Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast: Agile storytelling from the trenches Podcast Por Vasco Duarte Agile Coach Certified Scrum Master Certified Product Owner arte de portada

Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast: Agile storytelling from the trenches

Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast: Agile storytelling from the trenches

De: Vasco Duarte Agile Coach Certified Scrum Master Certified Product Owner
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Every week day, Certified Scrum Master, Agile Coach and Business Consultant Vasco Duarte interviews Scrum Masters and Agile Coaches from all over the world to get you actionable advice, new tips and tricks, improve your craft as a Scrum Master with daily doses of inspiring conversations with Scrum Masters from the all over the world. Stay tuned for BONUS episodes when we interview Agile gurus and other thought leaders in the business space to bring you the Agile Business perspective you need to succeed as a Scrum Master. Some of the topics we discuss include: Agile Business, Agile Strategy, Retrospectives, Team motivation, Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, Backlog Refinement, Scaling Scrum, Lean Startup, Test Driven Development (TDD), Behavior Driven Development (BDD), Paper Prototyping, QA in Scrum, the role of agile managers, servant leadership, agile coaching, and more!(c) Oikosofy Oü Política y Gobierno
Episodios
  • CTO Series: Scaling Engineering Teams and Aligning Tech with Business Goals With Toni Sallanmaa

    CTO Series: Scaling Engineering Teams and Aligning Tech with Business Goals With Toni Sallanmaa
    Sep 6 2025
    CTO Series: Toni Sallanmaa on Scaling Engineering Teams and Aligning Tech with Business Goals In this BONUS episode, we explore the journey of scaling technology teams and maintaining alignment between engineering and business objectives with Toni Sallanmaa, CTO at Funidata. Toni shares invaluable insights from leading the development of Sisu, a cutting-edge student information system serving over 100,000 Finnish university users, and discusses practical strategies for growing engineering organizations while preserving company culture. The Genesis of Leadership in Technology "I understood what I was really responsible for. I'm interested in the business we are running—the business adds meaning to the work." Toni's approach to technology leadership was fundamentally shaped by a pivotal moment early in his career when he first gained influence over system development and technology choices. After working with large-scale systems for 20 years, this moment of responsibility revelation transformed his perspective from purely technical to business-focused. He emphasizes that infinite curiosity drives success in tech businesses, and understanding the business context gives meaningful purpose to technical work. Bridging the Gap Between Tech and Product "Don't separate Tech from Product. We established a common language between product and technology people." One of Toni's most significant insights centers on eliminating the traditional divide between technology and product teams. As Funidata grew from a small startup to a 70-person organization, the challenges of maintaining alignment became apparent. Their solution involved several key practices: Teaching developers the language of the product domain Banning confusing technical terms that create communication barriers Workshopping product language to ensure clarity Keeping entity names deliberately vague until true understanding emerges This approach draws heavily from Domain Driven Design principles, creating a unified vocabulary that enables seamless collaboration. Collaborative Planning and Transparency "We use transparency as a collaboration technique. Every team sees what's being proposed as a goal for the next quarter." Funidata implements a unique "marketplace of goals" approach during their quarterly big room planning sessions. Rather than using scaled agile frameworks, they focus on transparency and collaborative goal-setting. Teams present their high-level quarterly plans to each other, creating visibility across the organization. Product owners are embedded within teams, keeping communication distances short and ensuring alignment between technical execution and business objectives. Future-Forward Roadmapping "We talk about the higher level ideas regularly, but let them bubble up from the community. We hold internal hackathons." Toni's approach to roadmapping balances strategic vision with grassroots innovation. They maintain an internal technology roadmap that addresses emerging trends like AI, while allowing ideas to organically emerge from the engineering community. Internal hackathons serve as catalysts for innovation, providing structured opportunities for teams to explore new technologies and approaches that might inform future roadmap decisions. Scaling Challenges and Cultural Preservation "The biggest challenge is not technology, it was the rapid scaling of technology teams. When you scale up, keep the culture in mind." The most significant challenge Toni faced wasn't technical but organizational—rapidly scaling teams while preserving company culture. Growing from 10 to 50 people required evolving processes, from establishing internal forums for architectural discussions to implementing continuous integration flows. The key was identifying pain points proactively and maintaining open discussions with team members throughout the scaling process. Strengthening company culture became essential to successful growth. AI's Impact on Software Development "Productivity is on the rise. We see opportunities like generating test data, but we have strict requirements for cybersecurity, which puts pressure on code quality." Toni views AI's impact on software development with cautious optimism. While productivity gains are evident, particularly in areas like test data generation, the stringent cybersecurity requirements in their domain mean that AI hasn't yet significantly improved code quality where it matters most. The technology shows promise, but implementation must be carefully considered within the context of security and quality requirements. Measuring Engineering Success "We use DORA and SPACE framework. We measure how much of our work is KTLO (Keep The Lights On) and how much is elective development." Funidata employs both DORA and SPACE frameworks to measure engineering organization success. From SPACE, they particularly focus on measuring software team wellbeing, while also tracking the balance between "...
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    41 m
  • The Visionary vs The Micromanager - Two Product Owner Extremes | Mariano

    The Visionary vs The Micromanager - Two Product Owner Extremes | Mariano
    Sep 5 2025
    Mariano Gontchar: The Micromanagement Trap—When PO’s Good Intentions Harm Agile Team Performance

    Read the full Show Notes and search through the world's largest audio library on Agile and Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes.

