Hard Times University

Upcoming November Meeting
Seattle & Eastside Area Software Process Improvement Network

Please accept this invitation to join us at the Seattle and Eastside Area SPIN meeting. Our group seeks to provide a forum for open discussion of all software development process topics, from requirements to deployment, methods agile or traditional, small company concerns and large. Our group is free and open to the software practitioner community, from tech writers to developers to QA to project management. Its a great way to compare notes with fellow practitioners and to hear about industry challenges and solutions.

You can learn more about the group and past meetings from our site at http://www.seaspin.org . Feel free to join ( http://seaspin.org/user/CreateUser.aspx?ReturnUrl= ) on that site and you will be added to the regular mailing list.

You can also seek out and engage in ongoing conversations with the group through our LinkedIn group, Seattle & Eastside Area Software Process Improvement Network( http://www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=2201598&trk=anet_ug_grppro ). We also use this group to identify other upcoming events, if you are looking to reach out to other groups.

Jeff Smith
Chair, SeaSPIN.org
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/jeff-smith-bsee-csm/0/409/757

November 3 Meeting

Construx Software, 10900 NE 8th St Suite 1350, Bellevue, WA

Food & networking 5:45 to 6:45 (pizza, salad, soda )
Announcements 6:45 to 6:55
Presentation 6:55 to 7:55
Doors close at 8:30

Selling Your Ideas to Management, presented by Steven Smith
Do you have a problem selling your ideas to management?

Employees do their best to sell their ideas to busy managers. But a typical outcome of the conversation is “No.” or “Let me think about it.” Employees seldom ask and management seldom offers feedback about elements of the selling that worked and those that didn’t.

If you could hear managers talking with each other, you would hear them complain about employees who whine; who don’t define the problem; who don’t state the impact of the problem in business terms; who don’t provide an action plan; and who don’t explain why fixing a problem is more important than fixing other problems.

Selling ideas is a problem solving activity. Join Steve to learn about three top characteristics of proposals that sell; apply these characteristics to an idea of yours; experience a conversation with management where a proposal is made; and experience the same conversation after hearing feedback and receiving coaching.

Managers are busy. You may only have only one shot to sell your idea. Propose your ideas skillfully so management sees how the idea will benefit the business and, just as importantly, sees you as a leader.

This presentation will benefit both managers and individual contributors, anyone who wants to sell an idea.

Biography
Steven M. Smith (www.stevenMsmith.com) is a management consultant who specializes in helping leaders of technical organizations satisfy customers, manage change, and strengthen teamwork. With more than three decades of experience as a thought leader in technical organizations, he shares his know how through his writing, consulting, and leadership of experiential workshops. He is a founder and host of the annual Amplifying Your Effectiveness (AYE) Conference (www.ayeconference.com), at which he leads experiential workshops. Steven can be reached at steve@....

Quote on the internet about the quality of this presentation at PNSQC 2008...
Steve Smith quite possibly presented the best presentation of the entire event. This topic had little to do with testing, collaboration, or agility. Though, each and every individual attending this presentation walked away with great insight in how to better sell an idea to management (or anyone for that matter).

Reference: http://www.mattkowalczyk.com/blog/?p=16

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You can join SeaSpin by clicking the Join link ( http://seaspin.org/user/CreateUser.aspx?ReturnUrl= ) on our site!

Watch our site( SeaSPIN.org ) and our LinkedIn group ( http://www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=2201598&trk=anet_ug_grppro ) for further announcements

#1684

From: "hosthvo" <hosthvo@...>
Date: Wed Oct 28, 2009 7:32 pm
Subject: Looking for a new developer in Kirkland Washington

hosthvo

Offline

My company is looking for some agile developers.  If anyone is interested or
know of anyone that is interested.  Please see the description below.

Description
Java Developer

Exciting opportunity to work for a well respected leader in the wireless
industry as a Java Developer. At WDSGlobal, our company vision is to add value
to every mobile transaction through the application of knowledge and expertise
in the mobile experience.

Java Developer Overview:

We write software that enables use of mobile phones. Whether that is hosted
web-apps for configuration, or deploying high-availability apps into mobile
networks we help WDS as a whole simplify wireless for the end user. Weâ€™re
looking to add a number of developers. You will be working in a small but
growing agile team.  The team is one of 3 globally (UK, US, SG) and global
interaction is encouraged.  Travel is often available.  Although some are more
experienced than others everyone is expected to get their hands dirty â€"
everyone writes code.

Java Developer Job Description:

-         Working on Agile Team building server-side apps
-         Primarily develop in Java with some Ruby on Rails
-         Use of a hybrid Scrum/XP approach with a strong focus on incremental
delivery, TDD, Pairing, Continuous Integration and 2 week iterations
-         Involved in all aspects of software lifecycle â€" design, build, test,
deploy and docs.

Java Developer Requirements:

-         Bachelorâ€™s Degree within some type of Computer Science discipline
â€" Preferred
-         4+ years of Java experience â€" ideally some in an Agile environment
-         Experience with any of the following preferred: Spring, Maven, JUnit,
CruiseControl, Tomcat, JBoss, Oracle, MySQL, Hibernate, Web Technologies (HTML,
Javascript, DOM, XML, AJAX) â€" Preferred
-         Strong OO design, Refactoring and agile design
-         Eclipse
-         Any experience with WAP-Push, OMADM, SyncML beneficial
-         experience with Android, iPhone, Symbian and Windows Mobile, BREW
advantageous
-         Ruby / Rails experience advantageous

Why work for WDSGlobal?

-         Offering of competitive salaries, healthcare and 401k
-         Opportunity to work in a small-knit team where decisions made, have an
immediate effect on the rest of the company

If youâ€™re looking to expand your knowledge and utilize your experience within
one of the fastest growing industries, this is the opportunity for you!

Please take a look at our website, www.wdsglobal.com to learn more about who we
are and the exciting things weâ€™re doing!

For immediate and confidential consideration, please contact Leslie Boari at
leslie.boari@... or at 425.307.3070.

#1683

From: Jeff Smith <visionary1usa@...>
Date: Tue Sep 29, 2009 9:06 am
Subject: SeaSPIN Mtg: October 6: How to Start an Agile Project

lostvisionary

Offline

Upcoming October Meeting
Seattle & Eastside Area Software Process Improvement Network

You can learn more about the group and past meetings from our site at http://www.seaspin.org . Feel free to join on that site and you will be added to the regular mailing list.

You can seek out and engage in ongoing conversations with the group through our LinkedIn group, Seattle & Eastside Area Software Process Improvement Network. We also use this group to identify other upcoming events, if you are looking to reach out to other groups.

Jeff Smith
Chair, SeaSPIN.org
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/jeff-smith-bsee-csm/0/409/757

October 6: How to Start an Agile Project, by Jeremy Lightsmith
Construx Software, 10900 NE 8th St Suite 1350, Bellevue, WA.
Gathering with pizza, salad, soda @ 5:45
Talk @ 6:45 with networking following

HOW TO START AN AGILE PROJECT
Imagine you've been given the go ahead to start a project from the ground up doing "Agile". Your team and your company are sold on the vague concept, but no one in your organization really understands what they've signed on for. How do you start it?

There's remarkably little that's said within the agile community about starting projects. If your organization is new to agile, this is your first and best chance to introduce agile ideas up and down the organization, build trust, get alignment, and generally start off on the right foot. Even if your organization and team are agile veterans and already gelled, you still need to generate a backlog, agree on the vision of the project, talk about risks, etc.

We'll look at practices and ideas that industry leaders are using to start projects off smoothly. The processes we'll be talking about are very collaborative and iterative and this session will be too.

BIOGRAPHY
Jeremy spends most of his time & energy building highly performant development teams.

