Benjamin Ugbene

Still running Scrum the old way? It’s time to upgrade. From smarter standups to automated retros, AI tools are transforming how teams work—faster notes, cleaner timelines, better Agile docs. This isn’t hype—it’s how top-performing teams stay ahead. Whether you’re planning sprints or coaching teams, this AI toolkit is your edge. No more juggling post-its and spreadsheets—just smart, efficient workflows. Because mastering agility now means mastering AI. Dive in: https://lnkd.in/dsamyG5k

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Which diagram should you actually use as a BA? It's a question I was asked recently... and it got me thinking. There are so many visual tools available... process maps, context diagrams, journey maps, ERDs, prototypes… the list goes on. The trick is: → You don’t need to be a master of every single one. → You just need to know what each is for, and when it makes sense to use it. ... and MOST importantly - the goal isn’t textbook perfection → it’s to create a picture of the work in a way stakeholders can understand. It’s about storytelling and collaboration, not perfect notation... Here’s how I think about it 👇 1️⃣ Core BA tools Process models, journey maps, context diagrams, use case diagrams. These are our bread and butter. 2️⃣ Shared tools ERDs, DFDs, state diagrams. BAs often co-create these with data or solution team members. 3️⃣ Specialist tools Sequence diagrams, wireframes. Not always BA-owned, but we’re often involved. That’s why I pulled this cheat sheet together (see carousel). Save it for later 🔖 Which one do you lean on the most in your projects? If you found this helpful, give me a follow Matthew Thomas Holliday and ♻️ reshare. If you wanna learn more on each of these, or want my templates - I go deeper in my community (link in bio). #businessanalyst #ba #agile

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Scrum vs Kanban • Which framework truly drives success? • Why does this debate still haunt teams years later? If you’ve ever faced constant delays or miscommunication, this might be why. The choice between Scrum and Kanban is more than just process - it shapes how your team thinks, adapts, and delivers. → Scrum: The Sprint Architect • Time-boxed sprints build rhythm and predictability. • Roles like Product Owner & Scrum Master create strong accountability. • Frequent ceremonies enable reflection and continuous improvement. • Best for projects with evolving but somewhat defined goals. → Kanban: The Flow Master • Continuous delivery without fixed iterations encourages flexibility. • Visual boards highlight bottlenecks instantly. • Limiting work in progress maximizes focus and throughput. • Ideal for ongoing maintenance or unpredictable work streams. Follow Carlos Shoji for more insights on project management

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𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝘄𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗜 𝗸𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗜 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝘆 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝘀 𝗤𝗔 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗿 . This is an unordered list but, I am sure if you pick any of it you can create a list of goals! 1️⃣ Skills - Learn mind mapping - Learn how to gauge risk and increase test coverage at different layers systematically - Learn the fundamentals of testing well and then don’t stop, keep going. Speak up in meetings and discussions (don’t be shy) - Ask those dumb questions, and always be curious - Learn to code and read lots of code - Learn to design efficient CI/CD pipelines - The test pyramid is also an indication of what you can learn about different layers of testing 2️⃣ Approach and attitude 🙂 - Be humble and grounded. Recognize that there is always room to grow Be a friend to someone new and help them grow along with you. - Find a mentor and learn from them on a set of topics. Then find another. - Don’t restrict yourself to one area (web, mobile, backend, data, performance, security, CI) - Mix things up! - Quality is everyone's responsibility but someone needs to champion it If you are not learning in an environment, either change yourself or change your environment. - Reading docs is your best friend 3️⃣ Habits ⌨️ - Build a note-taking system. It will compound you faster. - Schedule consistent and deliberate learning time - Maintain a summary and narrative of your work regularly - Build the habit of reading books and summarizing them - Listen to podcasts while doing life chores. Make your chores fun! 4️⃣ Growth 🌱 - Build, learn, and share in the open as much as possible - Develop a personal roadmap - Do you share your learning strategy or plan or even how you keep up with the latest trends? p.s: image is just for LinkedIn algorithm. Enjoying vacation :) -x-x- Learn and implement DSA from scratch for upcoming SDETs in 2025: https://lnkd.in/ggXcYU2s #japneetsachdeva

