Want to know the agenda? We aren’t going to tell you! Join Jeffrey with guests Pascal Dufour & Ronald Doelen to talk about how the “tilted slider” applies to meetings just as much as other software development process. Recorded live at CITCON.
 
SHOW LINKS:
- Pascal Dufour: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pascaldufournl/
- Ronald Doelen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rdoelen/
- Episode: Tilted Slider: https://agileconversations.com/blog/dont-add-more-metrics/
- Open Space: https://citconf.com/openspace.php
- Lean Coffee: http://leancoffee.org
- Liberating Structures: TRIZ: https://www.liberatingstructures.com/6-making-space-with-triz/ 
---
 
Our book, Agile Conversations, is out now! See https://agileconversations.com where you can order your copy and get a free video when you join our mailing list!
 
We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
 
Email us at info@agileconversations.com

Predictability vs Productivity in Meetings

Is your plan to avoid conflict making things worse? In this episode, Squirrel and Jeffrey discuss the Paul and Ted Case Study, the concept of 'easing in,' and what leaders should do instead, on this episode of Troubleshooting Agile.


LINKS
- Eight Behaviors for Smarter Teams: https://www.csu.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/917018/Eight-Behaviors-for-Smarter-Teams-2.pdf


--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com
And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/

Easing In

What does it mean to be a flexible leader? In part two of this two-part episode of Troubleshooting Agile, we welcome back Kevin Eikenberry to talk about ‘flexors,’ approaches to leadership that can help leaders and team adapt more effectively, and develop a mindset of experimentation. 

Links:
- Kevin Eikenberry: http://kevineikenberry.com and http://kevineikenberry.com/gift
- Flexible Leadership https://kevineikenberry.com/flexible
- Betterism: https://thectoclub.com/news/lies-your-tech-team-tells-you/


--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com
And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Flexible Leadership Part II - Flexors

Is shielding your team a sign of good leadership? On this episode, Jeffrey has been riled up by an episode of the podcast, Cortex, and wants to make a case against shielding, which he believes keeps teams disconnected from the reality of business conditions and leads to suboptimal results.


SHOW LINKS:
- Cortex podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cortex/id1001591696
- Dale Carnegie book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_to_Win_Friends_and_Influence_People


--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com
And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Deceptive Leadership

The search for ultimate truth has no place in an effective business! In this episode, Jeffrey and Squirrel explain how to detect when your team are stuck in the “rightness” trap and how to move from abstract debate to scientific experiments that help you discover what actually works.


SHOW LINKS:
Links:
- Less Wrong: https://www.lesswrong.com/
- Less Online: https://less.online/
- Abor Summer Camp: https://www.arborsummer.camp/
- Manifest: https://manifest.is/
- Driftwood hiring episode: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/driftwood-vs-planks-agile-team-roles-and-skills
- Socratic Dialogues: https://dn790004.ca.archive.org/0/items/PlatoDialogues/Plato_dialogues.pdf


--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Religion and Science

Forget the elevator pitch, you need a “napkin strategy!” In this episode of Troubleshooting Agile, Squirrel and Jeffrey explore the idea of using models instead of talking, which often leads to confusion and frustration. Find out how you can collaborate better with your team when you share explicit and visually mutable models.

SHOW LINKS:
Links:
- Balsamiq's Draft mode: https://balsamiq.com/support/docs/wireframing/editor-overview/project-properties/
- Previous episode on religion and science: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/religion-and-science

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Sharing Models

What can Whatsapp’s origin story teach us about adding business value - even when it doesn’t seem “fun”? Reflecting on two weeks' backpacking, Jeffrey introduces the concept of Type 1 and Type 2 fun and Squirrel ponders how you can apply the two methods of fun to different types of work in Agile teams.


SHOW LINKS:
- Types of Fun: https://www.rei.com/blog/climb/fun-scale
- WhatsApp baked into "dumb" phones: https://www.wired.com/story/nokia-asha-500-502-and-503-hands-on/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts
Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/

Type II Fun

Can I just interrupt you there…? In this episode of Troubleshooting Agile, Squirrel and Jeffrey interrupt each other more than usual to demonstrate how you can use “consensual” interruption as a way of giving immediate feedback, which can greatly improve learning speeds and information retention.