A seasoned agile coach & facilitator, Jeremy excels at creating environments where teams can discover how they work best. He has a deep understanding of agile, and is constantly looking for better ways to share knowledge and collaborate. As a presenter, Jeremy favors interactive and group techniques and pulls from disciplines as diverse as improv and Montessori.

Though Jeremy is now an independent consultant in Seattle, most of his 11 year career has been spent at companies like ThoughtWorks and Pivotal. During his time at ThoughtWorks, Jeremy coached teams and trained facilitators; he owes much of his toolbox to the ThoughtWorkers with whom he worked. He is currently writing a book about Facilitation Patterns.

Watch our site and our LinkedIn group for further announcements

#1682

From: "Yendor" <rodclaar@...>
Date: Thu Sep 24, 2009 5:17 pm
Subject: [ANN] Certified ScrumMaster Course from Hard Times University Nov 4-6

rodclaar

Offline

Hard Times University

About HTU:	Hard Times University is Professionals helping Professionals. In these hard economic times, there is a huge need for business based applied practical training so that people can get back to work or improve their position as quickly as possible.
Course:	Certified ScrumMaster Workshop
When:	November 4-6, 2009, 9 AM - 5 PM
Where:	Comfort Sites Seattle Airport 7200 Fun Center Way Tukwila, WA 98188
How Much:	Hard Times - Unemployed - $399 Hard Times - Employed - Self Paid - $499 Employer Paid - $999 Employer Bulk Purchase, 5 Ticket Minimum - $599
Training Provider:	Effective Agile Development LLC
About Course:	Understand Scrum • Use Agile Metrics and Reports • Apply Adaptive Planning This three day course gives the participants actual hands on experience with the basic practices of Scrum with a solid introduction to the principles that frame the practices of a successful agile team. The course is focused on the skills and attributes of a successful ScrumMaster. The participants will get experience through a large Scrum simulation where they will practice and observe the role of ScrumMaster and the other major Scrum Roles. Teams will work together on a project to produce a product that will be presented to the stakeholders near the end of the course. Click for More Details
Register Now:	Register Now!
Contact Organizer:	HTU Seattle Conductor
Other Courses:	Agile Architecture and Development Certified Scrum Product Owner Change In Technology Development Organizations

#1681

From: "Brian" <brian.lawley@...>
Date: Wed Sep 23, 2009 5:35 pm
Subject: New Agile Certified Product Manager Exam & Self-Study Course

brian_lawley...

Offline

We have TWO announcements to share with you.

FIRST, we are excited to announce that we are supporting a new AIPMM worldwide
industry standard agile product management certification. Six companies in all
are supporting the standard (with several more announcing support shortly) and
will be delivering training and certification exams. Joining with the 280 Group
to support the new standard are AIPMM, of Reno, Nevada, Technobrands of Canada,
Lucrum Marketing of Austin, TX, Brainmates of Australia and PLM Associates of
Los Angeles, CA. All partners have licensed the materials and will be delivering
the courses in-person and online throughout the world. Training materials are
being licensed to interested product management training and consulting firms
for a low fee to encourage adoption and support of the international standard.
Further announcements of support from other highly regarded firms are expected
shortly.

The exam, offered by AIPMM, tests for a thorough understanding of basic and
advanced strategic and tactical concepts in agile product management. It ensures
that those who pass the exam fully understand agile product management and are
able to apply the concepts immediately to be more effective in their jobs.
Topics covered in the exam range from basic to advanced and include multiple
types of agile development (Scrum, XP, Lean), release management & planning,
documentation, organizing around agile, launches, roadmapping,
distributed/larger teams and integrating agile within a traditional product
process. The exam may be taken remotely from anywhere in the world, so product
managers who previously did not have access to certifications may now become
certified.

Full details about the announcement and certification are at:
http://bit.ly/41QA4

SECOND, today we released our new Agile Certified Product Manager Self-Study
Course. The new agile product management certification self-study course enables
product managers throughout the world to prepare for and take the prestigious
industry-standard AIPMM (Association of International Product Marketing &
Management) ACPM (Agile Certified Product Marketing Manager) exam.

The ACPM Self-Study course includes a nine section narrated training seminar,
over 130 slides, a study guide, a sample exam and  two attempts to pass the
AIPMM ACPM exam. It is available as a downloadable product that can be used from
anywhere in the world, allowing participants to study at their own pace and
review the material as many times as they would like. The course includes
information on multiple types of agile development (Scrum, XP, Lean) as well as
a wide range of topics including release management & planning, documentation,
organizing around agile, launches, roadmapping, distributed and larger teams and
integrating agile within a traditional product process.

The AIPMM agile certification demonstrates a thorough understanding of basic and
advanced strategic and tactical concepts in agile product management. It ensures
that those who pass the exam fully understand agile product management and are
able to apply the concepts immediately to be more effective in their jobs.

The self-study course is $1,295 (including the exam). Full details of the
self-study course are availale at http://bit.ly/53mOQ.

For a full comparison of all certifications available from the 280 Group see our
comparison chart at http://bit.ly/maF7d.

#1680

From: "monica_yap" <monica.yap2012@...>
Date: Fri Sep 18, 2009 4:02 pm
Subject: Looking for Java and agile developer

monica_yap

Offline

Hi All,

We are looking for Java developer whom has agile experience.  This is a contract
position for 3 months or more.

Qualification:
- 3 years of server side Java dev experience
- Worked in an agile environment
- Do pairing programming and TDD
- Experience working with SOAP

If you are interested, please send resume to KNishi@...

Thanks,
Monica

#1679

From: "monica_yap" <monica.yap2012@...>
Date: Tue Sep 15, 2009 6:19 pm
Subject: BeyondAgile: " Highlights from The Agile 2009 Conference Panel" *this* Thursday

monica_yap

Offline

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/event.php?eid=68941257907&ref=nf

It's BeyondAgile: people making software that works!

In our never-ending series of just-in-time events, BeyondAgile
presents:

"Highlights from The Agile 2009 Conference"
Thursday, 17 September 2009
6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Read on for agenda and locations information, or visit our Google
Group
at http://groups.google.com/group/beyondagile

- The Blurb
Come hear about the best and worst from our panel of people who
attended the international Agile 2009 Conference held in Chicago last
month.

Agile 2009 was an exciting international conference about techniques
and technologies, attitudes and policies, research and first-hand
experience, from both the management and technical sides of agile
software development. The theme was Making Agile Real with over 300
sessions presented across 20 concurrent "stages" such as: "Agile
Adoption", "Agile & Organizational Culture", "Distributed Agile", plus
"Customers & Business Value"

So, if you attended please join the panel and help spread the wealth,
and/or hear about the sessions you didn't get to attend.

If you didn't get a chance to go to Chicago for this event, now is
your chance to get great value from the summary highlights to be
provided by the panel.

- Event Agenda
o Welcome and Announcements (10 min.)
o "Highlights from The Agile 2009 Conference" panel discussion with
Q&A (75
min.)
o Meeting Retrospective (10 min.)
o Socializing and Breakout/Breakup/Beer

- Event Location
We're meeting at only one physical location this time

Eastside (Redmond)
SolutionsIQ
First Floor Training Center
10785 Willows Road NE, Suite 250
Redmond WA

Directions and picture of building at
http://www.solutionsiq.com/about-us/contact-us.php
Look for the tent signs and the blue BeyondAgile logo

Questions? Contact us at beyondag...@taoproductions.com, or visit our
Google Group, or contribute to the nascent Wiki at beyondagile.org. Or
(we're really letting a thousand flowers bloom here) you can RSVP/
discuss the event at the BeyondAgile Facebook site:

- Opportunity knocks!
If you've attended our meetings and think the audio/video links need
improvement, or if you *can't * attend our meetings and wish there was
live/stored streaming of meetings...BeyondAgile needs you! Everything
we do happens because someone wants to make something better: we have
no staff, no budget, no fixed leadership or organization...only the
folks who want to help each month, and our faithful location sponsors
(Amdocs Seattle Division and SolutionsIQ).