    The Great Product Owner: The Visionary Leader

    During an agile transformation project modernizing a build system with multiple stakeholders, Mariano worked with an exceptional Product Owner who demonstrated the power of clear vision and well-defined roadmaps. This visionary Product Owner successfully navigated complex stakeholder relationships by maintaining focus on the product vision while providing clear direction through structured roadmap planning, enabling the team to deliver meaningful results in a challenging environment.

    The Bad Product Owner: The Task-Manager Micromanager

    Mariano encountered a well-intentioned Product Owner who fell into the task-manager anti-pattern, becoming overly detail-oriented and controlling. This Product Owner provided extremely detailed story descriptions and even specified who should do what tasks instead of explaining why work was needed. This approach turned the team into mere task-handlers with no space to contribute their expertise, ultimately reducing both engagement and effectiveness despite the Product Owner's good intentions.

    Self-reflection Question: Are you empowering your team to contribute their expertise, or are you inadvertently turning them into task-handlers through over-specification?

    [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends]

    🔥In the ruthless world of fintech, success isn’t just about innovation—it’s about coaching!🔥

    Angela thought she was just there to coach a team. But now, she’s caught in the middle of a corporate espionage drama that could make or break the future of digital banking. Can she help the team regain their mojo and outwit their rivals, or will the competition crush their ambitions? As alliances shift and the pressure builds, one thing becomes clear: this isn’t just about the product—it’s about the people.

    🚨 Will Angela’s coaching be enough? Find out in Shift: From Product to People—the gripping story of high-stakes innovation and corporate intrigue.

    Buy Now on Amazon

    [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends]

    About Mariano Gontchar

    Mariano is a Madrid-based Scrum Master with a unique multi-perspective journey through Agile roles. Having evolved from developer to Product Owner, Project Manager, and now Scrum Master, he brings comprehensive insights to team facilitation and backlog management. Mariano specializes in practical Agile adoption strategies that work in real-world environments.

    You can link with Mariano Gontchar on LinkedIn.
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    15 m
  • Fear-Free Teams—Creating Psychological Safety for High Performance | Mariano Gontcher

    Fear-Free Teams—Creating Psychological Safety for High Performance | Mariano Gontcher
    Sep 4 2025
    Mariano Gontchar: Fear-Free Teams—Creating Psychological Safety for High Performance

    Read the full Show Notes and search through the world's largest audio library on Agile and Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes.

    Mariano's definition of Scrum Master success has evolved dramatically from his early days of focusing on "deliver on time and budget" to a more sophisticated understanding centered on team independence and psychological safety. Today, he measures success by whether teams can self-manage, communicate effectively with stakeholders, and operate without fear of criticism. This shift represents a fundamental change from output-focused metrics to outcome-focused team health indicators that create sustainable high performance.

    Self-reflection Question: How has your definition of success evolved in your current role, and what would change if you focused on team independence rather than traditional delivery metrics?

    Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: Frustration-Based Retrospective

    Mariano's retrospective approach focuses on asking team members about their biggest frustrations from the last sprint. This format helps team members realize their frustrations aren't unique and creates psychological safety for sharing challenges. The key is always asking the team to propose solutions themselves rather than imposing fixes, making retrospectives about genuine continuous improvement rather than just complaining sessions.

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    🔥In the ruthless world of fintech, success isn’t just about innovation—it’s about coaching!🔥

    Angela thought she was just there to coach a team. But now, she’s caught in the middle of a corporate espionage drama that could make or break the future of digital banking. Can she help the team regain their mojo and outwit their rivals, or will the competition crush their ambitions? As alliances shift and the pressure builds, one thing becomes clear: this isn’t just about the product—it’s about the people.

    🚨 Will Angela’s coaching be enough? Find out in Shift: From Product to People—the gripping story of high-stakes innovation and corporate intrigue.

    Buy Now on Amazon

    [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends]

    About Mariano Gontchar

    Mariano is a Madrid-based Scrum Master with a unique multi-perspective journey through Agile roles. Having evolved from developer to Product Owner, Project Manager, and now Scrum Master, he brings comprehensive insights to team facilitation and backlog management. Mariano specializes in practical Agile adoption strategies that work in real-world environments.

    You can link with Mariano Gontchar on LinkedIn.
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    15 m
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