Leading Your Business Customer
-
Upload
dean-stevens -
Category
Technology
-
view
277 -
download
0
description
Transcript of Leading Your Business Customer
Leading your Business Customer
Using A3 Thinking for Effective Collaboration in Agile
2
Why Lead your Business Customer?Chaos Report – IT Project Results
Where do you want to be?
SUCCESS!
3
Why Lead your Business Customer?Chaos Report – Key Project Success Factors
User Involvement &Executive Support
“There is a reason we put Individuals and Interactions first.” Alistair Cockburn
Conversations are important!
4
Important Conversations
• With Executives/Stakeholders– Project Level– Fund projects– Initiate and Close projects– Release Planning
• Involve Users– User Story Level– Specify and Accept Software– Iteration Planning
These are important
conversations
• Prioritization– What feature do we work on next?
• Scope– Should I add more functionality? Or is this done?
• Quality– Is it good enough?
• Trade offs– Will the easy solution be sufficient?
Important Conversations
5
These are hard
questions
Important Conversations
• Provide Context
• Facilitate Discovery
• Focus on Value
• Promote Feedback
A3 Thinking will lead to better conversations
7
WHAT IS A3 THINKING
What is A3 ThinkingFour Step Approach to Collaboration
Lean Consulting Mindset• Story Telling• Problem Solving• Communication/ Collaboration• Coaching/ Learning• Thinking Tool
Lead the customer to discover what they really need
• Identifies valuable requirements• Leads to better solution• Avoids the wish list
Situation
Analysis
Solutions
Action Plan
9
A3 Looks Like
As Is Data Flow
Main Frame
DIO DataHTML FIles
E-Pricing Catalog
Spreadsheet
Frank’s Excel Spreadsheet
Image Files
DIO DataHTML FIles
LIO DataHTML Files
Doug’s Access Database
Data Warehouse
?
?
Review/Activate
?
xxxx Catalog Web Ap on
Portal
DIO Catalog Web Ap on
Portal
LIO Catalog Web Ap on
Portal
IDENTIFY WASTE: Lines in red indicate waste. 1. Manual work that takes more time than necessary and results in errors and missing information.2. HTML files difficult to manage automatically. Review of information problematic.3. Multiple catalogs cause dealer associates to toggle between LIO and DIO to gather information for customers. Customer desires one place to find all accessories for a model.
ELIMINATE WASTE: 1. Consolidate accessory information into one database. This eliminates to need to manually update a variety of HTML files.2. Eliminate HTML interface and pull information directly from the consolidated database.
SPECIFY VALUE IN THE EYES OF THE CUSTOMER: Consolidated catalog including LIO/DIO with accurate and complete information to facilitate the sales process.
FLOW WHERE YOU CAN, PULL WHERE YOU MUST
Post Accy Catalog -
Electronically
Promote Accessory at Dealership Proposed Data Flow
Main Frame
E-Pricing Guide Spreadsheet
Frank’s Excel Spreadsheet
Image Files
Consolidated Accessory Database
Data Warehouse
?
?
Review/Activate
?
LIO/DIO/xxxx Catalog
Web Ap on Portal
E-Pricing GuideLink on Portal
E-CatalogE-Catalog
Link on Portal
Alternative
CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVEShow the team what has been accomplished
INVOLVE & EMPOWER EMPLOYEESPartner a developer, an analyst, and an additional business resource with Kevin to automate product information management and convert data to the new process
FLOW WHERE YOU CAN, PULL WHERE YOU MUST
– Project Level: Business Process Improvement
– A one page report or action plan
– Project Charter
Used in HBR Case Study
10
A3 Looks Like
Project Level: 20 Specific
Proposals for Bank
Executives
– Project Level: Executive Brief– A brief proposal– Tailor format to your audience
11
A3 Looks Like– User Story Level– Whiteboard Thinking– Pictures, Numbers & Words– Sufficient to support
conversations
Grasp the Situation(User Story Card & Confirmation)
Analysis(Pictures, Numbers & Words)
Action Plan(Tasks)
Solution(Consider multiple solutions)
12
FOUR STEP APPROACH
Grasp the Situation
Why are my $&##% reports
late?
The copier jammed!I need to clarify
a few things.