So: help make this a better group. Contact us using any of the means
you see in this announcement, or come to the meeting and see who you
can get to help you!

- What's BeyondAgile?
It's the combination and follow-on to a number of the agile-oriented
user and interest groups that have operated in the Puget Sound area.
We aim to:

o Build a bigger agile community
o Take advantage of overlaps between existing groups
o Expand beyond meetings and provide a place to collaborate
o Align software development and business
o Explore cutting-edge ideas and techniques
o Discover the most useful practices among all agile processes

- When do we meet?
The plan was to gather at least once a month on the *3rd* Thursday of
the month--that's a change from our previous plan to target the fourth
Thursday-- and probably more often. With luck, that date will work
better for more people than the previous date did.

#1678

From: "monica_yap" <monica.yap2012@...>
Date: Tue Sep 15, 2009 6:18 pm
Subject: BeyondAgile: " Highlights from The Agile 2009 Conference Panel" *this* Thursday

monica_yap

Offline

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/event.php?eid=68941257907&ref=nf

It's BeyondAgile: people making software that works!

In our never-ending series of just-in-time events, BeyondAgile
presents:

"Highlights from The Agile 2009 Conference"
Thursday, 17 September 2009
6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Read on for agenda and locations information, or visit our Google
Group
at http://groups.google.com/group/beyondagile

- The Blurb
Come hear about the best and worst from our panel of people who
attended the international Agile 2009 Conference held in Chicago last
month.

So, if you attended please join the panel and help spread the wealth,
and/or hear about the sessions you didn't get to attend.

If you didn't get a chance to go to Chicago for this event, now is
your chance to get great value from the summary highlights to be
provided by the panel.

- Event Location
We're meeting at only one physical location this time

Eastside (Redmond)
SolutionsIQ
First Floor Training Center
10785 Willows Road NE, Suite 250
Redmond WA

Directions and picture of building at
http://www.solutionsiq.com/about-us/contact-us.php
Look for the tent signs and the blue BeyondAgile logo

So: help make this a better group. Contact us using any of the means
you see in this announcement, or come to the meeting and see who you
can get to help you!

- What's BeyondAgile?
It's the combination and follow-on to a number of the agile-oriented
user and interest groups that have operated in the Puget Sound area.
We aim to:

#1677

From: "netobjectives" <mike.shalloway@...>
Date: Tue Sep 15, 2009 7:33 am
Subject: [ANN] Free event on 9/22, Symposium Day 2: Team and Technical Agility

netobjectives

Offline

Transitioning to Agile has forced many developers to work in ways significantly different from what they have been used to. These differences are in both the way they manage their projects and in how they do analysis, design, code and testing. The second day of the Seattle Lean-Agile Symposium is split into two parts. The first deals with how to increase the efficiency of the team by improving communications and breaking down the work. The second takes on the issues of Agile programming and design. The day provides an essential overview of the skills developers will need to be effective in the new Agile world.

Please follow this link for event details, including how to register: http://www.netobjectives.com/free-seminar-schedule/team-technical-agility-mini-conference-sep-2009-bellevue.

The Seattle Lean-Agile Symposium is led by Net Objectives, a training and consulting company specializing in 2nd generation Agile and Lean software methods. Space is limited, so please register early for this exciting free event.

Thanks,
Mike Shalloway

Net Objectives

#1676

From: "netobjectives" <mike.shalloway@...>
Date: Tue Sep 15, 2009 7:31 am
Subject: [ANN] Free event on 9/21, Symposium Day 1: Business and Management Agility

netobjectives

Offline

To date, most organizations have been transitioning their development organizations to Agile methods. But it is even more important for the business and management side of the organization to be Agile. Lean-Agile is about Business iterations, not development cycles. Agile teams are only as Agile as the Business and Management. Business Agility requires principles and practices which continually discover, prioritize, and drive development teams in realizing business value faster with their software development investment.

The first day of the Seattle Lean-Agile Symposium will explore the key aspects for Business Agility. It will also explore management's role and responsibilities and how they participate in the Lean-Agile paradigm. In particular, how management interacts with empowered business and Agile development teams. Please follow this link for event details, including how to register: http://www.netobjectives.com/free-seminar-schedule/business-management-agility-mini-conference-sep-2009-bellevue.

Thanks,

Mike Shalloway

Net Objectives

#1675

From: "slgossa" <slgossa@...>
Date: Wed Sep 9, 2009 10:12 pm
Subject: Prepare for ScrumMaster Certification at UW

slgossa

Offline

Certificate in Agile Development
(Autumn, UW Campus, Seattle)

Overview | Courses | Instructors | Advisory Board | Apply

Get Started

Program Starts: Autumn 2009
Apply now

Single courses may be available

Stay Connected

Get e-mail updates

Contact us:
206-685-8936
E-mail

Learn More

Download a program overview PDF icon

Learn the principles of software development that yield faster release cycles, higher quality, better teamwork, and regular adaptation to changing circumstances. Focus on increasing daily cooperation between businesses and developers with rapid, continuous delivery of practical software. Prepare for ScrumMaster certification through a combination of exercises, simulations, lectures, and discussions.

What the Program Covers

Agile overview and ScrumMaster certification
Applied Agile development practices

Benefits

You will learn to deliver precise, adaptable, and useful software through collaborative teams using the Agile approach.

Who Should Apply

Level: Some Experience

Software Developers
Software Architects
Development Managers
Quality Assurance / Testers
Project Managers
Systems/Business Analysts

If you have questions about your eligibility for this program, give us a call at 888-469-6499.

Related Programs

#1674

From: Diana Larsen <dlarsen@...>
Date: Fri Sep 4, 2009 4:36 pm
Subject: Agile Software Engineer Opening in Salem OR

DianaLarsen

Offline

Calling unemployed, underemployed, or mis-employed Agile software
engineers,

A company I know has embarked on an Agile adoption. They are also
looking for great developers/architects with experience working in an
Agile/XP environment. They will only accept applications through the
website link below. (no emails, paper resumes, etc.)

For a fuller description of the position and how to apply, check out
this web site and follow the link:
http://www2.phtech.com/careers/openings.cfm?fa=JOBS.detail&id=33

Hoping that everyone finds just the right place to do good work,
Diana


***
Diana Larsen
http://www.futureworksconsulting.com

Agile Open SoCal
September 14-15, 2009 Irvine, CA http://agileopencalifornia.com/

Àgiles 2009
October 6-9, 2009 Florianopolis, Brasil
http://www.agiles2009.org/en/index.php

#1673

From: "netobjectives" <mike.shalloway@...>
Date: Wed Aug 19, 2009 11:21 pm
Subject: [ANN] Free seminar this Thursday, 8/20 "Acceptance Test-Driven Development"

netobjectives

Offline

Hi, I just wanted to remind everyone that Net Objectives will be hosting a free seminar tomorrow evening at our offices in Bellevue. "Acceptance Test-Driven Development" will be presented by Amir Kolsky and will run from 6-8:30pm. For more information, including how to register, please follow this link or scroll down below my signature (http://www.netobjectives.com/free-seminar-schedule/acceptance-test-driven-development-aug-2009-bellevue). We still have space available, so please pass this on to anyone else who might be interested in this exciting new talk.

Don't forget about the rest of our free seminar series through the end of the year:
September 17 - Which Agile Process is Right for You? Choosing Between Scrum, Kanban and Scrumban
October 15 - Synergies Between Patterns and TDD
November 5 - Introduction to Lean Software Development
December 10 - Transition Testing: Cornerstone of Database Agility

Free Mini Conference
Also, we'll be offering a free, 2-day mini-conference event on September 21 & 22 in Bellevue. Day 1 is "Business & Management Agility" (http://www.netobjectives.com/free-seminar-schedule/business-management-agility-mini-conference-sep-2009-bellevue); while Day 2 is "Team & Technical Agility" (http://www.netobjectives.com/free-seminar-schedule/team-technical-agility-mini-conference-sep-2009-bellevue). Please follow those url's for more information or to register.

We also have some public courses coming up in the fall, including two new online courses. You can check them all out here: http://www.netobjectives.com/courses/. More are in the works, including a Sustainable Test-Driven Development course in Bellevue.

Regards,
Mike Shalloway
Net Objectives

Seminar: Acceptance Test-Driven Development

Defining, understanding, and agreeing on the scope of work to be done is often an area of discomfort for product managers, developers and quality assurance experts alike. Many of the items living happily in our defect tracking systems were born of the difficulty we have in performing said activities. Acceptance or Story testing is a TDD activity specifically designed to root out these defects by reexamining the process we use to define the work to be done and how it is tested.

This seminar will introduce acceptance testing; explain why it works; and outline the different roles the team members play in the process. We will contrast acceptance testing with unit testing and show an examples of how the process clarifies the work to be done.

Agenda

6:00-6:30 pm	Pizza and networking
6:30-8:00 pm	The topic: 'Acceptance Test-Driven Development'
8:00-8:30 pm	Discussion of topic

A charitable contribution to Union Gospel Mission and the Millionair Club of $1-3 is requested for food and drink.

Venue/Registration Info

Net Objectives Bellevue Offices: Belle-View Office Park
275 118th Avenue SE
Bellevue, WA 98005
Room/Location: Suite 115
Map link: Directions/Maps
Special Instructions: Enter the main double-doors of the building, off the parking lot. Take the hall to your right. Go to the door at the end of the hall. The training room is through the door, down the hall, last doorway on your left, opposite a small kitchen.
Register for this Event: Register

#1672

From: Alan Shalloway <alshall@...>
Date: Wed Aug 19, 2009 6:11 pm
Subject: [ANN] Broadcast of Net Objectives' Lean Online course;

alshalloway

Offline

Last year's Lean Software Development online series was very successful. We are currently re-broadcasting it by making the 6 webinar recordings available one per week (started this Monday). You can see the sessions and schedule at http://tinyurl.com/n4tbca

This is a great introduction to Lean Software Development that you can watch/learn at your own pace. Please ask questions re the course at the Lean Agile user group
( http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/leanagile )

Alan Shalloway
CEO, Net Objectives
Achieving Enterprise and Team Agility

#1671

From: Jay Zimmerman <jzimmerman@...>
Date: Tue Aug 18, 2009 5:05 pm
Subject: Don't Miss Out...2009 Pacific Northwest Software Symposium returns to Seattle on September 18-20th (JUG Discount)

jz_tcpn

Offline

Don't Miss Out! The 2009 Pacific Northwest Software Symposium returns to Seattle on September 18-20th! *Local Venue, World Class Event* We pride ourselves on offering the best technically focused Java/Agility event anywhere! Make sure and use your JUG discount of $50 by using the promo code nfjsusergroup50 when registering.

If you are registering with a group, the highest discount will apply - group or user group. Event Name: Pacific Northwest Software Symposium 2009 Dates: September 18 - 20, 2009 Location: Seattle, Washington Venue: Redmond Marriott Town Center URL: http://www.nofluffjuststuff.com/conference/seattle/2009/09/home We have a great set of speakers lined up for you to enjoy featuring: Brian Goetz, Author of Java Concurrency in Practice Brian Sletten, REST Expert David Geary, Author of Graphic Java and co-author of Core JSF Howard Lewis Ship, Creator of Tapestry and HiveMind Ken Sipe, Technology Director, Perficient, Inc. (PRFT) Mark Richards, SOA and Enterprise Architect, Author of Java Message Service Matthew McCullough, Open Source Application Architect at Ambient Ideas Nathaniel Schutta, Author, speaker, software engineer focused on user interface design. Scott Davis, Author of "Groovy Recipes" & TDD Expert Ted Neward, Enterprise, Virtual Machine and Language Wonk Venkat Subramaniam, Founder of Agile Developer, Inc. The No Fluff Just Stuff Symposium series is regarded as the premier Java/Agility event series anywhere serving over 28,000 attendees with some 180 events since 2002. The popularity of the NFJS symposium series can be traced to the following: 1). Exceptional Speakers 2). Limited Attendance - capped at 250 people 3). No Vendors, No Sales Pitches, no Marketecture 4). Excellent networking opportunities with speakers and fellow attendees 5). The Best Value in the Java conferencing space period ************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***** Make sure and use your JUG discount of $50 by using the promo code nfjsusergroup50 when registering.

If you are registering with a group, the highest discount will apply - group or user group. Early Bird Rates End: 08/31/2009 Individual: $850/person Excellent Group Discounts Available - bring your entire development team to the show: 5-9 Attendees: $750/person 10-14 Attendees: $725/person 15-24 Attendees: $700/person 25-over Attendees: $675/person All attendees receive a custom NFJS binder with event content. Excellent Giveaways - $200 Apple Store Gift Cards, Books, and More! Join us again for another great show! We appreciate your support and patronage!! Go to http://www.nofluffjuststuff.com/conference/seattle/2009/09/home for registration details. All the best, Jay Zimmerman 2009 NFJS Symposium Tour Series Director

jzimmerman@...

#1670

From: Jeff Smith <visionary1usa@...>
Date: Thu Jul 30, 2009 7:39 pm
Subject: SeaSPIN Invite

lostvisionary

Offline

I would like to extend this invitation to join us at the next Seattle - Eastside Software Process Improvement Network(SeaSPIN) meeting on Tuesday, August 4. Below are details on next week's topic and speaker and our website is http://seaspin.org .

We have been around a number of years, but I am reaching out now seeking to widen our audience and to grow our value for the local software community. Our speakers have included authors, local experts, and practitioners from the trenches. Meeting topics include agile methods, software and process techniques, quality and test, requirements and construction, team management and collaboration, and other software topics. We are process-, vendor-, and technology-agnostic... seeking mainly to add to the industry and profession and to return to our audience useful ideas and tools they can apply in any software organization.

I invite you for your ideas, your feedback, and for helping connect the community. The event is free and open to practitioners in software industry, process, human & organizational performance, and engineering. My hope is to get new insight on how to improve the organization and our contribution, how to collaborate better with local employers, academia, and practitioners. We are seeking speakers, joint meeting opportunities, and ideas in general. Of course, we are also always seeking new members.

If you are a PMP, we are able to provide PDUs for the meeting content in your certfication's ongoing education requirement. I am looking into supporting other certifications as well. If you are unable to attend this meeting, feel free to join us for a future meeting. If you know others who may be interested, also feel free to forward this invitation.

I hope to see you there. Thak you for your time.

Jeff Smith

Chair, SeaSPIN

Where & When:
Construx Software, 10900 NE 8th St Suite 1350, Bellevue, WA
Tuesday, August 4
Gathering with pizza, salad, soda @5:45. Talk @ 6:45 with networking following.

Presentation:
Data-Driven, Experiential SPI
So much Software Process Improvement is evangelism, attempting to impose the one true way from outside. That tends to fail, and creates at best compliance.

Process improvement that works treats SPI what it is - a kind of experiential learning, centered on the team doing software development, supported by data about the local practices & results. The team learns how to do things differently, perhaps drawing candidates from an external catalog of techniques.

This talk draws from about a dozen personal experiences with process & practice changes plus industry examples with reference to antecedents like TQM, and Deming and current frameworks like "Lean" and Critical Chain.

Supporting the fact of change
"Your process is what you do"
Process development is knowledge formation.
Relevance: mission and data and mission and data and ...

The talk finishes with a strategy that works for explicit, ongoing SPI.

This material is part of a Jim's future book "Change in Technology Development Organizations: Learning On Purpose".

Bio
James Bullock has been successfully building systems for more than 20 years. In that time he has built high-volume embedded control software, automated plant-floor manufacturing, architected enterprise data warehouse systems, created tools used to manage multi-million SLOC tactical and commercial systems, run technology departments in Internet-based businesses, and shipped multiple releases of innovative SW products for the enterprise.

Through this varied experience, James has remained more interested in how systems are built than in the systems themselves. He has written on subjects such as the development system as a system, the value of testing as a function in a business, software tools and methods in e-commerce, database performance tuning, and how software projects differ from other projects. He is the lead editor of Roundtable on Project Management and coeditor of Roundtable on Technical Leadership, both published by Dorset House.

A Seattle resident, since 2002 James has focused on "conscious software development" guiding clients in purposefully changing how they develop the software they depend on. He is currently developing presentations of general systems thinking in software engineering practice and teaching. James still occasionally builds software or does automated testing because, he says, "I like the toys."

#1669

From: "Tobias Mayer" <scrum@...>
Date: Fri Jul 24, 2009 7:22 am
Subject: [ANN] WelfareCSM in Seattle

tobias.mayer

Offline

WelfareCSM

On August 20-21 there is an opportunity for the low-paid, the marginalized and the unemployed to get the Scrum CSM certificate in Seattle. And you get to bring your non-techie friends too :-)

Please see details at the WelfareCSM website. Thanks.

Tobias Mayer
http://agileanarchy.wordpress.com

#1668

From: Jay Zimmerman <jzimmerman@...>
Date: Wed Jul 22, 2009 6:06 pm
Subject: Mark Your Calendar....2009 Pacific Northwest Software Symposium returns to Seattle on September 18-20th (Agile UG Discount)

jz_tcpn

Offline

Mark Your Calendar.... The 2009 Pacific Northwest Software Symposium returns to Seattle on September 18-20th! *Local Venue, World Class Event* We pride ourselves on offering the best technically focused Java/Agility event anywhere! Make sure and use your Agile UG discount of $50 by using the promo code nfjsusergroup50 when registering. If you are registering with a group, the highest discount will apply - group or user group. Event Name: Pacific Northwest Software Symposium 2009 Dates: September 18 - 20, 2009 Location: Seattle, Washington Venue: Redmond Marriott Town Center URL: http://www.nofluffjuststuff.com/conference/seattle/2009/09/home We have a great set of speakers lined up for you to enjoy featuring: Brian Goetz, Author of Java Concurrency in Practice Brian Sletten, REST Expert David Geary, Author of Graphic Java and co-author of Core JSF Howard Lewis Ship, Creator of Tapestry and HiveMind Ken Sipe, Technology Director, Perficient, Inc. (PRFT) Mark Richards, SOA and Enterprise Architect, Author of Java Message Service Matthew McCullough, Open Source Application Architect at Ambient Ideas Nathaniel Schutta, Author, speaker, software engineer focused on user interface design. Scott Davis, Author of "Groovy Recipes" & TDD Expert Ted Neward, Enterprise, Virtual Machine and Language Wonk Venkat Subramaniam, Founder of Agile Developer, Inc. The No Fluff Just Stuff Symposium series is regarded as the premier Java/Agility event series anywhere serving over 28,000 attendees with some 180 events since 2002. The popularity of the NFJS symposium series can be traced to the following: 1). Exceptional Speakers 2). Limited Attendance - capped at 250 people 3). No Vendors, No Sales Pitches, no Marketecture 4). Excellent networking opportunities with speakers and fellow attendees 5). The Best Value in the Java conferencing space period ************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***** Make sure and use your Agile UG discount of $50 by using the promo code nfjsusergroup50 when registering. If you are registering with a group, the highest discount will apply - group or user group. Early Bird Rates End: 08/31/2009 Individual: $850/person Excellent Group Discounts Available - bring your entire development team to the show: 5-9 Attendees: $750/person 10-14 Attendees: $725/person 15-24 Attendees: $700/person 25-over Attendees: $675/person All attendees receive a custom NFJS binder with event content. Excellent Giveaways - $200 Apple Store Gift Cards, Books, and More! Join us again for another great show! We appreciate your support and patronage!! Go to http://www.nofluffjuststuff.com/conference/seattle/2009/09/home for registration details. All the best, Jay Zimmerman 2009 NFJS Symposium Tour Series Director

#1667

From: "Alan Shalloway" <alshall@...>
Date: Tue Jul 21, 2009 11:24 pm
Subject: [ANN] free seminar this Thursday - Extending Scrum with Lean: Introducing Scrum#

alshalloway

Offline

This Thursday I'll be presenting a seminar on how Lean-Thinking can extend Scrum and solve many of the challenges Scrum teams face.

Full information available at http://www.netobjectives.com/free-seminar-schedule/extending-scrum-lean-scrum-sharp-jul-2009-bellevue

Seminar: Extending Scrum with Lean: Introducing Scrum#

Scrum has quickly become a popular choice for many Agile teams. Along with it, however, is a discovery of many limitations/challenges of Scrum. While the Scrum mantra of "inspect and adapt" tells you to figure out how to solve your problems, insights from Lean-Thinking can provide you with many potential solutions.

This seminar presents Net Objectives' extension to Scrum, using Lean-Thinking to solve many of the problems organizations attempting to use Scrum beyond a few teams often face.

These include:

How to coordinate teams when Scrum-of-Scrums does not seem to work well
How to prepare for your first sprint when you can't just start
How to keep the big picture in mind while working on little things
How to plan ahead when you have large stories

Additionally, some teams have a hard time adopting Scrum in the first place because they aren't able to even create well defined teams. Instead, their staff have to work on many things at once – making Scrum all but impossible to do properly.

In this seminar you will learn the answers to these questions. Additionally, you will learn how the perspective of Lean-Thinking can assist in Scrum implementations.

Agenda

6:00-6:30 pm	Pizza and networking
6:30-8:00 pm	The topic: 'Extending Scrum with Lean: Introducing Scrum#'
8:00-8:30 pm	Discussion of topic

A charitable contribution to Union Gospel Mission and the Millionair Club of $1-3 is requested for food and drink.

Venue/Registration Info

Net Objectives Bellevue Offices: Belle-View Office Park
275 118th Avenue SE
Bellevue, WA 98005
Room/Location: Suite 115
Map link: Directions/Maps
Special Instructions: Enter the main double-doors of the building, off the parking lot. Take the hall to your right. Go to the door at the end of the hall. The training room is through the door, down the hall, last doorway on your left, opposite a small kitchen.
Register for this Event: Register

#1666

From: Srikanth Naidu <srikanth.naidu@...>
Date: Fri Jul 17, 2009 9:31 pm
Subject: Check out my photos on Facebook

yesnaidu

Offline

http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=726649672&k=Z5CUZ3SYVX2AUCBHUE4TPTQ&r

facebook

Check out my photos on Facebook

Hi extremeprogramming-seattle@yahoogroups.com,

I set up a Facebook profile where I can post my pictures, videos and events and I want to add you as a friend so you can see it. First, you need to join Facebook! Once you join, you can also create your own profile.

Thanks,
Srikanth

To sign up for Facebook, follow the link below:

See who else has invited you to Facebook:

Chandi Prasad Bal
13 friends

Aeden Jameson
76 friends
7 photos

extremeprogramming-seattle@yahoogroups.com was invited to join Facebook by Srikanth Naidu. If you do not wish to receive this type of email from Facebook in the future, please click here to unsubscribe.
Facebook's offices are located at 1601 S. California Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94304.

