Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast

CTO Series: Engineering Leadership, Automation, and Trust with Dan Hollinger   In this CTO Series episode, we sit down with Dan Hollinger, an accomplished engineering leader passionate about fostering empathy, transparency, and trust in tech teams. Dan shares pivotal lessons from his career, from building scalable automation systems to navigating complex leadership challenges. We cover key strategies for aligning tech initiatives with business goals, fostering collaboration, and ensuring long-term technical health.   Defining Leadership Through Automation and Empowerment   “Enable your humans to focus on the interesting work—automation should take care of the rest.”   Dan recounts his transformative experience at CCP Games, makers of EVE Online, where a robust test automation system changed his perspective on scaling technical processes. This role introduced him to the power of automation in freeing up engineers to focus on more exploratory and impactful tasks. He emphasizes how empowering self-dire

CTO Series: Mastering the CTPO Role, Katrina Clokie’s Guide to Tech and Product Leadership   In this BONUS episode, we sit down with Katrina Clokie, a seasoned leader in strategy, change management, and building inclusive teams. Katrina shares pivotal moments in her career, offers practical leadership insights, and discusses her role as Chief Technology and Product Officer (CTPO), where she’s balancing innovation with business objectives. Whether you’re an aspiring tech leader or looking to sharpen your leadership toolkit, Katrina’s wisdom will inspire you to embrace growth, resilience, and collaboration. Defining Moments in Leadership “Look for roles you can’t fully do yet—it’s the best way to grow.”   Katrina reflects on a transformative moment early in her career when a mentor from the shipping industry encouraged her to seek out challenging roles that would push her growth. This advice set her on the path to engineering management and C-level leadership. She shares how fostering curiosity and pu

CTO Series: How Open Strategy and Agile Practices Drive Success at NorthCode With Ismo Aro   In this BONUS episode, we sit down with Ismo Aro, CTO and partner at NorthCode, to delve into the transformative power of Open Strategy in the tech world. Ismo shares his journey from corporate roles at Nokia and Ericsson to becoming a full-time entrepreneur, and he unpacks how his approach to leadership evolved with the rise of agile methodologies, test automation, and cloud transformation. This episode is packed with actionable insights for anyone looking to modernize their company’s strategy and foster a culture of transparency and co-ownership. Pivotal Career Moments: From Waterfall to Agile Mindset   “When I joined the agile pilot team, it felt like discovering the way software development should always be done—release early, get feedback fast, and improve continuously.”   Ismo reflects on his early days at Nokia, where he began as a test engineer in a traditional waterfall environment. He describes ho

CTO Series: Navigating Growth, A Playbook for Scaling Engineering Teams With Toni Ala-Piirto   In this BONUS episode, we dive into the journey of Toni Ala-Piirto, a seasoned software leader with 15 years of experience designing and implementing distributed systems. Toni opens up about pivotal lessons from his leadership career, balancing tech strategy with business goals, and the nuances of scaling engineering teams during rapid growth. Whether you’re a CTO, a team lead, or a tech enthusiast, this conversation is packed with practical insights.   The Evolution of a Leader: A Journey, Not a Single Moment   “Leadership isn’t built in a single defining moment but shaped by many experiences.”   Toni recounts a key challenge early in his career involving a major performance issue for a customer. This experience taught him the importance of viewing systems holistically rather than focusing solely on individual contributions. His “boring” leadership style—marked by forward-thinking and crisis prevention—em

CTO Series: Sergey’s Leadership Insights—Bridging Innovation and Strategy as CTO of CrateDB   In this BONUS episode, we sit down with Sergey, the forward-thinking CTO of CrateDB, to unpack his journey from Nokia to CrateDB and his leadership philosophy that blends technical expertise with strategic foresight. We dive into the key moments that shaped his career, the challenges of scaling technology in a competitive market, and how Sergey aligns his team’s efforts with broader business goals while staying adaptable in an ever-evolving tech landscape.   The Defining Moment in Sergey’s Leadership Journey   “Being a cheerleader, servant, and strategist for your team creates an environment where innovation can thrive.”   Sergey shares how working at Nokia with an inspiring people manager, Sotiris, influenced his leadership approach. Sotiris embodied servant leadership and made strategic thinking a team-wide responsibility. Sergey reflects on how this mindset helped him approach his current role at CrateD

BONUS: Building Agile Startups with Nick Hughes of Founders Live   Welcome, Agile friends! In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Nick Hughes, the founder of Founders Live, a global startup community now operating in more than 100 cities and 50 countries. Our conversation explored what it really takes to build a business and how the principles of agility can help entrepreneurs adapt, iterate, and thrive.   If you’ve ever wondered how to sharpen your message, build resilience in the face of setbacks, and foster meaningful connections in the startup world, this episode is for you!   The Birth of Founders Live “Test, learn, iterate, and grow. That’s how I built Founders Live.”   Nick’s story began over 10 years ago when he noticed something missing in the entrepreneurial world—a supportive community where early-stage founders could connect, learn, and grow together. As a founder himself, he knew firsthand how isolating the startup journey could be.   He decided to experiment wit

