Agile
Why Agile Methodologies Miss The Mark For AI & ML Projects (via Google News)
The title is aligned with my current company and role — using machine learning in an Agile environment. I also pride myself in occasionally reading things that challenge my current thinking. However, this long article ended in a pitch to use the author’s company’s approach. The root problem seems to be that the definition of done and acceptance criteria for various phases of ML projects needs to be agreed upon by the business. There’s nothing inherently wrong with Agile for AI/ML projects.
Impact Mapping (via Leading Agile)
- Talk to your customers while designing; don’t make the perfect design and then ship. The seems obvious.
- Impact mapping — hierarchical mind map where the root is “why” (business goal), which has “whos” (influencing actors), which have “hows” (impact the actors have), and end in “whats” (activities that help actors complete goals)
- Are we choosing the right things in the sprint? Are we choosing things that will move the needle or remove uncertainty? Are we choosing things that will affect the system so we can realize value sooner?
- Impact mapping allows you to diagram how things are connected and what assumptions are being made. It’s a framework for making decisions with psychological safety.
- You need to build the right thing and not build the wrong thing.
Business
A Better Way to Develop and Retain Top Talent (via Harvard Business Review)
- Understand what your employees want
- Create more on-the-job opportunities
- Vary learning experiences, as not everyone learns the same way
- Provide regular feedback
- Manage your time by reaching out for help (not all coaching has to come from you)
Competing in the Age of AI (via Harvard Business Review)
We’re moving to a world where more is done by algorithms than people. This is a double-edged sword, as it can allow companies to take advantage of new ways of working to deliver change (and make money) faster; however, it can increase bias and displace people faster than regulators can keep up.
Career
How to Build a Great Relationship with a Mentor (via Harvard Business Review)
- Define your goals and specific needs
- Write the job description of your ideal mentor
- Search for mentors through your second-degree network
- Make a simple ask
- Have a first meeting
- Start simply
- Create a structured accountability process with a mentorship agreement
6 Habits That Hurt Your Career — and How to Overcome Them (via Harvard Business Review)
None of these behaviors is inherently bad, as many of us will find these techniques to have been successful at some point in our careers. When we make them habits, they can cause issues.
- Conflict avoidance — this is about fear; respond to the situation directly and in person
- Impulsiveness — carve out time to reflect before acting
- Blame-shifting — call out the assumptions that enable it (e.g., your team has no control, others are bad), then move into problem-solving mode
- Insisting on control — if you run everything, people stop taking initiative and offering ideas; share goals, metrics, and power
- Perfectionism — your version of perfect may not align with others’ version; try submitting partial work or getting agreement on what “done” looks like
- Power hunger — put accountability measures in place
Burning Out and Finding Stability (via Software Lead Weekly)
Having experienced a full-blown panic attack and several of the other precursor physical and mental symptoms of anxiety, this author’s description is accurate. This is why I don’t want to be a freelancer or founder. People glorify this role but often fail to mention the dozens of other things you need to do in addition to the reason you got started.
Leadership
To Be a Great Leader, You Need the Right Mindset (via Harvard Business Review)
I’m guessing the author is stating that neither of the sides is “wrong” per se, it’s that you need to realize the spectrum and when to use which side. It surprised me how my default style (perhaps as a byproduct of my employers) has been less of the the styles on the left.
- Growth vs. fixed mindset — people can change their talents, abilities, and intelligence
- Learning vs. performance — increasing competence vs. being motivated toward gaining favorable judgments about one’s competence
- Deliberative vs. implemental — receptive to new information vs. focusing on implementing decisions
- Promotion vs. prevention — winning and gains vs. avoiding losses and preventing problems
Giving Feedback to Someone Who Hasn’t Had It in Years (via Harvard Business Review)
- Approach the conversation with empathy. People will need space to feel shocked
- Test for understanding of the gap. The actor-observer bias occurs when people attribute actions to a situation instead of themselves. Ask what outcome the person intended to achieve.
- Talk about feelings, not attributions. Acknowledge intentions and point out how you felt. Avoid including others, e.g., “We’re all frustrated by your behavior.”
- Point out patterns, e.g., “It seems like high-pressure situations bring out this side of you, would you agree?”
- Help them stay focused on the future, e.g., “I’m sorry this feedback feels new. I can only imagine how difficult this is to hear for the first time. I think your best option is to focus on what you can do now rather than what you did in the past.”
The Little Things That Make Employees Feel Appreciated (via Harvard Business Review)
- Do… touch base early and often, give balanced feedback, address growth opportunities, offer flexibility, make it a habit.
- Avoid… inauthentic gratitude, neglecting standard company procedures, letting employees feel isolated from coworkers or the larger org, sudden shift in your appreciation practices.
Process
To Achieve Big Goals, Start with Small Habits (via Harvard Business Review)
- Identify a “ridiculously small” micro habit you can start doing (e.g., read for 45 minutes each day becomes read one paragraph each day)
- Piggyback on a daily task (e.g., meditate while the coffee brews)
- Track your progress (e.g., use a “yes list” to indicate whether you did something); personally I do this and am not sure how useful it is without accountability
- Hold steady for a long time; don’t try to accelerate too quickly
- Seek help in holding you accountable
Our book club looked at the first three chapters of The Unicorn Project.
Security
How to Safeguard Against Cyberattacks on Utilities (via Harvard Business Review)
The article goes into some scary what-if scenarios that could play out and why we haven’t seen as many as we could have. How do you prepare for something you’ve never experienced (e.g., multiple power generators offline for weeks)? It seems the strategy is not only prevention, but anticipating second- and third-order effects for when they happen.