Books that help you earn the ability to benefit from technical excellence!
We've talked about "wisdom from books" and something like the "Radio Free XP" bookshelf.
On today's episode, we work to formalize the topic, and get into how and why _Turn The Ship Around_ and _Never Split The Difference_ can help people improve their tech career experience.
Elisabeth Hendrickson and Janice Fraser, what else could you want to know?
Recording Date: Jan 16, 02024
Hosts: Tony Hansmann && Jesse Alford
Guest: Bryon Kroger
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryon-kroger/recent-activity/all/
Brian Kroger is the founder and CEO of Rise8.us. A consultancy inspired by the Pivotal Model. Bryon works in the DOD and calls himself a bureaucracy hacker.
In the episode, he points out that once you understand how the bureaucracy is “programmed,” you can often get a lot further than you can in private industry.
Listen through to all the way!
Tony && Jesse
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Rise8 Company Description
Rise8 delivers software for Critical Missions. We are revolutionizing the way government agencies build, deploy, and utilize critical software.
Rise8 is a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) with headquarters in Tampa, FL, and a fully-remote workforce.
Purpose
Drive relentless progress.
We own relentless progress. We can always do better. The moment we stop thinking that, the moment we stop pushing for a better future - bad things happen.
Promise
Critical outcomes in prod (real, rapid, reliable).
Logo
The Rise8 logo emphasizes the number 8 and is a symbol of the paired relationship we practice with our clients at every level of operation. The slash within the 8 is a 78-degree angle as a nod to the Japanese proverb that inspired our name: “Fall seven, rise eight.”
Recording Date: 2023-11-13
Hosts: Tony Hansmann && Jesse Alford
Guest Name: Mala Janus
Contact information:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/malakjanus/
Guest: Mala Janus is a Pivot who has never worked for Pivotal. She’s an XP practitioner who learned both the Dev and PM side of things while working at a large client who built their own Pivotal-style Lab.
All Pivots know the magic experience of meeting new Pivots, the origin stories, the comparison of how “we do things here,” the seeking of accord, alignment, and camaraderie, which are the foundation for effective pairing.
To all Pivots everywhere, we wish you Happy Hoildays and a working model that makes sense to you.
Recording Date: 2023-11-15
Hosts: Tony Hansmann && Jesse Alford
Guest Name: Thomas Squeo
Social media:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomassqueo/
Previous interview on Youtube.com: https://youtu.be/iZCPAHwhTWI?si=CfjhBEkyqN69x4eF
Guest: Thomas Squeo
Title: Let’s Play “Bet your Badge” with Thomas Squeo (01h:30m)
One of the greatest things about being in the field for Cloud Foundry was meeting leaders who were deploying not just Cloud Foundry but an array of transformation solutions.
Thomas Squeo's roots in XP go back to the early 2000s when he was an early Beck practitioner who worked with both Pivotal Labs and Thoughtworks. What sets Thomas apart is that he has done everything from being a line developer to being the CTO of Entrado, a global 911 provider, among other things.
Jesse and Tony talk about what it takes to not just do XP but also what the IRL challenges you will face when transforming an organization.
Grab a notebook and buckle up.
Recording Date: 2023-11-13
Hosts: Tony Hansmann && Jesse Alford
Guest Name: Drew McManus
Drew has a 30+ year career with orgs that are serious about software. He got involved with Pivotal Labs around 2006 and shepherded the practice until 2020.
Social media:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drewmcmanus/
Recording Date: November 10th, 2023
Hosts: Tony Hansmann && Jesse Alford
Guest Name: Alex Tran
Alex Tran has spent time at Code For America, Pivotal, and touring around the US helping Climete Tech companies. He’s got a new UX Consultancy focused on climate, wellness, insurance, and govtech clients.
We had the type of really fun conversation I miss having with Designers! We talk about his pairing journey, design on a balanced team, and some of the principles he teaches his design students.
Social media:
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/alexandersitran/
Hosts: Tony Hansmann and Jesse Alford
Guest: Steve Sorenson
Contact information: steve@vrimanagementllc.com
Tony talks to Steve. Jesses and Tony about it.
Recording Date: 2023-10-31
Hosts: Tony Hansmann && Jesse Alford
Guest: Cptn L. David Marquet (Retired)
Introduction to the Leader/Leader (With Tests!)
In Cloud Foundry R&D, there was a moment when the leadership team decided they needed a new model. The book they turned to was “Turn the Ship Around” by David Marquet.
Today, we talk with David about the outline of the Leader/Leader process and how to adopt it. He recommends, “Start with self.”
Join us for this overview Leader/Leader and learn a test-driven, solo exercise to “start with yourself.”
David Marquet's Contact and Social Media
Books:
From the discussion:
Recorded: 2023-10-25
Hosts: Jesse Alford and Tony Hansmann
Summary:
True Believer Davis Frank joins us to share his pairing journey, what the transition from solo to pair feels like, and what happens when "pairing is just not a fit" for a staff member.
After the pair journey, Jesse and Davis make the case for joining the Pivotal Diaspora.
Join us to mainline some Pivotal goodness.
Davis recounting his Paring Journey on stage at Golden Gate Ruby Conference in 2013: https://dwf.bigpencil.net/gogaruco-2013-storytime/
Runtime: 1h:36m
Guest: Dwayne Forde
Host: Tony Hansmann
Today's interview is with Dwayne Forde and I'm not even going to try to be measured about it! In a world where every Pivot is an unbelievably good coach and supporter, Dwayne Forde stands out as a Pivot's Pivot.
Kind and effective without ever compromising integrity.
Capable. So capable you start to wonder if there's any limit at all.
Dwayne knows team sports, and at Pivotal, I experienced him playing by the best possible rules: Honest, optimistic criticism in the search for Right/Kind/Works. His palpable commitment and insane fluency at increasing competency and growth org wide is something I could not get enough of.
In this episode, we talk about Dwayne's autodidact start in software and how he was tricked into a job at eXtreme Labs. Short and sweet, he sums up his first four weeks of pairing as: I became 20x more productive.
We move on to a discussion of his new company https://WithMantel.com - which is looking for lighthouse customers in Q4Y23. If you've got a Cap Table that you want to automate, you can become an early adopter for free.
We round out with a wide-ranging discussion of little 'a' agile observations.
Recorded: Sept 15th, 02023
Guest: Jonathan Rogivue (aka JRO)
Host: Tony Hansmann
Call to action:
JRO is looking for pairs/partners for physical makerspaces in Austin, TX, USA or Medellín, Columbia
JRO Takes us on his pairing journey.
Recorded Oct 4th, 2023
Guest: David Laing (Dublin, IR CF Pivot)
Host: Tony Hansmann
Call to action: David is currently looking for collaborators who own production systems to participate in WellMaintained.io. Interested parties can join through their website.
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In today's episode, David Lang to discuss his new organization, WellMaintained.io. The episode focuses on the problem of creating efficient and humane operational teams for running software in production environments.
Key Takeaways:
Genesis of WellMaintained.io:
David explains that the organization aims to extend the efficient software development practices proven at Pivotal to software operations. The goal is not just efficient operation but also a humane and energizing experience for practitioners.
Pain Points in Operations: Tony and David discuss the myriad issues in typical software operations, from expired certificates to unpredicted medium-term problems, dubbed as "meso problems".
Learning from Pivotal: Both speakers highlight the success of the Pivotal model in software development and ponder its application in operations. They stress the importance of team organization, iterating on practices, and sharing context to keep a team alive indefinitely.
The Concept of 'Meso Problems': Operations have medium-term challenges that often go unnoticed. By tracking these 'meso problems,' teams can preempt issues before they become crises.
Solution: Shorten the Loops: David recommends frequent rotations and check-ins to get good at solving recurring problems. For example, instead of a certificate that expires every five years, have it expire every month, practice renewing it, and make the process efficient.
Future Plans: David wants to hold a series of conversations to identify common pain points in operations. He is also open to community events, though none are scheduled yet.
For anyone interested in a new operational model inspired by Pivotal's success, visit Well-Maintained.org or connect on the Pivotal alumni Slack.
This episode provides a deep dive into how proven software development methodologies can be adapted to solve the pervasive issues plaguing software operations today.
Joshua Aresty Paring Journey && #OpenToGuests
Joshua Aresty and Tony Hansmann take us through joining Pivotal, a pure pairing shop where coding practices and team dynamics are on another level. Joshua narrates his accidental path to Pivotal's San Francisco office. There, he plunged into the Release Integration Team, pairing with a diverse set of folks that ranged from freelance genius to PhD math candidates.
At the heart of their discussion lies the concept of paired programming. For both Joshua and Tony, pairing went beyond coding; it established an intimate, productive co-mingling of intellectual capacities. They describe it as an 'entrained nervous system,' leading to a form of work harmony that, once tasted, makes solo efforts seem impoverished in comparison.
The episode also touches on the "stay interview"—a Pivotal 1:1 practice of asking: why are you not quitting today?
Joshua rounds out the discussion with a model for effective remote pairing with the #OpenToGuests model. As always, there’s a practice to establish in your own shop.
Nat Bennett is an amazing observer of work and how it works. This is their essay on The Conservation Of Conflict, read by Jesse Alford.
Nat argues that in any group, there will be a certain number of conflicts. These conflicts cannot be created or destroyed except by changing the group's composition.
Nat cites the example of teams arguing about features vs. chores. They argue this is often a sign the team is avoiding a more difficult conversation about who gets to decide what to work on.
Listen now and to get the full picuture!
Elisabeth Hendrickson is a transformational leader who mentored A LOT of folks at Pivotal. Join us for a conversation on the hows and whys of management and leadership at Pivotal.
Jesse Alford and Tony Hansmann talk about the book "Blindsight" by Peter Watts.
Blindsight is intricate and very smart book. Exactly the kind of thing systems designers love to talk about.
Nat Bennett describes their pairing journey at Pivotal.