#1665

From: Aeden Jameson <aeden.jameson@...>
Date: Thu Jul 16, 2009 5:42 am
Subject: Check out my photos on Facebook

bevelededges

Offline

http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=1074565867&k=Z6AT66SS432GUCBHUE4TPTQ&r

facebook

Aeden Jameson has:
74 friends
7 photos
0 notes
27 wall posts
3 groups

Check out my photos on Facebook

To sign up for Facebook, follow the link below:

See who else has invited you to Facebook:

Chandi Prasad Bal
13 friends

extremeprogramming-seattle@yahoogroups.com was invited to join Facebook by Aeden Jameson. If you do not wish to receive this type of email from Facebook in the future, please click here to unsubscribe.
Facebook's offices are located at 1601 S. California Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94304.

#1664

From: "mjtardiff" <mjt@...>
Date: Mon Jul 13, 2009 7:01 pm
Subject: BeyondAgile: "Introduction to Behavior-Driven Development" *this* Thursday!

mjtardiff

Offline

It's BeyondAgile: people making software that works!

In our never-ending series of just-in-time events, BeyondAgile presents:

   "An Introduction to Behavior-Driven Development"
   Thursday, 16 June 2009
   6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Read on for agenda and locations information, or visit our Google Group
at  http://groups.google.com/group/beyondagile


- The Blurb
What's BDD? This is the place to be on Thursday night to learn about
Behavior-Driven-Development: what it is, what it attempts to accomplish, its
benefits and drawbacks, and how the ideas behind it could provide a benefit to
your organization.

Our presenter for this event is Michael Ibarra, who's been writing software in
the Seattle are for over ten years for companies like Microsoft, PEMCO
Insurance, eProject (now Daptiv) and (currently) Parametric Portfolio
Associates. He's a Microsoft Certified Programmer and has multiple Microsoft
Certified Technical Specialist certifications. What's more, he's a member of
BeyondAgile's program team since it was founded.


- Event Agenda
o Welcome and Announcements (10 min.)
o "An Introduction to Behavior Driven Development" presentation (60 min.)
o Questions and Answers (15 min.)
o Giveaway Drawing (from AgileToys.com: an x10 build-status light *and* a Team
Toy Pack! See http://www.agiletoys.com for details.) (5 min.)
o Meeting Retrospective (10 min.)
o Socializing and Breakout/Breakup/Beer


- Event Location
We're meeting at *two* physical locations, connected through videolink:

Eastside (Redmond)
   SolutionsIQ
   First Floor Training Center
   10785 Willows Road NE, Suite 250
   Redmond WA

   Directions and picture of building at
    http://www.solutionsiq.com/about-us/contact-us.php
   Look for the tent signs and the blue BeyondAgile logo

Westside (Seattle)
	 Amdocs Digital Commerce Division (formerly QPass)
	 Greece Room
	 2211 Elliott Ave Suite 400
	 Seattle WA


Questions? Contact us at beyondagile@..., or visit our Google
Group, or contribute to the nascent Wiki at beyondagile.org. Or (we're really
letting a thousand flowers bloom here) you can RSVP/discuss the event at the
BeyondAgile Facebook site:

   http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/event.php?eid=68941257907&ref=nf


- Opportunity knocks!
If you've attended our meetings and think the audio/video links need
improvement, or if you *can't * attend our meetings and wish there was
live/stored streaming of meetings...BeyondAgile needs you! Everything we do
happens because someone wants to make something better: we have no staff, no
budget, no fixed leadership or organization...only the folks who want to help
each month, and our faithful location sponsors (Amdocs Seattle Division and
SolutionsIQ).

So: help make this a better group. Contact us using any of the means you see in
this announcement, or come to the meeting and see who you can get to help you!


- What's BeyondAgile?
It's the combination and follow-on to a number of the agile-oriented user and
interest groups that have operated in the Puget Sound area. We aim to:

	 o Build a bigger agile community
	 o Take advantage of overlaps between existing groups
	 o Expand beyond meetings and provide a place to collaborate
	 o Align software development and business
	 o Explore cutting-edge ideas and techniques
	 o Discover the most useful practices among all agile processes


- When do we meet?
The plan was to gather at least once a month on the *3rd* Thursday of the
month--that's a change from our previous plan to target the fourth Thursday--
and probably more often. With luck, that date will work better for more people
than the previous date did.


- Where do BeyondAgile events happen?
Our goal is to have many answers to this. As a result, we've worked to remove
the impediment offered by bridges and commuting: we (try to) hold our events in
both Eastside and Seattle locations, through the semi-magic of videocasting.
That's (much) harder than it seems; we'd also still like to present events freed
from the confines of time through streaming video. If you can make that happen,
please, pease, please volunteer to help!


- What is BeyondAgile like?
That, in large part, is up to you. A primary reason for consolidating our
efforts is to broaden our base of support, capability, and leadership. We
envision a more active, multi-faceted organization that does more than just host
talking heads. Come to our events, join our program team, or just watch what we
do on our online sites--you decide what works for you!

#1663

From: "netobjectives" <mike.shalloway@...>
Date: Wed Jul 1, 2009 4:29 pm
Subject: Tonight's free seminar: "Sustainable Test-Driven Development" in Bellevue

netobjectives

Offline

Hi,

I just wanted to remind everyone that Net Objectives' will be hosting a free
seminar this evening entitled, "Sustainable Test-Driven Development."  This
conference-style seminar will be presented by Scott Bain and will run from
6-8:30pm at our offices in Bellevue.

We still have space available for this exciting talk, so please visit
http://www.netobjectives.com/free-seminar-schedule/sustainable-test-driven-devel\
opment-jul-2009-bellevue to register or for more information.  Feel free to pass
this onto others as well.

There is still room in our upcoming July public courses - "Design Patterns for
Agile Developers" and our new 1-day course "Lean Scrum Master Certification by
Net Objectives" - as well, so check out our public course page if interested:
http://www.netobjectives.com/courses/.

Thanks,
Mike Shalloway
Net Objectives

#1662

From: Jay Zimmerman <jzimmerman@...>
Date: Tue Jun 30, 2009 5:11 pm
Subject: Registration Open....2009 Pacific Northwest Software Symposium returns Sept 18-20th (Agile UG Discount)

jz_tcpn

Offline

The No Fluff Just Stuff 2009 Tour rolls into Seattle on September 18-20th. Make sure and register today for the 2009 Pacific Northwest Software Symposium: Fall Edition!
*Local Venue, World Class Event*
I hope you will join us for what promises to be another great show. We pride ourselves on offering the best technically focused Java/Agility event anywhere!

Make sure and use your Agile UG discount of $50 by using the promo code nfjsusergroup50 when registering. If you are registering with a group, the highest discount will apply - group or user group.

