Don’t Talk ABOUT Your Colleagues; Talk WITH Them!

Short personal thoughts, reflections, and ideas

I am frequently asked to facilitate workshops to find solutions for tough challenges, share experiences, or gain new insights.

The proposed participants for these workshops are often a ‘horizontal’ slice of the organization:
👉 A group of Scrum Masters or Agile Coaches
👉 A group of Product Owners
👉 A group of managers or leaders

Initially, I went along with these workshop participants, but I quickly noticed a couple of things:

1️⃣ The toughest challenges rarely limit themselves to one organizational layer. They’re rooted in other parts of the organization. To effectively solve a problem, all the people involved, infected and influenced, should be brought together, including those with a mandate.

2️⃣ If you only have one group in the room (e.g., only Scrum Masters), you might complain, gossip, and whine about your colleagues. “It’s not us; it’s them.” “If only they would…” “ Why don’t they start/stop…”

3️⃣ People with similar roles often struggle to offer fresh ideas and insights. They face the same problems and have already tried the same actions to improve the situation, which didn’t work.

So, I recommend taking a ‘vertical’ slice of the organization.

Run a workshop with Scrum Masters, Agile Coaches, Product Owners, Developers, Managers, and anyone else who could offer fresh insights and share valuable experiences. Invite a select number of representatives from each group or department. Also, consider colleagues in HR, Finance, Sales, Marketing, and other relevant departments.

I’ve experienced countless moments where participants shared: