teams
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5 Pitfalls Agile Coaches Must AvoidSuccessful agile teams often have a coach driving continuous improvement. While some coaches are effective initially, many eventually succumb to pitfalls that inhibit their team’s growth and fail to compel any lasting changes. Here are five common pitfalls of agile coaches in most projects that fail to improve. | 
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Why Laughter Is a Sign of Creative, Productive TeamsLaughter is a sign that people feel relaxed and safe. In a workplace, safety leads to environments that enable more idea generation and innovation, so one approach to improving teammates' creativity and connection is to encourage laughter. But how can you do that so it doesn't feel forced? Steve Berczuk has some ideas. | 
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4 Impediments to Nurturing a Feedback-Rich CultureBeing able to have open, candid conversations that fuel learning, growth, and improvement is critical to a team’s success, so it is important to look out for impediments that can get in the way of having a feedback-rich culture. Here are four common impediments to watch for, as well as behaviors you should nurture. | 
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Fighting Key-Person Dependency Risk on Your TeamKey-person dependency risk is when only one person on your team possesses certain business-critical abilities or knowledge—so if that person leaves, you're in trouble. The first step of mitigating that risk is taking stock of your team members and their skills. Decide what's important, and train or hire accordingly. | 
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Relax This Summer and Be a Maker For many, it's time for a much-needed break with a summer vacation at the beach, listening to the ocean waves with toes in the sand. But numerous studies show it’s important to take time to find a way to destress on a regular basis. If doing nothing isn't your cup of tea, Pamela Rentz has some project ideas. |
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Is Your Agile Team Taking Every Opportunity for Communication?Scrum events are well-defined points where team members communicate, but they shouldn't be the only times. If you’re not considering coding, tests, and the delivery process as opportunities for a conversation, you are missing an important chance to leverage individuals and interactions, as the Agile Manifesto states. |
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Is Shifting Left Forcing Developers to Become Testers? Even if it’s the testers who are asked to make some of the biggest changes when it comes to the concept of shifting left, they’re rarely the ones who are calling the shots. When it comes to testing earlier and more often during a project, it’s management making the big decisions. |
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The Role of the Test Manager in AgileIn traditional software processes, test managers are responsible for all management aspects of their team. Agile, however, is self-directed, so teams handle all the usual duties. Still, there is a role for test managers in agile, and it’s much more strategic than it was before. Here are the opportunities for the role. | 
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