Event Name: Pacific Northwest Software Symposium 2009
Dates: September 18 - 20, 2009
Location: Seattle, Washington - Redmond Marriott Town Center
URL: http://www.nofluffjuststuff.com/conference/seattle/2009/09/home
We have another great set of speakers lined up for you to enjoy featuring:
Brian Goetz, Author of Java Concurrency in Practice
Brian Sletten, REST Expert
David Geary, Author of Graphic Java and co-author of Core JSF
Howard Lewis Ship, Creator of Tapestry and HiveMind
Ken Sipe, Technology Director, Perficient, Inc. (PRFT)
Mark Richards, SOA and Enterprise Architect, Author of Java Message Service
Matthew McCullough, Open Source Application Architect at Ambient Ideas
Nathaniel Schutta, Author, speaker, software engineer focused on user interface design.
Scott Davis, Author of "Groovy Recipes" & TDD Expert
Ted Neward, Enterprise, Virtual Machine and Language Wonk
Venkat Subramaniam, Founder of Agile Developer, Inc.
The No Fluff Just Stuff Symposium series is regarded as the premier
Java/Agility event series anywhere serving over 27,000 attendees with
some 170 events since 2002. The popularity of the NFJS symposium series
can be traced to the following:
1). Exceptional Speakers
2). Limited Attendance - capped at 250 people
3). No Vendors, No Sales Pitches, no Marketecture
4). Excellent networking opportunities with speakers and fellow attendees
5). The Best Value in the Java conferencing space period
************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* *****
Make sure and use your Agile UG discount of $50 by using the promo code nfjsusergroup50 when registering. If you are registering with a group, the highest discount will apply - group or user group.
Early Bird Rates End: 08/31/2009
Individual: $850/person

Excellent Group Discounts Available - bring your entire development team to the show:

5-9 Attendees: $750/person
10-14 Attendees: $725/person
15-24 Attendees: $700/person
25-over Attendees: $675/person
All attendees receive a custom NFJS binder with event content.
Excellent Giveaways - $200 Apple Store Gift Cards, Books, and More!
Join us again for another great show! We appreciate your support and patronage!!
Go to http://www.nofluffjuststuff.com/conference/seattle/2009/09/home for registration details.

All the best,
Jay Zimmerman
2009 NFJS Symposium Tour Series Director

#1661

From: "gp.dejager" <gp.dejager@...>
Date: Sat Jun 6, 2009 9:36 am
Subject: Methodology Effectiveness

gp.dejager

Offline

I'm a researcher from South-Africa, currently doing research for a masters
degree on the efficiency of Information Systems Development Methodologies
(ISDMs). To measure the efficiency of ISDMs a statistical/linear programming
method, called Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), is used witch require certain
inputs and outputs. These inputs and outputs are captured with a small online
survey.

I need about 100 surveys to be completed. Only one per company.

If your company use any form of a software development methodology (XP, SCRUM,
OO methods, etc.) would you please take 5 minutes to complete a 3-page web
survey?


http://isdm.questionform.com/public/Methodology-Research


Your help is highly appreciated.
Thank you very much!


Gerhard de Jager

#1660

From: "shawee100" <shawee100@...>
Date: Thu Jun 25, 2009 10:01 pm
Subject: Distributed teams and Agile

shawee100

Offline

Hello:

My name is Elizabeth Shaw and I represent a group called UXL
(http://uxleague.org) that is involved in research on user experience design and
Agile development.  Currently we are researching Agile use in a distributed team
environment (a team whose members who are not located in the same place).

We have created an online survey asking questions about people's experiences
working on a distributed product development effort.  The survey is available
at:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=jWGOF2TRjRhADtR7r6hZrA_3d_3d

Participation is entirely optional.  There are no required questions in the
survey and it is possible to exit the survey at any time. We do not require any
personal information. All data collected is completely confidential and is not
associated with the respondent.  We would be happy to share our results with
anyone interested after we have completed our data compilation.

Thank you very much for your time and attention!  Please feel free to contact me
anytime with any questions or comments about this e-mail, about the survey or
any other topic.

Sincerely,
Elizabeth Shaw
elizabeth@...

#1659

From: Diana Larsen <dlarsen@...>
Date: Wed Jun 24, 2009 5:52 pm
Subject: "Secrets of Agile Teamwork" - first time in Seattle area, July 21-23

DianaLarsen

Offline

Hi everyone,

For the first time, Esther Derby and I are bringing our "Secrets of
Agile Teamwork: Beyond Technical Skills" public workshop to the
Seattle area, July 21-23.
http://solutionsiq.com/services/course-catalog.php#secrets

We've been continuously improving this Agile team leadership and
collaboration skills workshop for the past six years, through many
iterations, both public and in-house. It just keeps getting better and
better.

A few comments about the course from previous participants:

“I think this is a must-attend workshop.”
“Not boring corporate techniques. Real processes that help.”
“Interesting. Illuminating. Introspective.”
“Relevant issues and useful mental models.”
“New ways to think about Agile teams and how to solve the problems
inherent in them.”
“An intense dialogue between peers and experts on the benefits,
processes and challenges of creating and developing Agile teams.”
"Provided me with a wide range of insights into the inner workings of
teams and tools to effectively work in building teams."
"I never realized how important it is to slowdown in team processes
and interactions to enable higher performance and team sustainability."
"I love the way you model the desired behaviors throughout the course!"
"Like a simulator for Agile teams, in three days we experienced many
issues facing most Agile teams."

Who attends this workshop? Team members, Team leads, Scrum Masters, XP
Coaches, Project Managers, Product Owners, Program Managers,
Development Managers, VP’s of Development. In short, anyone who
benefits from practicing and applying effective team skills.

For a course outline and registration information:
http://solutionsiq.com/services/course-catalog.php#secrets

For answers to questions ( (like "Why do I need this?" or "How do I
bring this workshop in-house?"), drop me a line or call me at
503-288-3550.  The workshop is limited to 15 participants. Register
soon.

Hope to see you there,
Diana

PS Please feel free to pass this email along to others who may have an
interest in attending.


***
Diana Larsen
http://www.futureworksconsulting.com/get-in-touch

For upcoming conferences, workshops & events:
http://futureworksconsulting.com/where-we-be

"Making Agile a Reality" Agile 2009 conference - Register Now!
August 24-28, 2009 Chicago, USA http://agile2009.agilealliance.org

#1658

From: "mjtardiff" <mjt@...>
Date: Mon Jun 15, 2009 8:27 pm
Subject: BeyondAgile: "Agile ADHD" event *this* Thursday in Redmond and Seattle!

mjtardiff

Offline

It's BeyondAgile: people making software that works!

In our never-ending series of just-in-time events, BeyondAgile presents:

   "Overcoming Agile ADHD"
   Thursday, 18 June 2009
   6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Read on for agenda and locations information, or visit our Google Group
at  http://groups.google.com/group/beyondagile


- The Blurb
Fear of decision making often leads teams to exhibit one or more of the
dysfunctional symptoms of "Agile ADHD." This month's BeyondAgile event is a
preview of an Agile 2009 tutorial (see http://www.agile2009.com/node/3110 for
more info on that) that uses ADHD as a Metaphor for dysfunctional decision
making.

In this tutorial, Bruce Winegarden and David Ullman will go beyond estimating
and scheduling to address how to improve timeliness in making many other types
of decisions that affect the overall productivity and effectiveness of an agile
development team. You'll take away principles and practices that enable their
team to embrace uncertainty and be proactive in making better decisions at the
most responsible moment.

Bruce Winegarden has extensive business and technical knowledge for software and
systems development, product management and innovation. He enjoys guiding teams
of people from different disciplines discover sustainable practices that smooth
and accelerate their delivery. As principal consultant at Eagle Eye View, he
delivers consulting, modeling, training, and coaching services applying Lean and
Agile principles that enable organizational changes to streamline product
development, improve business workflows, and deploy more meaningful and
effective information technology. Bruce is also a charter member of BeyondAgile,
and volunteers on the BeyondAgile program team.

Dr. David G. Ullman is President of Robust Decisions Inc. An active product
designer, he has taught, researched and written about design and decision-making
over 20 years. His text, The Mechanical Design Process, 4rd edition,
McGraw Hill, 2009, is used at many universities. His book, _Making Robust
Decisions_, was published in 2006. He has published more than 20 mechanical
product design process and decision-making papers. He is a Fellow of the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and founder of its Design Theory
and Methodology committee.


