Nobody in history has gotten better at software development by having more meetings. Calling those meetings "events" doesn't change that. Time spent in meetings is time spent not working. Looking at Scrum, I can't see anything done in a single one of those meetings that couldn't be done better without the meeting. Let's look at a few:
Daily Scrum: Unnecessary if you're working collaboratively in an ensemble or even talking to each other throughout the day. This is a meeting for the benefit of people who work in isolation so they can coordinate once a day. Stop working in isolation.
Retros: Teams working in an ensemble don't need them. It assumes scatter/gather. That doesn't mean an occasional chapter/guild meeting isn't a bad way to coordinate with other teams, but the by-rote bi-weekling thing most Scrum Teams do is not that. Those three questions are particularly worthless. When something goes wrong, pull the Andon Cord.
Sprint Reviews: Dog and pony shoes are worthless. If an engineer is sitting in front of the computer, you're learning nothing. At a minimum, put a user in front of the computer and watch them work. If they have a question, that's a defect. Even better, dump the meeting entirely and just release daily. People who are interested in the state of the software can just look at it.
Backlog jiggering. We learn as we work. Many highly functional shops don't have a backlog at all. They learn what to do next by doing the current thing. But if you insist... A backlog with more than a couple of weeks' work on it will not reflect that learning, so it has no value (negative value, actually, because you're wasting time messing with the thing). Create a fixed-length (WIP limited), very small "ready queue." Nothing goes on unless something comes off. Everything on it has been decomposed to the point where it can't be made smaller. Be hardnosed about the length of the queue. Adjust it constantly every time you look at it. Augment the queue with a simple and flexible strategic plan.
Sprint planning--Have regular chats with customers all the time. If you haven't gleaned enough info to start from those chats, maybe you should work on that. Get active feedback as you work and collect additional info as you do that. Dump the damn tickets and the story points. They're actively destructive.
I love this. Love the push to lean out and just get stuff done. I’ve dabbled in standups outside of work (had them with my wife on multiple occasions) and the chat is great for alignment. But, we have no issues adapting throughout. And I love a good retro, but if a team is working close, enjoys working together, and is left alone, they can fix stuff on the fly.
> "Retros: Teams working in an ensemble don't need them"
Complete nonsense. Inspecting and adapting should be deliberate, done outside of the cut and thrust of normal work. Even ensembles should pause frequently and adjust how they are working.
I advise ensembles to retro every day; it only takes 5-10 minutes, but it pays huge dividends in terms of team cohesion and adaptability. And even then, it's a good idea to take stock every month too, to take a look at the bigger picture.
Inspect and adapt IS the normal work. Not sure what benefit there is in a special meeting if the team's working in an ensemble. When something requires attention, give it attention.
I love this. Love the push to lean out and just get stuff done. I’ve dabbled in standups outside of work (had them with my wife on multiple occasions) and the chat is great for alignment. But, we have no issues adapting throughout. And I love a good retro, but if a team is working close, enjoys working together, and is left alone, they can fix stuff on the fly.
> "Retros: Teams working in an ensemble don't need them"
Complete nonsense. Inspecting and adapting should be deliberate, done outside of the cut and thrust of normal work. Even ensembles should pause frequently and adjust how they are working.
I advise ensembles to retro every day; it only takes 5-10 minutes, but it pays huge dividends in terms of team cohesion and adaptability. And even then, it's a good idea to take stock every month too, to take a look at the bigger picture.
Inspect and adapt IS the normal work. Not sure what benefit there is in a special meeting if the team's working in an ensemble. When something requires attention, give it attention.