Agile Communities of Practice: Set Up, Sustain, Succeed

1. World®
’16
Agile Communities of Practice:
Set Up, Sustain, Succeed
Sesh Veeraraghavan: Director, Agile Practice, IHS Markit
AMX115S
AGILE MANAGEMENT

2. 2 © 2016 CA. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.@CAWORLD #CAWORLD
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3. 3 © 2016 CA. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.@CAWORLD #CAWORLD
Abstract
All agile organizations need champions to evangelize the message of positive change and to influence a favorable outcome for
their agile transformation efforts. However, over a period of time even champions may wither and lose their motivation if they
don't see others take up the gauntlet.
So, how do you sustain the momentum and keep the champions and the participants engaged and motivated? How do you
maintain the agency of the movement and demonstrate the ROI of the transformation?
By creating more evangelists and having them bond around a shared mission – that’s how! In other words, you need to set up
Communities of Practice (CoP).
Join Seshadri from IHS Markit as he walks you through the practical aspects of setting up your own (successful) CoP. Also learn
how CoPs can help your organization.
* derive maximum value from your agile transformation
* sustain the agility and help others embrace it
* succeed at having your organization share, grow, learn, and evolve
Sesh
Veeraraghavan
IHS Markit
Director, Agile Practice

4. AGILE COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE:
SET UP, SUSTAIN, SUCCEED
SESH VEERARAGHAVAN
DIRECTOR, AGILE PRACTICE
IHS MARKIT

5. ABOUT IHS MARKIT
5000+ Industry and
information experts
600+ insights
shared daily
85% of Fortune 500
companies served
The leading source of information and insight in
critical areas that shape today's business landscape
Unmatched combination of information, analytics,
and expertise
Customers around the world rely on us to address
strategic and operational challenges

6. WHO WE SERVE

7. WHO WE SERVE

8. ABOUT SESH
Director, R&D - Agile Practice
Software Engineering background
Head a global team of SMs/coaches
We develop and lead agile initiatives
We train and coach teams/individuals
Animal rights, photography, non-fiction

9. AGENDA
Define CoP; understand its characteristics with examples
Benefits
Practical steps towards establishing your own CoP
CoP at IHS Markit, successes and challenges, next steps

10. DEFINITIONS – COMMON UNDERSTANDING
Community (noun) - com·mu·ni·ty
••a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals.
••a similarity or identity.
Practice (noun) – prac·tice
••the actual application or use of an idea, belief, or method as opposed to theories about such application or use.
••repeated exercise in or performance of an activity or skill so as to acquire or maintain proficiency in it.
Practice (verb)
••perform (an activity) or exercise (a skill) repeatedly or regularly in order to improve or maintain one's proficiency.
••carry out or perform (a particular activity, method, or custom) habitually or regularly.

11. COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE
Cognitive anthropologists Lave and Wenger define it as a group of people who
- share a passion for something they do
- learn how to do it better
- interact regularly

12. EXAMPLES OF COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE
Research areas by Lave and Wenger included studying learning among
Yucatan midwives
Tailors in Liberia
Insurance claims processors
These groups exhibited common patterns of sharing, learning, and growth

13. A MODERN-DAY EXAMPLE OF A COP: XEROX
Xerox repairmen - informal exchange of tips and tricks
Savings due to the Eureka database: over $100 MM USD
Eureka database created to keep track of these tips and tricks
Communication usually done over lunch and informal meetings

14. CHARACTERISTICS OF A SUCCESSFUL COP
Domain (e.g. agile)
Community (e.g. ScrumMasters)
Practice (the practical aspect)

15. SO, WHY SET UP A COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE?
Share Learn Mentor
Teach Grow Enrich

16. BENEFITS OF COP
Organic organizational growth
Higher productivity
Happier employees
Cost savings

17. BENEFITS, CONTD.
Sharing of key knowledge and technologies
Unexpected and fruitful collaboration

18. AND THE BENEFITS LEAD TO…
Empathy and shared emotions
Stronger employee bonding
Smoother onboarding of new employees
A safe environment for learning and growth

19. …LEAD TO…CONT.
Employee empowerment and engagement
Ownership through involvement
Innovation through broader collection of ideas

20. COE VS COP
Center of Excellence Community of Practice
Platform for ensuring adherence/compliance to
standards and guidelines
Platform for sharing knowledge, expertise, and
experience
A designated group defines standards for the org. Groups of people come together to define what
works for them
Have the necessary authority to create and at times
enforce standards
Influence without authority, organic growth
Aim to achieve excellence by applying the same
principles and practices across teams/groups
Aim to achieve excellence by sharing, collaborating,
connecting, and learning together
Must be able to afford to put in place Can’t afford NOT to put one in place

21. HOW TO CREATE YOUR OWN COP
Practical steps towards creating a great Community of Practice

22. STEP 1 – IDENTIFY THE COP
Identify the Community that
you wish to create (and for
which there is an active
need)
Example communities:
ScrumMasters; Product
Owners; Architects; QA;
Developers
Your role is not important:
your passion, commitment,
and sphere of influence are