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Scrum and XP look similar on the surface, but they solve two very different problems! Scrum is all about process, roles, and collaboration to deliver value step by step. Extreme Programming (XP), on the other hand, dives deep into engineering practices like TDD, pair programming, and continuous integration. While Scrum works best with medium to large teams and defined goals, XP shines with smaller, tight-knit teams dealing with rapid changes and a need for high-quality code. Both can handle change, but XP pushes adaptability and technical excellence to the next level. So, if you’re choosing between them (or combining both), the real question is, do you want to optimize team collaboration or engineering excellence first? Which do you think is harder to get right in real-world teams, building strong collaboration (Scrum) or maintaining technical excellence (XP)? 🔗 Learn more about Scrum & XP here - https://lnkd.in/dn6hBdrM Agilemania Malaysia Scaled Agile (SAFe®) Training by Agilemania Naveen Kumar Singh Sumeet Madan Piyush Rahate Satyajit Gantayat Anil Malik #scrum #XP #scrummaster #extremeprogramming #agilemania #agile

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Exciting news! We have a new self-paced training course to help you learn Professional Scrum! In this blog, Dave West introduces the Professional Scrum Fundamentals course, explains why we created it and talks about the relevancy of Scrum after almost 30 years. Read more: https://ow.ly/rgyA50WwRhI #Scrum #ProfessionalScrumFundamentals #ProfessionalScrum #ScrumTraining #ScrumLearning

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Want to unlock the true power of Agile?   Think again.  You might be measuring its key metrics completely wrong. The secret to Agile success isn't just doing it, it's measuring it correctly.  Let's uncover the truth. → 10 Agile Metrics (and How You're Probably Getting Them Wrong): • Velocity: Don't just focus on the number of story points completed.   Analyze why velocity fluctuates.   Are there external factors?   Is the team consistently overloaded?   Understanding the why is crucial. • Sprint Burndown: A perfectly straight line isn't always good.   Sudden drops or consistent deviations need investigation.   Don't just see the graph; understand the story behind it. • Story Points: Are you using a consistent estimation technique?   Are story points accurately reflecting complexity and effort?  Inconsistent estimation renders this metric useless. • Cycle Time: Focus on reducing bottlenecks.  A high cycle time points to areas needing improvement.  Identify them and prioritize changes. • Lead Time: This shows how long it takes from request to delivery.   Reducing lead time improves customer satisfaction. Track it diligently to pin down slowdowns. • Team Capacity: Don't overestimate!  Account for holidays, training, and unexpected tasks. Accurate capacity planning is key to realistic sprint goals. • Defect Count:  High defect count isn't just about bugs.  It signals problems in the process, requiring process improvement.   Investigate the root cause, not just the symptoms. • Sprint Goal Success Rate: Missed sprint goals aren't failures.  Analyze why they were missed.   Adapt your processes and learn from setbacks. • Work In Progress (WIP):  Limit WIP to improve focus and reduce context switching.  High WIP often correlates with lower efficiency and increased errors. • Business Value Delivered: This is the ultimate measure.  Track the impact of your sprints on the business.   Did you deliver the value promised?  If not, why not? → The Solution:  Data-Driven Agile The key is moving beyond simple tracking to analytical understanding.   Use your data to improve processes, identify bottlenecks, and celebrate successes.   Don't just collect metrics; interpret them. For Agile Community link: Check comments Follow Shraddha Sahu for more insights