Ellen Grove: The Messenger Anti-Pattern, When Product Owners Lack Authority 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. The Great Product Owner: Building Shared Understanding, The Collaborative Product Owner Pattern Ellen describes an exemplary Product Owner (PO) who actively engaged with customers, often bringing the team along to meet users. This practice fostered a shared understanding of customer needs and amplified creativity within the team. A great PO promotes collaboration and ensures that the team is aligned with the product vision, enabling innovative solutions and meaningful outcomes. The Bad Product Owner: The Messenger Anti-Pattern, When Product Owners Lack Authority A poor PO, Ellen explains, is one who lacks decision-making authority. In one case, a PO served merely as a messenger for the CEO, repeatedly deferring to higher-ups for answers. This lack of emp

Ellen Grove: The Power of "Why", Modeling Coaching Behavior for Agile Teams 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. Ellen defines success for Scrum Masters as the team developing a stronger sense of agency and self-sufficiency. When teams begin asking better questions and demonstrate ownership of their processes, it indicates growth and maturity. Scrum Masters must model this behavior by being thoughtful, curious, and consistently asking "why" to encourage a coaching mindset. This approach enables teams to think critically and solve problems collaboratively. Self-reflection Question: How can you model the behavior you want to see in your team during retrospectives and beyond? Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: Retromat Ellen recommends using Retromat, a versatile online tool that provides a variety of retrospective formats to match the specific needs of you

Ellen Grove: The Dual Work of Agile, Managing Projects and Change Simultaneously 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. Ellen shares her insights on managing organizational change effectively. She explains how Scrum and Lean Change Management offer tools to make the "change work" visible alongside project work. By putting infrastructure in place to support this dual focus, stakeholders and teams can gain transparency and clarity. Ellen emphasizes that lasting change requires collaboration and visibility, not isolation. Self-reflection Question: How can you make the "change work" more visible in your organization? [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends]

Ellen Grove: Why Feedback Loops Are Essential for Agile Teams 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. Ellen shares a story about coaching a team in a public sector enterprise working on a website project. Despite their commitment to Agile, the team’s disconnect from user feedback led them to build features that missed critical functionality. This stealthy anti-pattern—assuming "what should be done and why" without user input—resulted in wasted effort and budget. Ellen emphasizes the importance of direct feedback loops with real users, even for internal products. Self-reflection Question: How can you ensure your team receives continuous feedback from real users to avoid building the wrong product? Featured Book of the Week: Humble Inquiry by Edgar Schein Ellen highlights "Humble Inquiry," a transformative book that stresses the importance of relationships over tasks

Ellen Grove: Managing Change in Complex Organizational Cultures 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. Ellen reflects on her early experiences as a Scrum Master, facing challenges in an environment that resisted the introduction of Scrum. She shares valuable lessons about handling external resistance, managing personal expectations, and avoiding emotional burnout when navigating organizational change. Ellen emphasizes the importance of focusing on what can be influenced and detaching from outcomes beyond one’s control. Self-reflection Question: How do you maintain focus and resilience when dealing with resistance to Scrum in your organization? [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends]

Robert Finan: Throwing Features Over the Fence, The Disconnected PO 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. The Great Product Owner: Fostering Quick Feedback Loops With Story Mapping Robert describes a great Product Owner as someone who immerses themselves in the team, fostering collaboration and ensuring quick market feedback.  By using tools like Story Mapping, these POs help teams focus on value while staying engaged and open to learning. The Bad Product Owner: Throwing Features Over the Fence, The Disconnected PO Bad Product Owners remain distant, throwing requirements “over the fence” without participating in the team’s efforts. This disconnect often leads to misalignment and poor outcomes.  For Scrum Masters and Agile Coaches, Robert suggests investigating the root cause of this distance and addressing it collaboratively. [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast R

Robert Finan: Promoting Agile Team Growth Through Experiments And Small Focused Changes 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. Robert defines Scrum Master success as driving impactful team improvements through small, focused changes.  By maintaining a backlog of improvement ideas and encouraging teams to experiment, Robert highlights the importance of measurable progress in both behavior and collaboration. Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: Sailboat Retrospective Robert recommends the Sailboat format, especially when working with new teams. By exploring current realities, future goals, and risks, this format provides rich insights and fosters alignment. The focus on improvement ensures actionable outcomes that resonate with team members. [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends]

