The Mountain Goat Software Blog

Article artwork for How Much Can You Really Tinker with Scrum?
How Much Can You Really Tinker with Scrum?

Does Scrum work if you don’t have a Scrum Master? What about sprints? Estimates? And so on? Discover what you can, and cannot, live without in Scrum.

Harried product owners can be as elusive as Bigfoot. An illustration of a work desk shows a copy of Scrum News with the heading" Busy Product Owner Spotted" next to a picture of Bigfoot with a tie on, holding a briefcase, while papers fly around.
How to Engage & Help Busy Product Owners

With many competing pulls on their time, product owners can be hard to catch during a sprint. Learn how to help harried product owners seize opportunities to inspect and adapt outside the sprint review.

Article artwork for Sprint Review Agenda.
Sprint Review Agenda

While the demo itself is the most prominent part of a sprint review, running an effective review requires more than that. Get this handy agenda for comprehensive sprint reviews.

Sprint reviews are a two-way conversation not a one-way demonstration.
Sprint Review: More Than Just A Demo

There’s much more to a sprint review than just a demo. Discover the purpose of a sprint review and why calling it a demo is a bad idea.

Article artwork for Troubleshooting Nightmarish Daily Scrums.
Troubleshooting Nightmarish Daily Scrums

Are your teams haunted by horrible daily scrums? Are team members suppressing screams of frustration as one person drones on and on? Or maybe standing like zombies waiting to give a robotic response? If so, don’t despair. Learn how to turn a grim meeting into an energetic sync.

Article artwork for Daily Scrums Not Working? Try This Instead.
Daily Scrums Not Working? Try This Instead.

If team members are only going through the motions, you're probably doing daily scrums wrong. Discover a more effective way to approach daily scrums with your teams.

Each team member brings a piece of the sprint puzzle to each daily scrum. By syncing the pieces, the team sees a full picture of how the sprint is going. The daily scrum exists for team members to sync, not to report status to the Scrum Master.
Daily Scrums: Synchronization Meetings, Not Status Meetings

Too many daily scrums are status meetings instead of a time for team members to share plans, progress, and problems with one another. Learn why and what you can do about it.

On a desk, a copy of The Scrum Guide sits beside an open tablet, calendar, and notebook. As teams progress with Scrum, they can experiment with changes to their approach (even if it conflicts with Scrum Guide) but not at first.
Start Scrum by the Book: Don't Finish There

As teams progress with Scrum, they can (and should) experiment with changes to their approach. But not at first. Learn more.

A team is gathered around a table looking together at a large blueprint and a product backlog. Each developer is adding their own insights and ideas to the sprint plan.
How to Stop Struggling with Sprint Planning

What are the danger signs that sprint planning is a struggle for your teams? And how can you turn it around? Find out in this video blog.

Becoming a product owner is a big decision. Have you considered becoming a product owner? Maybe you should.
Should You Become a Product Owner?

Is product owner the right role for you? Discover 4 skills product owners need, 5 popular paths to product owner, and 4 questions to ask yourself when considering the job.

A man in a white lab coat and a woman work together to find space for experiments inside a sprint. To be innovative and agile, teams need to experiment early and often.
When Do Agile Teams Make Time for Innovation?

As Scrum teams have moved to shorter sprints, have they also lost the extra time to experiment freely? What can we do to reignite a spirit of innovation?

Effective Scrum Masters need three key concessions from their organization. They have three rights, shown left to right in a circle: access to stakeholders, freedom to experiment, and the ability to openly address issues.
Three Rights of Effective Scrum Masters

To be effective, a Scrum Master has a right to expect at least three things from their company culture. Find out what those are.