WHAT. A. CONFERENCE.
I mean, really, Agile2017 is just one of those conferences you can’t help but marvel at. There’s so much to see and do; so many new people to meet while you’re chatting with those familiar faces you’ve come to know of the years. We had a blast talking with everyone, soaking up the session knowledge, and producing LitheSpeed’s Agile Leadership podcast with Bob Payne in the hosting chair.
Let’s talk about the fun first. We had some pretty cool giveaways this year (looking’ at you, beard oil and drone) and a pretty nifty bag insert that taught attendees how to do some fun origami with all the other bag inserts.
Congrats to @thebeardeddoug @BarrelBeardTat for winning our second bottle! @lithespeed pic.twitter.com/Mfp4Unh28t
— Jason Hall (@JasonHallc) August 9, 2017
Frogs, stars, and dinosaurs, oh my! Thanks for showing us your origami! @lithespeed #agile2017 pic.twitter.com/Gxo3hl0q6L
— Stephanie Williams (@StephWilli27) August 10, 2017
Bob Payne and I recorded LitheSpeed’s Agile From the Top podcast for the first three days of the conference and had some really fantastic conversations with our guests. In this podcast, leaders in the agile community discuss what executives need to know when it comes to enterprise transformation: scaling strategies, the leader’s role in enterprise-wide transformation and more. Look out for more podcasting at our upcoming Agile DC Executive Summit in September.
Sneak peak at @lithespeed podcast #4 this morning with @agiletoolkit pic.twitter.com/n6IuZZdMlA
— Stephanie Williams (@StephWilli27) August 8, 2017
On the business side, we held an Executive Breakfast championed by our own Sanjiv Augustine, where we brought together executives from the industry to discuss digital transformation at their own companies. We talked with leaders about how they keep their teams focused and aligned (visual management systems was a constant here!), what autonomy meant for them and their companies, and how their digital transformations were or weren’t working.
A common topic at our booth was the Teal self-managing organization. Managing Agile Consultants Peter Oliver-Krueger and Jason Hall were there to dish out some knowledge: “Have you heard of Teal? It’s a tiered approach to coaching that allows us to look at where your company is, and create a plan to move it to the next level, without jumping too far ahead with techniques you’re not ready for.” Pete gave an open space talk around Teal at the end of the conference
Our team had the opportunity to present two talks: Pete’s presentation, Double Aces: Positive Psychology Research that Solves Problems and Boosts Team Performance and Bob Payne and George Dinwiddie’s Portfolio Visualization and Prioritization for Business Agility workshop. Take a look at variations on these presentations in our webinar series. At the end of the conference, Jason Hall gave a lightning talk on LitheSpeed’s recognized system, drawing a crowd on the very last day of the conference – impressive!
Room filling up quickly for Pete Oliver Krueger’s session on Double Aces. #Agile2017 pic.twitter.com/ZuFBY8rHWn
— Sanjiv Augustine (@saugustine) August 8, 2017
Needless to say, it was a very eventful conference.
For those who talked to us about agile leadership, the Agile Leadership Academy is right around the corner on September 11th and 12th.
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