23. STEP 2 – IDENTIFY THE STAKEHOLDERS
Figure out who the
stakeholders are
(influencing;
removing roadblocks)
Example:
Development/QA
directors/managers;
PMO directors and
managers
Resources and time
are not free
Understand and
respect the time
commitments of all
involved

24. STEP 3 – EDUCATE THE STAKEHOLDERS
Critical aspect – you must be able to
demonstrate the value of such a Community
Be upfront about what’s needed from
participants and sponsors
Promise your commitment to the initiative and
specify what outcomes you expect

25. STEP 4 – IDENTIFY THE MEMBERS
Can be done as a parallel/background task with Step 2
Get recommendations from the stakeholders on those with:
••solid knowledge
••ability and willingness to share and learn
These will be your primary contacts, contributors, and
cheerleaders

26. STEP 5 – GET EXECUTIVE SPONSOR (ES) BUY-IN
Set the scenario/lay the
groundwork for the
conversation with the ES
Set up 1:1 with the ES
Prepare well – use
minimal slides
Show passion and
demonstrate knowledge
Explain background and
previous communications
with stakeholders
Explain the goals of the
community
Explain the potential,
and the benefits that
can be gained

27. STEP 6 – CREATE THE CHARTER/MANIFESTO
The Charter
defines your
Community’s
purpose and
goals
Don’t be
too specific
Leave room
for changes
as they may
very well
happen
Liberate
yourself
from set
hierarchies
/methodol
ogies
Flatten the
landscape –
break down
silos

28. STEP 7 – SET UP THE WEBSITE/SOCIAL SITE
Shared templates are
quick & easy to create
a site
Shared platforms make
collaboration a lot
easier
Upload all relevant
info: videos,
documents, etc.
List the executive
sponsor’s name
Keep the content fresh
and relevant
Create a sitelet for
member profiles

29. STEP 8 – SOLICIT MEMBERS AND GENERATE BUZZ
Get stakeholders to talk
about this effort via
email; in meetings; in
the intranet as blogs
etc.
Once the buzz sets in,
reach out to the
members and set up
group meetings
Explain the purpose,
charter, goals, and any
other useful
information
Follow-up by saying
they’ll hear back soon

30. STEP 9 – INVITE THE MEMBERS
Send out a formal
communication to
the invitees
List the site URL
and other relevant
details
Have them update
the member list
area of the site so
they’ll be involved
right from the
start
Encourage them
to explore and
provide initial
thoughts and
feedback on the
site
Find a volunteer
to make those
changes – this will
entrench the
Community aspect
a bit more

31. STEP 10 – LAUNCH THE COMMUNITY
Logistics
Find a suitable time, and set it up for an
hour – no more
Invite should list the specifics (this is important
at the outset)
Bring in an expert from within or outside of the
company for a talk
Have them emphasize the
value/benefits/relevance of this initiative
Have the expert speak to their direct
experience and provide examples of
previous success

32. STEP 11 – SUSTAIN THE COMMUNITY
engage via internal social media or website (not email)
via regularly recorded sessions (teleconference)
upload the recordings and related artifacts
have members come up with ideas for the backlog
let people vote (if possible) on the next session/future sessions
create an email distribution list for easy access to the members
How to
collaborate

33. STEP 12 – SUCCEED!
Request
feedback on
the
Community
Make
changes
gradually
Evaluate
impact of the
changes
Make
stakeholders
and execs
aware of
successes
Always invite
stakeholders
and execs to
all sessions
Summaries
on what
worked,
what’s new,
etc.

34. CURRENT CHALLENGES & NEXT STEPS
Getting new members interested right away
Different levels of maturity and knowledge and interest
Getting many more people to contribute
Bringing in awareness of the latest industry trends
Current
challenges:
Leverage the ESN a lot more
Create local “guilds”
Create more special interest groups
Next steps:

35. FURTHER SUCCESSES
Helped set up and coordinate our QA Chapters
In the process of helping set up a CoP for Product
Owners/Managers
Helped assist in the creation of SCM CoP

36. TESTIMONIALS
Project Manager: I look forward to these meetings; I
know that when we had a sub-team that researched and
presented, it was great. The recordings are great to have.
ScrumMaster: I
don't just like it, I
LOVE it!
Sr. Mgr. PD&D: I
really like the
community!
Sr. Mgr. PD&D: I think this is great
idea to share knowledge in a
discussion form to achieve better
efficiency.
Sr. Software
Engg./ScrumMaster
PD&D: I love the idea
of the community!
Dir. R&D: I find the community
very vibrant...For the sessions, I
like the variety, where we go
sometimes from open questions to
full presentations

37. Q&A/SOURCES
• Sources:
• Wikipedia (Communities of Practice/Lave and Wenger)
• Images: Commons Licensing
• Contact:
• Seshadri.Veeraraghavan@ihs.com

38. 38 © 2016 CA. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.@CAWORLD #CAWORLD
Questions?

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