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

Milica highlights how great Product Owners involve their teams in decision-making while maintaining responsibility for final decisions. She discusses tools for prioritization and the importance of structured approaches to processing team input. Scrum Masters can help PO’s balance ownership and shared decision making with the teams and stakeholders.

Milica discusses a common anti-pattern in Product Ownership: simply renaming project managers as Product Owners, without role clarity or team involvement. She shares tips for distributing cognition between PO’s and their teams. She also emphasizes the importance of clear role definitions and external training for PO’s, stakeholders, and teams.

[IMAGE HERE] Are you having trouble helping the team work well with their Product Owner? We’ve put together a course to help you work on the collaboration team-product owner. You can find it at bit.ly/coachyourpo. 18 modules, 8+ hours of modules with tools and techniques that you can use to help teams and PO’s collaborate.

About Milica Lubinic

Milica is a Mom and Professional and Organizational Coach who is all about dealing with complexity, whether it's child development or organizational/team/individual transformation and growth. She found her true calling in the world of Agile, Cynefin, and Progressive organizational cultures. Creating safe spaces for innovation, nurturing trust, and sparking engagement is her true passion.

You can link with Milica Lubinic on LinkedIn.

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

In this episode, Milica emphasizes the importance of team trust and psychological safety, which are difficult to measure. She suggests using surveys to initiate meaningful conversations and reflections about these critical aspects.

Milica introduces her favorite retrospective format, focusing on future goals and leveraging existing strengths. This approach contrasts with the root cause analysis engineers often prefer, offering more actionable solutions and a variety of choices. This approach is based on insights from Solutions-focused Coaching.

[IMAGE HERE] Retrospectives, planning sessions, vision workshops, we are continuously helping teams learn about how to collaborate in practice! In this Actionable Agile Tools book, Jeff Campbell shares some of the tools he’s learned over a decade of coaching Agile Teams. The pragmatic coaching book you need, right now! Buy Actionable Agile Tools on Amazon, or directly from the author, and supercharge your facilitation toolbox!

About Milica Lubinic

Milica is a Mom and Professional and Organizational Coach who is all about dealing with complexity, whether it's child development or organizational/team/individual transformation and growth. She found her true calling in the world of Agile, Cynefin, and Progressive organizational cultures. Creating safe spaces for innovation, nurturing trust, and sparking engagement is her true passion.

You can link with Milica Lubinic on LinkedIn.

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

Milica shares insights from her experience in a company undergoing Agile transformation. She highlights the misalignment in decision-making processes and the need for consent-based decision-making. By facilitating retrospectives with leadership and creating guides for new decision-making approaches, she navigated through various challenges.

[IMAGE HERE] As Scrum Master we work with change continuously! Do you have your own change framework that provides the guidance, and queues you need when working with change? The Lean Change Management framework is a fully defined, lean-startup inspired change framework that can be used as the backbone of any change process! You can buy Lean Change Management the book at Amazon. Also available in French, Spanish, German and Portuguese.

About Milica Lubinic

Milica is a Mom and Professional and Organizational Coach who is all about dealing with complexity, whether it's child development or organizational/team/individual transformation and growth. She found her true calling in the world of Agile, Cynefin, and Progressive organizational cultures. Creating safe spaces for innovation, nurturing trust, and sparking engagement is her true passion.

You can link with Milica Lubinic on LinkedIn.

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

Milica tells the story of a team’s struggle with sustainable change. Despite good intentions, the team lead’s constant reminders about incomplete actions led to a lack of ownership. She emphasizes the importance of developing habits for sustainable improvement and allowing teams to maintain ownership of changes. How can teams foster long-lasting change without micromanagement?

Milica discusses Brené Brown’s "The Power of Vulnerability" (audiobook) and how it transformed her understanding of belonging versus fitting in. This distinction helped her foster true belonging in her teams, where members felt safe to be themselves and contribute their best. This book addresses a question that is critical for Scrum Masters: How can we create environments that nurture genuine belonging?

[IMAGE HERE] Do you wish you had decades of experience? Learn from the Best Scrum Masters In The World, Today! The Tips from the Trenches - Scrum Master edition audiobook includes hours of audio interviews with SM’s that have decades of experience: from Mike Cohn to Linda Rising, Christopher Avery, and many more. Super-experienced Scrum Masters share their hard-earned lessons with you. Learn those today, make your teams awesome!

About Milica Lubinic

Milica is a Mom and Professional and Organizational Coach who is all about dealing with complexity, whether it's child development or organizational/team/individual transformation and growth. She found her true calling in the world of Agile, Cynefin, and Progressive organizational cultures. Creating safe spaces for innovation, nurturing trust, and sparking engagement is her true passion.

You can link with Milica Lubinic on LinkedIn.

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

In this episode, Milica tells the story of a pivotal failure from the start of her career. She entered a company that, at first sight, already practicing scaled Scrum and aligned with Agile values. Milica was eager to contribute. However, she quickly discovered underlying taboos and a lack of true transparency. Her push for more openness led to unexpected resistance, teaching her the importance of curiosity and avoiding assumptions. Listen to learn how we can navigate the current status of Agile adoption without making premature judgments.

[IMAGE HERE] Recovering from failure, or difficult moments is a critical skill for Scrum Masters. Not only because of us, but also because the teams, and stakeholders we work with will also face these moments! We need inspiring stories to help them, and ourselves! The Bungsu Story, is an inspiring story by Marcus Hammarberg which shows how a Coach can help organizations recover even from the most disastrous situations! Learn how Marcus helped The Bungsu, a hospital in Indonesia, recover from near-bankruptcy, twice! Using Lean and Agile methods to rebuild an organization and a team! An inspiring story you need to know about! Buy the book on Amazon: The Bungsu Story - How Lean and Kanban Saved a Small Hospital in Indonesia. Twice. and Can Help You Reshape Work in Your Company.