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The idea that Scrum Masters and Delivery Managers are interchangeable is one of the biggest myths in modern delivery. I've seen a few posts recently drawing a clean line between SM and DM framing them as separate, non-overlapping roles/ accountabilities. I think that’s an oversimplification. There's a strong case to be made that the SM is a derivative or subset of the broader DM role. A SM goes deep rather than broad. Primarily anchored in a single framework and centred on helping teams and organisations adopt it's principles, patterns and practices. A DM is expected to operate across frameworks & approaches. They may work with Scrum teams, Kanban teams, hybrids, or even more traditional project structures and they're often responsible for combining these into bespoke customised ways of working that suit teams, organisations and their constraints. It’s tempting to imagine the roles side by side as parallel tracks. But the reality is more of a nested relationship. The SM is a specialist stance, going deep into one framework. The DM is more of a generalist covering a wider methods, contexts, and outcomes. Most DMs could step into a SM role without much difficulty but the inverse is less straightforward. Moving from a narrow framework focus into a role that spans budgets, dependencies, risks, and multiple delivery models requires a broader toolkit than many SMs get exposed to. That’s why in some organisations SMs naturally evolve into DMs, the titles overlap or one gradually absorbs the other. If an organisation is heavily Scrum-focused, then a SM is a great fit, but as time marches on this does seem to be becoming less and less of the general population. In environments with multiple team types, tangled dependencies, or mixed delivery approaches a DM tends to be the more appropriate role. In practice, the best practitioners can flex between both stances depending on the task. The uncomfortable reality is as more companies move beyond and away from Scrum, the opportunities for pure SMs will become fewer and farther between. The role has been boxed in by years of poor SM performances and unhelpful connotations are attached to the title. Fair or not those perceptions hurt. DMs are positioned with a broader mandate. They flex across frameworks, manage risks and dependencies, and tie delivery back to business outcomes. Spanning multiple teams, methods, and business outcomes rather than being artificially constrained to a single framework.. That’s why I think it’s time to shift the thinking. Instead of clinging to the Scrum Master, we should see it for what it often is, a specialization. A valuable stance to learn from, but not the final destination for modern agile and delivery professionals. For Scrum Masters wondering what’s next? the Delivery Manager path is worth serious exploration. You'll broaden your impact, shed narrow labels, and step into a role that organisations will continue to need no matter the delivery mechanisms at play.

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Being a Scrum Master isn’t easy. 😩 Give a team too much advice, and they’ll start relying on the Scrum Master to make every decision. But don’t give enough, and the team’s growth will stall. Solve too many problems yourself, and the team may start expecting you to fix every issue. 🤔 🤮 I see Scrum Masters make mistakes constantly. But 4 are significantly more common than the rest: 1) Letting Work Spill Over into the Next Sprint ❌ 2) Running the Daily Scrum ❌ 3) Allowing the Team to Burn Out ❌ 4) Avoiding Difficult Conversations ❌ 💡 Want to learn how to fix these mistakes? Check the comments 👇

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“How do you actually lead a team to achieve as a Scrum Master?” I get this question a lot and here’s the truth: 🧭 It’s not about managing. It’s about enabling. As a Scrum Master, your power lies in removing blockers, creating clarity, and building an environment where teams thrive. Here’s how I approach it, backed by real experience 👇 ✅ Delivery Philosophy: Focus on value over velocity. Consistent, sustainable delivery beats short-term heroics. ➡️ Example: I introduced MVP slices in one team, cutting rework by 30% and improving stakeholder confidence. ✅ Building Trust & Safety: Start with transparency. Support risk-taking. Celebrate learning. ➡️ Example: I shared my own failure in a retro others followed. That shifted our entire team culture. ✅ Clarifying Roles: No assumptions; just alignment. ➡️ Example: A quick RACI exercise during team kickoff avoided months of overlap confusion. ✅ Team & Stakeholder Engagement: Keep goals visible, feedback flowing, and conversations frequent. ➡️ Example: Monthly demos focused on business outcomes not just features; boosted executive interest and buy-in. 🧠 My simple principle: Support the team. Serve the customer. Communicate clearly. 👉 How do you build trust and engagement in your teams? Let’s learn from each other. Drop your insights below 👇