Situation
Analyze
Solutions
Action Plan
Grasp the SituationProvide Context
Problem Attributes Briefly explain what is needed
Business Benefit/ Outcome Produce paper copies of reports reliably
Value Necessary to support business needs but certainly not strategically important
Expectation/ Test Copies on demand
Performance Gap Paper in copier recently started to jam
Risk Very low relative to other business activities… but still important
– State the problem or opportunity in a few sentences
– Include key details & facts– Consider pictures and
numbers
15
Grasp the Situation
Iteration Planning• User Story
– Card– Confirmation– Conversation
• Supporting Project Artifacts on the Information Radiator
Release Planning• Agile Capability Analysis• Lean Value Stream Analysis• Use Case Diagram• Product Roadmap
16
Why it Works #1 Go and See
• Observe the problem and its context first hand
• Seek to learn and understand
• Confront assumptions, misconceptions and biases
• Draw a picture to illustrate the current situation
Analyze5 Why Analysis
BUY A NEW COPIER!
Before we do, why did the copier jam?
Well… the paper was
sticking together.
Situation
Analyze
Solutions
Action Plan
Analyze5 Why Analysis
Good question.
Why was the copier paper
sticking together?
The copier people said the jam was
probably caused by moist paper.
Analyze5 Why Analysis
BUY BETTER PAPER!
Why is the paper moist?
Humidity can cause moist paper. Paper should be stored in an air conditioned
space.
Analyze5 Why Analysis
BUY A NEW AIR CONDITIONER!
Why isn’t the paper is an air conditioned
space?
It used to be. We moved it to a
closet without A/C.
Analyze
• Facilitate Discovery
– What is the real problem or opportunity
– Consider Pictures, Numbers and Words
– Keep it simple
• Conversations– Goals & interaction– Discuss the problem
• 5 Why Analysis• Process Analysis
– Process Maps, Workflows – Cause & Effect
• Data analysis– Pareto (80-20 Rule)– What can we measure– How can we measure success
22
Appreciate the System Cynefin Framework
Why this is important• Used to establish context of
problems, situations or systems
• Solution approach is different for each quadrant… sort of
• Failure to understand leads to wrong solutions
23
Why it Works #2 Seeking the Root Cause
• Observe and experiment
• Look for cause and effect
• Fix the problem, not the symptom
• Gain a systems view point, avoid local optimization
Potential Solutions
Let’s discuss some options to solve the problem.
Situation
Analyze
Solutions
Action Plan
Potential Solutions
Air condition the space where the
paper is now?
Move the paper to an air
conditioned space?
Buy a copier that can use moist
paper?
Potential Solutions
Let’s start with the least
expensive option
We can free up some space in an air conditioned
closet
Potential Solutions
So, I don’t have to spend any
money
Let’s try that and see how it
works.
I really wanted a new
copier
Potential Solutions
• Consider multiple potential solutions
• Customer deserves options (expert judgment)– How well will it work?– What effort?
• Feedback both ways is important– Generate options– Validate solutions
29
Why it Works #3 Set Based Decision Making
Generate Options• Simplest to use• Simplest to develop• Good, Better, Best
• Make the solution good enough– Value is benefit / cost– Help discover a good enough
solution
Validate Solutions• Are we solving the
problem?• Is the User satisfied?
• Are we doing more than necessary to solve the problem?
• Is the Sponsor satisfied? Can you tell a coherent story?
Action Plan & Validation
GREAT!
Is our copier solution
working for you?
Seems to be good enough.
Situation
Analyze
Solutions
Action Plan
Action Plan
• Ensure fidelity of context– Value– Expectation– Performance– Risks
• Plan for a Demo to validate value
• Focus on Value– But I really wanted a
new copier– We need to store the
paper in an air conditioned space
32
Action Plan
Learn about the project- to write good User Stories
Learn about the User story- to write good code
Situation
Analyze
Solutions
Action Plan
33
Why it Works #4 Pull Based Authority
Learn to tell a coherent story
Earn the Authority to Lead your Business Customer
34
Further Reading
Important Conversations
• Provide Context
• Facilitate Discovery
• Focus on Value
• Promote Feedback
A3 Thinking will lead to better conversations
36
“Make everything as simple as possible, but no simpler.” … Albert Einstein