- Event Agenda
o Welcome and Announcements (10 min.)
o "Agile ADHD" presentation (60 min.)
o Questions and Answers (15 min.)
o Giveaway Drawing (a copy of Dr. David Ullman's book _Making Robust Decisions_)
(5 min.)
o Meeting Retrospective (10 min.)
o Socializing and Breakout/Breakup/Beer


- Event Location
We're meeting at *two* physical locations this month, connected through
videolink:

Eastside (Redmond)
   SolutionsIQ
   First Floor Training Center
   10785 Willows Road NE, Suite 250
   Redmond WA

   Directions and picture of building at
    http://www.solutionsiq.com/about-us/contact-us.php
   Look for the tent signs and the blue BeyondAgile logo

Westside (Seattle)
	 Amdocs Digital Commerce Division (formerly QPass)
	 Greece Room
	 2211 Elliott Ave Suite 400
	 Seattle WA


Questions? Contact us at beyondagile@..., or visit our Google
Group, or contribute to the nascent Wiki at beyondagile.org. Or (we're really
letting a thousand flowers bloom here) you can RSVP/discuss the event at the
BeyondAgile Facebook site:

   http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/event.php?eid=68941257907&ref=nf


- What's BeyondAgile?
It's the combination and follow-on to a number of the agile-oriented user and
interest groups that have operated in the Puget Sound area. We aim to:

	 o Build a bigger agile community
	 o Take advantage of overlaps between existing groups
	 o Expand beyond meetings and provide a place to collaborate
	 o Align software development and business
	 o Explore cutting-edge ideas and techniques
	 o Discover the most useful practices among all agile processes


- When do we meet?
The plan was to gather at least once a month on the *3rd* Thursday of the
month--that's a change from our previous plan to target the fourth Thursday--
and probably more often. With luck, that date will work better for more people
than the previous date did.


- Where do BeyondAgile events happen?
Our goal is to have many answers to this. As a result, we've worked to remove
the impediment offered by bridges and commuting: we (try to) hold our events in
both Eastside and Seattle locations, through the semi-magic of videocasting.
That's (much) harder than it seems; we'd also still like to present events freed
from the confines of time through streaming video. If you can make that happen,
please, pease, please volunteer to help!


- What is BeyondAgile like?
That, in large part, is up to you. A primary reason for consolidating our
efforts is to broaden our base of support, capability, and leadership. We
envision a more active, multi-faceted organization that does more than just host
talking heads. Come to our events, join our program team, or just watch what we
do on our online sites--you decide what works for you!

#1657

From: "mjtardiff" <mjt@...>
Date: Tue May 26, 2009 4:20 pm
Subject: BeyondAgile: "Agile ROI" event *this* Thursday in Redmond and Seattle!

mjtardiff

Offline

It's BeyondAgile: people making software that works!

In our continuing series of compelling-but-announced-at-the-last-minute
presentations, BeyondAgile presents:

   "Agile ROI: Building the Business Case for Agile"
   Wednesday, 28 May 2009
   6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Read on for agenda and locations information, or visit our Google Group at
 http://groups.google.com/group/beyondagile


- The Blurb
You've had a great holiday weekend, and now it's time to shake off that mellow,
relaxed feeling and get down to business -- Agile business, that is. Join us
*this* Thursday evening to hear Dave Wylie, Agile consultant and "get-it-done"
engagement manager lay out a rock-solid proof that shipping early wins, every
time. Ever wondered why your team understands that Agile makes sense but your
upper management doesn't? It's because they haven't heard Dave make the numbers
work. Bring them along!

Building on material first presented as a Webinar (see
https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/596306620), in this new and expanded talk
Dave will explore the concept of Agile business value, why companies are
adopting Agile, and how this reduces cash commitments to projects.

David Wylie is an Engagement Manager at SolutionsIQ, responsible for project
success and delighting his customers. He's worked as a software developer,
tester, analyst, project manager and consultant on systems strategy, software
selection, conversions, sun setting applications, business analysis,
development, reporting and testing.


- Event Agenda
o Welcome and Announcements (10 min.)
o "Agile ROI presentation" (45 min.)
o Questions and Answers (20 min.)
o Giveaway Drawing (if we find a giveaway to giveaway...) (5 min.)
o Meeting Retrospective (10 min.)
o Socializing and Breakout/Breakup/Beer


- Event Location
We're meeting at *two* physical locations this month, connected through
videolink:

Eastside (Redmond)
   SolutionsIQ
   First Floor Training Center
   10785 Willows Road NE, Suite 250
   Redmond WA

   Directions and picture of building at
    http://www.solutionsiq.com/about-us/contact-us.php
   Look for the tent signs and the blue BeyondAgile logo

Westside (Seattle)
	 Amdocs Digital Commerce Division (formerly QPass)
	 Greece Room
	 2211 Elliott Ave Suite 400
	 Seattle WA


Questions? Contact us at beyondagile@..., or visit our Google
Group, or contribute to the nascent Wiki at beyondagile.org. Or (we're really
letting a thousand flowers bloom here) you can RSVP/discuss the event at the
BeyondAgile FaceBook event site:

   http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/event.php?eid=68941257907&ref=nf


- What's BeyondAgile?
It's the combination and follow-on to a number of the agile-oriented user and
interest groups that have operated in the Puget Sound area. We aim to:

	 o Build a bigger agile community
	 o Take advantage of overlaps between existing groups
	 o Expand beyond meetings and provide a place to collaborate
	 o Align software development and business
	 o Explore cutting-edge ideas and techniques
	 o Discover the most useful practices among all agile processes


- When do we meet?
The plan was to gather at least once a month on the 4th Thursday of the month,
and probably more often. We're still getting the bugs out, but three of our four
events have happened on the 4th Thursday. Come and help us work out future
events.


- Where do BeyondAgile events happen?
Our goal is to have many answers to this. As a result, we've worked to remove
the impediment offered by bridges and commuting: we (try to) hold our events in
both Eastside and Seattle locations, through the semi-magic of videocasting.
That's harder than it seems; we'd also still like to present events freed from
the confines of time through streaming video. If you can make that happen,
please help us!


- What is BeyondAgile like?
That, in large part, is up to you. A primary reason for consolidating our
efforts is to broaden our base of support, capability, and leadership. We
envision a more active, multi-faceted organization that does more than just host
talking heads. We try to gather at least once a month on the 4th Thursday of the
month, and in the future, probably more often. You can help us decide.

#1656

From: "netobjectives" <mike.shalloway@...>
Date: Wed May 27, 2009 9:42 pm
Subject: Free Seminar on 5/28, "Business Driven Software Development"

netobjectives

Offline

Hi,

I wanted to remind everyone of tomorrow night's free seminar at the Net
Objectives' office in Bellevue.  "Business Driven Software Development"
will be delivered by Alan Chedalawada from 6-8:30pm on Thursday, May 28.
For more information, including how to register for this free seminar,
please follow this link:
http://www.netobjectives.com/free-seminar-schedule/business-driven-softw\
are-development-may-2009-bellevue

Many organizations have embarked on the agile approach for their
software development efforts, with the goal of realizing business value
sooner, while adjusting to changing business priorities. Successful
adoption is dependent on the development organization, management, and
the business all progressing towards agility; while all three areas are
important, business involvement is critical!

How is your business impacted by Agile? How should they participate?

Business Driven Software Development is where the Business owns scope
and delivery of software solutions, and `drives' the development
efforts, incrementally based on highest business value.

This talk describes Business Driven Software Development which includes
Continuous Business Planning, Business Value increments – known as
Minimum Marketable Features, prioritization of these increments across
your project portfolio, Business Roles and Responsibilities, and a
changing paradigm of how the Business `drives' software
development efforts across product lines for enterprise agility.

We still have space available, so please invite anyone you fell might be
interested in this talk.

Thanks,
Mike Shalloway
Net Objectives