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“We’re Agile here. We only do Scrum.” - Said the least agile team, company, or org… ever. Agility isn’t a framework. It’s not obedience. Agility is creativity, adaptability and ownership of outcomes and the choices of how to get there. #Agility #Leadership #WaysOfWorking #SystemsThinking #MindsetOverMethods

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✅ 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐃𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐚 𝐒𝐜𝐫𝐮𝐦 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬 𝐁𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞? As Scrum Masters, our role goes far beyond facilitating ceremonies—we exist to help teams thrive, deliver value consistently, and continuously improve. Productivity in Agile isn’t about working faster, but about working smarter, with clarity, flow, and focus. Here are some practical ways I enable teams to achieve this: ✅ 𝐅𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐨𝐠 𝐑𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 🔹 Ensure stories are small, clear, and testable. 🔹 Apply the INVEST criteria to improve story quality. 🔹 This reduces wasted time during Sprint execution. ✅ 𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐐𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐲 🔹 Act as a shield from organizational blockers. 🔹 Partner with management to address systemic challenges like dependency delays, unclear requirements, or environment issues. ✅ 𝐎𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐳𝐞 𝐅𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐨𝐟 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤 🔹 Encourage limiting Work In Progress (WIP). 🔹 Use Kanban boards to visualize workflow. 🔹 Promote swarming and pairing so tasks get finished, not just started. ✅ 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 🔹 Drive practices like automation, CI/CD, peer reviews, and a strong Definition of Done. 🔹 This prevents defects from piling up later. ✅ 𝐅𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 🔹 Retrospectives aren’t just meetings—they’re opportunities. 🔹 Support the team in choosing 1–2 actionable improvements each Sprint. 🔹 Ensure there’s accountability to follow through. ✅ 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲 & 𝐅𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 🔹 Help the team balance capacity with Sprint goals. 🔹 Educate stakeholders on the hidden cost of multitasking and context switching. ✅ 𝐅𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐚 𝐒𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 🔹 Teams innovate and grow only when they feel safe. 🔹 Encourage openness to raise blockers, experiment, and learn fast from failures. At the heart of it, productivity is about creating an environment where teams can focus, collaborate, and continuously improve without fear or distraction. ✅ Want more Scrum insights and practical techniques? 🔹 Join our WhatsApp group here: 👉 https://lnkd.in/d2CTUCnu ✅ Need 1:1 Scrum coaching, interview prep, or Agile guidance? 📞 Call me at 9137275692 ✅ If you’ve ever faced a situation where your team struggled with unclear goals or direction, how did you handle it? Share your experience in the comments—I’d love to learn from you! ✅ Follow Chandan Kumar for real-world Agile strategies, Scrum tips, and leadership lessons from the field

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It’s no secret that the quality of Scrum Masters in the market varies widely🧍‍♂️🕳️🧍‍♂️ Some are, unfortunately, hardly worth the salary you’re paying 🤷🏽‍♂️ But the good Scrum Masters? They’re worth their weight in gold 🏅 And here’s why you as an employer should prioritise them: • They focus on outcomes, not just running ceremonies 🤝🏾 • They influence across teams and leadership without “authority” 🙌🏾 • They surface and address organisational dysfunctions 😵‍💫 • They adapt frameworks to context, rather than applying them rigidly 🔄 • They improve both delivery performance and team culture 🎭 The impact of a good Scrum Master compounds… • Faster value delivery ✅ • Healthier teams ✅ • Reduced attrition ✅ The gap between average and excellent has never been clearer. So if you find a solid one, be decisive, put your best foot forward and don’t let them go 💪🏾 If you’re not getting the above from your current Scrum Master(s), take this as the sign that it’s not the role, but the individual that isn’t providing the right ROI 🙅🏽‍♂️ Do you agree with the above? Have you seen the impact of good scrum masters first hand? Let me know below!👇🏾 #Agile #Recruitment #Consultant #ScrumMaster #ContinuousImprovement #Delivery #DeliveryManagement

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