About Milica Lubinic

Milica is a Mom and Professional and Organizational Coach who is all about dealing with complexity, whether it's child development or organizational/team/individual transformation and growth. She found her true calling in the world of Agile, Cynefin, and Progressive organizational cultures. Creating safe spaces for innovation, nurturing trust, and sparking engagement is her true passion.

You can link with Milica Lubinic on LinkedIn.

In this BONUS episode, we explore the world of technology, innovation, and intellectual property with Bao Tran, a seasoned tech entrepreneur. As the founder and CEO of PowerPatent, Inc., and co-founder of Azpire Health, Bao shares his journey and offers advice for aspiring tech entrepreneurs and established businesses alike.

"You need very good people on the engineering side who can iterate quickly."

Bao Tran started his career with ambitions of entering investment banking but ultimately found his calling as a patent lawyer. This shift led him to explore the tech industry deeply, where he recognized the importance of having a strong engineering team and maintaining exclusivity for products. He highlights the pitfalls of using platforms like Kickstarter, where competitors can easily copy innovative ideas, emphasizing the necessity of strong IP protection.

"Build around a core team but also bring diversity into the team."

Bao stresses the importance of having a core team that is close-knit for quick communication while also recruiting diverse talent to bring fresh perspectives. He advises focusing on problem-solving rather than falling in love with a particular technology, ensuring the team remains flexible and scalable as the company grows.

"Balance new people with fresh ideas and those with more experience."

Hiring the right talent is crucial, and Bao’s approach includes balancing newcomers with fresh ideas and seasoned professionals. He underscores the importance of a clear vision in product development, offering stock options as part of the salary package, and protecting IP early. Bao also introduces the concept of a "long tail approach" to product development, where continuous innovation and iteration play key roles.

"Identify unique product features and anticipate how competitors might replicate them."

For startups, Bao advises laying the foundation by identifying unique product features that can be patented. He recommends anticipating how competitors might design around these features and considering licensing opportunities across different industries to expand the utility of the patents.

"This battery company reduced energy costs and even started feeding back into the grid."

Bao shares success stories from his investments, including a company that used patented battery technology to reduce energy costs for small to medium businesses and eventually integrated these batteries into the power grid. He highlights the versatility of software patents and their applicability across various industries.

For those preparing their companies for growth, Bao recommends exploring resources like the PowerPatent YouTube channel and PatentPC.com. These platforms provide valuable information on fundraising, patent strategies, and more.

About Bao Tran

Bao Tran is a tech entrepreneur specializing in AI, blockchain, and digital twin technologies. He is the founder and CEO of PowerPatent, Inc., where he innovates the patent process through automation, and co-founder of Azpire Health, which leverages tech in healthcare. Bao is an angel investor at TVC and represents Silicon Valley at the Boston Global Forum. He holds a JD, MBA, and BSEE from top institutions.

You can link with Bao Tran on LinkedIn or connect with Bao Tran via email at Btran@powerpatent.com.

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

What key changes transformed this PO from a liability to an asset? In this segment, Avipaul shares a success story of a PO who, after receiving feedback, improved collaboration and team engagement. By connecting with team members and understanding the domain deeply, this PO bridged gaps between the team and customers, and ultimately became a great PO!

How can Product Owners avoid these pitfalls to foster a healthier team dynamic? In this segment, Avipaul outlines common anti-patterns of Product Owners who try to act as team leads, micromanage, and interfere in technical discussions. We also discuss how these behaviors can cause resentment and hinder team performance.

[IMAGE HERE] Are you having trouble helping the team work well with their Product Owner? We’ve put together a course to help you work on the collaboration team-product owner. You can find it at bit.ly/coachyourpo. 18 modules, 8+ hours of modules with tools and techniques that you can use to help teams and PO’s collaborate.

About Avipaul Bhandari

Avipaul is a seasoned Agile Coach with extensive experience helping teams and organizations implement Agile practices effectively. His expertise spans various domains, and he is passionate about fostering collaboration and continuous improvement.

You can link with Avipaul Bhandari on LinkedIn and connect with Avipaul Bhandari on Twitter.

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

In this episode, Avipaul explores the the many sides of success for Scrum Masters. Beyond metrics like cycle time and throughput, he emphasizes the importance of team smiles and voluntary contributions.

In this segment, Avipaul introduces the Timeline Retrospective, ideal for reflecting on the end of a phase. This format connects team members' emotions to their journey, fostering a deeper understanding and appreciation of their shared experiences. The timeline retrospective can highlight the human sides projects, and enhance the team’s ability to reflect and learn.

[IMAGE HERE] Retrospectives, planning sessions, vision workshops, we are continuously helping teams learn about how to collaborate in practice! In this Actionable Agile Tools book, Jeff Campbell shares some of the tools he’s learned over a decade of coaching Agile Teams. The pragmatic coaching book you need, right now! Buy Actionable Agile Tools on Amazon, or directly from the author, and supercharge your facilitation toolbox!

About Avipaul Bhandari

Avipaul is a seasoned Agile Coach with extensive experience helping teams and organizations implement Agile practices effectively. His expertise spans various domains, and he is passionate about fostering collaboration and continuous improvement.

You can link with Avipaul Bhandari on LinkedIn and connect with Avipaul Bhandari on Twitter.