeting (compared to laptop and power supply). Makes a person look smart compared to the person with the laptop, power supply, wired mouse, wired web cam that needs to get up and walk around the conference table to get a close-up shot of the white board. Apps that are designed to work instantly and quickly give the information you need without minutes of drill-down menu clicking and searching. Instant on (compared to opening a laptop that has its lid shut - because shutting the lid is a sign that you are present and paying attention to the meeting). Everybody else is doing it. Having fun is a goal for everyone (even your boss). Have a need - there is an App for that, 65000 of them. Facetime - video calls that just work. Want to connect remote Agile teams?  I suggest you buy an iPad 2 for each team location.  Use it as the video conference system - ...

Why is it so challenging for a company to get the Scrum Product Owner role right?  It is a great job.  Lots of power to envision a market an deliver the product that makes a difference in that space.  Plenty of feedback and opportunity to learn by guiding a truly Agile team toward achieving the goals. The responsibilities are few but require discipline and dedication to the vision of the product.  The key task is to prioritize (stack rank - not hi-low bucketing) the product backlog.  By doing this the product owner optimizes the return on investment for the project as a whole and within the enterprise ecosystem. Steve Jobs on innovation. "It comes from saying no to 1,000 things to make sure we don't get on the wrong track or try to do too much." -- BusinessWeek Online , Oct. 12, 2004 I was reminded this week of why the committee of product owners will not work. I was working with a Steering Committee.  [Aside:  Is that term an oxymoron or wha...