Robert Finan: Flexible Change Processes, How To Adopt Agile With An Agile Approach 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. Robert discusses how top-down, project managed Agile transformations often fail to account for the complexity of change. By focusing on flexibility, inspect/adapt cycles, and bringing comfort to the change process, Scrum Masters can guide organizations away from one-size-fits-all solutions and toward the sustainable improvement that is the hallmark of Agile. Self-reflection Question: How can you bring comfort to the change process in your organization? [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends]

Robert Finan: Why Agile Teams Need the Right Support, And How We Can Help Them 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. Robert shares a story about what happens when teams lack management support and the right environment to succeed. He emphasizes the importance of 1-on-1 conversations, addressing individual resistance, and focusing on what can be changed. Slowly building the right environment for our teams - Robert explains how - is how we help them succeed! Featured Book of the Week: Crucial Conversations by Joseph Grenny et al. Robert recommends Crucial Conversations, which offers practical tools for handling high-stakes conversations in both personal and professional contexts. As facilitators, Scrum Masters can use this book to address situations where team members feel threatened, fostering better communication and collaboration. [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast

Robert Finan: The Challenges of Trying Too Hard in an Agile Transformation 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. Robert shares his experience of burning out after just four months in a challenging Agile transformation. He reflects on the mistake of trying to push his vision without meeting the organization where it was. By facing embedded structures and resistance, Robert learned the value of pragmatism, experimentation, and nudging change instead of forcing it. Self-reflection Question: Have you ever faced resistance when introducing change? How can you adjust your approach to meet people where they are? [The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends]

Xmas Special: Investing in Software: Alternatives To Project Management For Software Businesses With Vasco Duarte In the grand finale of the “5 Wishes for 2025” series, Vasco Duarte tackles the chaotic nature of software development and why traditional project management just doesn’t cut it. Drawing on lessons from weather models, butterflies, and Agile practices, Vasco presents a bold manifesto for how we can thrive in uncertainty. Chaos Theory and Software Development “Project management is like trying to predict where a butterfly will land after flying through a hurricane – good luck with that!” Vasco begins with the story of Edward Lorenz, the MIT meteorologist who discovered what was later called the “butterfly effect.” This concept illuminates and explains the unpredictability of software development, where tiny changes can lead to massive, unexpected consequences – like a simple tweak spiraling into a full system refactor. Why Traditional Project Management Falls Short “Planning your ye

Xmas Special: Keep Your Backlog Microscopic - The #NoBacklogs Revolution With Vasco Duarte In the fourth episode of the “5 Wishes for 2025” series, Vasco Duarte takes on a common yet overlooked productivity killer: the monster backlog. With humor, relatable analogies, and practical advice, Vasco shares how organizations can turn their overwhelming backlogs into powerful tools for focus and impact. The Backlog Problem: When More Becomes Too Much “Your backlog should be like your fridge, not your basement – keep only what you’ll use soon, not what you might need someday!” Vasco opens by comparing bloated backlogs to storage boxes filled with old cables and chargers: seemingly useful but rarely touched. Sharing the story of Juha, a leader overwhelmed by a five-year backlog of epics, Vasco highlights how backlogs can grow out of control, becoming a source of stress rather than a tool for productivity. A #NoBacklogs Approach to Backlog Management “Your backlog should only contain work for the next 2-

Xmas Special: Running Experiments Over Managing A Tasklist, aka The Backlog With Vasco Duarte In the third episode of the “5 Wishes for 2025” series, Vasco Duarte takes aim at one of the most common anti-patterns in software development: the obsession with managing tasks instead of discovering what truly works.  He calls on teams to shift their mindset from backlog management to running experiments, creating a culture of learning and rapid innovation. From Backlog Secretary to Product Scientist “Managing a backlog is like planning a road trip by focusing on the gas stops instead of the destination.” Vasco reflects on how teams often lose sight of their goals, becoming bogged down in task management instead of pursuing real customer value. He humorously compares this approach to being a “backlog secretary,” organizing tasks while forgetting why the project began in the first place. His solution? A radical shift from task obsession to a learning-first approach driven by rapid experiments. The Po

Xmas Special: Breaking Down the Wall Between Product and Engineering With Vasco Duarte In the second episode of the “5 Wishes for 2025” series, Vasco Duarte tackles one of the most persistent and damaging divides in software development: the wall between Product and Engineering teams. Through stories, metaphors, and real-world examples, Vasco challenges the status quo and paints a vision for seamless collaboration that drives innovation and value. The Invisible Walls Holding Us Back “It’s like having the ingredients and the recipe in separate rooms – how are you supposed to cook something amazing?” Vasco begins by highlighting the invisible barriers that still exist between Product and Engineering teams in many organizations. These divisions stifle innovation and slow progress. Drawing parallels to outdated structures, Vasco recounts the struggle to integrate Product Owners into Scrum teams and how that barely scratched the surface of the larger issue. He calls for a broader perspective: aligning