Creating a map through the galaxy for coaching product teams

This talk is important if you are facing a big transformation. It could be for many teams or an organization. Let’s start where we did. Imagine you are coaching a product line with 9 teams and supporting 4 people in agile roles. Your organization decides they need to scale what you are doing. You are now in an organization of 55,000 technologists, 13 agile coaches, and someone said GO! You now have 34 product lines and hundreds of teams. This isn’t the first time the organization has started transformation. You can almost feel the hostility and anxiety around you. We don’t know if this is the largest transformation in the world, but it feels like it. Where do you start?

Feeling overwhelmed as a change agent is not unique to working with a new team or organization. Creating your strategy to tackle 'the crazy' can be as overwhelming as looking at the galaxy. It's like trying to find a planet that can support life. We have some tips that will help you create your approach and strategy in this wild frontier. We will provide a view of the path we took and some tips for avoiding pain.

We adapted and created our own toolkit for understanding 'the galaxy' we were in. We found a path that didn’t include a black hole. We will share what our toolkit became and where we are on the journey.

Learning Outcomes
• Describe systems entry and sketch your map
• Create a strategy for discovery and define your plan
• Assess tools and techniques for executing your plan
• Identify and recognize the patterns and organize the data

Details:
Estimated Length 75 minutes

Introduction
Concept (part 1:Systems Entry)
We will set the stage for our discovery and explain where we started.

Concept (Part 2) Discovery
We will share the techniques and tools we used to dig into discovery.

Concrete: Creating a strategy & model - Adapting and being intentional
As we went along it became clear we needed to understand how to break up the data once we had it. We needed to find a way to take interviews and turn them into data. We will share the maturity model and capabilities we used.

Concrete: Organizing and seeing the pattern and talking about it
As we compiled the results, we looked at patterns across the capabilities we identified. We will identify learnings we had from analyzing data to having tough conversations. These include discussing psychological safety and lack of it with leadership. There is also misalignment of product goals, vision, and roles and responsibilities that can be uncomfortable.

Wrap Up: Room Debrief
We will wrap up by taking questions about our experiences.

Resources & Closing
We will close by identifying books and articles for participants to use when diving into the discovery process of change. We have found by creating a plan has it made the difference between steps towards transformation and spinning in circles.