Helping IT teams and their managers deliver great software solutions
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How three forks on a hand-drawn chart helped a team improve
After visualising the workflow of a recent clientās software development process, and showing where the work was, the team realised there was a queue of tasks that had been developed and were waiting to be validated (ātestedā). The team decided to move from a āI just do my taskā approach to a āwhole teamā approach…
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Helping overcome impediments between Managers and Agile Teams
Agile teams often experience difficulties when they have to deal with problems that occur outside the team and may require management involvement to resolve. Iāve seen several Agile teams lose motivation when they question whether managers are really committed to helping the team. Often the team struggle to be open with the manager about the…
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Using a Case Study to learn the Mutual Learning Model
I’m currently focussed on improving my own skills around the Mutual Learning model (‘model II’ from Argyris & Schon’s Theory of Action). In order to do this, I’ve been using a Left Hand Right Hand Case Study approach, one of the key learning tools. In the interest of being open and sharing my experience with…
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Can Agile overcome Organisational Defences to achieve Double Loop Learning?
Agile approaches are sometimes focussed on helping organisations experience transformational change. Many Agile adoptions have failed to achieve long-term change, especially outside core teams, where the problems are non-routine and potentially embarrassing or threatening. Chris Argyris has developed a theory that provides a possible explanation of why Agile adoption has failed to bring about these…
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Steve Allder: Systems Thinking in Health Services
Seddon introduces Steve by saying heās done Systems Thinking without Vanguard. The only difference between having Vanguard consultants, versus doing itself, is that it may take longer and you may make more mistakes, but Vanguardās purpose is to change management thinking, so they are happy for others to use their method. Steve Allder is a…
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Systems Thinking in Local Authorities
[Post-lunch dip was strong, so this sessionās notes are not as comprehensive] Phil Badley, Stockport Interesting to hear Phil talk about his own realisation that his area, HR, was full of the same errors that heād seen in other areas of the business. Iād like to find out more about what it was that helped…
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Rob Brown: Systems Thinking in a Complex Organisation
Rob Brown from Aviva is up next. They started in 2008 with Barry Wrighton from Vanguard (also involved with BNP Paribas Fortis). Heās currently the Lead for Systems Thinking but looks forward to the day when his role is obsolete. Some of Robās learning are that Senior Management engagement is crucial. They have gone at…
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Benny Devos: Systems Thinking in Financial Services
Benny works in āindustrialised credit operationsā in BNP Paribas Fortis in Belgium (mortgage and consumer loans and insurance, across the value chain including rate revisions, partial re-imbursement, credit recovery). The biggest challenge is management, the workforce like Systems Thinking. Benny Devos talks about how they started with McKinsey working on āprocess improvementā. They used a…
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Owen Buckwell: Systems Thinking in Housing Services
Owen Buckwell is describing the award-winning work as Head of Housing at Portsmouth Council. Here are a selection of key points Things they used to pay attention to now take care of themselves. For example there is no more training events for morale. We donāt manage sickness, but sickness leave has gone down. 65% of…
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John Seddon: Starting ‘change’ by ‘studying’ isn’t sexy but it’s right!
John Seddon starts the Vanguard āSystems Thinking: The Leadersā Summitā: āItās not very sexy to say weāll start change by studying. Managers like to do something, letās start and do our āprograms of changeā. āLetās studyā is also rude because it implies we donāt know whatās going on. Deming used to say managers knew everything…