SHOW LINKS:
- Alan Weiss on Rhetorical Permission: https://jonathanstark.com/notes-on-million-dollar-maverick
- CITCON Woking: https://citconf.com/

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts
Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Interruption, Anyone?

Would you appreciate someone talking while you were talking? It’s called "cooperative overlap,” it was introduced to us by a listener, and it’s used in some cultures to reinforce and show  agreement with the speaker. Join Squirrel and Jeffrey for their second week talking about how you can use interruption to improve team collaboration, in this episode of Troubleshooting Agile.


SHOW LINKS:
- Cooperative Overlap article: https://www.anildash.com/2021/09/26/cooperative_overlap/
- Eight Behaviors for Smarter Teams: https://cdn.csu.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/917018/Eight-Behaviors-for-Smarter-Teams-2.pdf

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com


And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts
Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Cooperative Overlap

Can having an ego be a good thing? In this episode, Squirrel and Jeffrey discuss how being egotistical can be a valuable trait and how to strike a balance between confident and humble. Tune in if you need help working out whether you need to bring more or less ego to work.


SHOW LINKS:
- Helpful Givers episode: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/disagreeable-givers
- The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Five_Dysfunctions_of_a_Team
- CITCON: https://citconf.com/

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Positively Egotistical

Are you prepared to blame yourself? In this episode, Jeffrey opens up about his failed startup, and, putting external factors aside, what he could have done better. Join us for ideas around self-blame, double-loop learning, and how personal responsibility can lead to positive change.


SHOW LINKS:
- Jenkins's thesis: https://hj.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:562610/FULLTEXT01.pdf
- Double-loop learning; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double-loop_learning
- CVS: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concurrent_Versions_System

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Blaming Yourself for Fun and Profit

Do you jump into solutions before understanding the context? In this episode, Squirrel and Jeffrey discuss a better way to problem-solve, the concept of form-context fit and why a better output than predicted should be investigated rather than celebrated.


SHOW LINKS:
- Henrik's article: https://www.henrikkarlsson.xyz/p/problem-solving
- Christopher Alexander: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Alexander
- Admiral Rickover: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyman_G._Rickover
- CITCON: https://citconf.com/

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Form-Context Fit

Does embarrassment do you good? While most of us try to avoid it, we believe embarrassment can be a powerful motivator for teams. Join Squirrel and Jeffrey as they discuss how exposing teams to real-world pressures and public accountability can drive both performance and innovation.


SHOW LINKS:
- Squirrel's Newsletter: https://squirrelsquadron.com/newsletter.html
- Unilateral Control: https://schwarzassociates.com/how-unilateral-control-undermines-team-results-and-relationships-2/
- Learning War: https://trenthone.com/learning-war/

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Using Embarrassment for Good

Is being “nice” preventing you from being decent? In this episode, we are joined by guest Kevin Lucas to talk about “coaching out,” the importance of early communication and the balance between decency and obligation, all ideas taken from his new book, ‘Impact: How to Inspire, Align and Amplify Innovative Teams.’

SHOW LINKS:
- Keith Lucas: https://keithvlucas.com/
- Keith's book: https://keithvlucas.com/writing/impact/

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/

Managing People Out

To lead effectively, you need critical thinking and a willingness to engage in productive conflict. It turns out, so do scientists! In this episode of Troubleshooting Agile, Squirrel and Jeffrey discuss the art of healthy intellectual disagreement, drawing insights from a scientist's critique.


SHOW LINKS:
- Strong Inference article: https://courses.cs.duke.edu/fall04/cps296.2/science_platt.html
- Related episode: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/religion-and-science
- CITCON conference: https://citconf.com/london2025/

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Disputatiousness For Scientists

Have you got Systems Thinking all wrong, like the author of an article we read that got Jeffrey all riled up? In this episode of Troubleshooting Agile, Squirrel and Jeffrey explore how complex systems evolve, referencing real-world examples like water systems, Facebook, and healthcare.gov.

Links:
- Bradon's article (Jeffrey says don't read!): https://worksinprogress.co/issue/magical-systems-thinking/
- Bradon's self-responses on X: https://x.com/EdBradon/status/1966470317288616342
- Gall's Law: https://www.driverlesscrocodile.com/processes-ways-to-get-stuff-done/systems-thinking-galls-law/
- How Big Things Get Done: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/61327449-how-big-things-get-done
- Thinking in Systems: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thinking_In_Systems:_A_Primer


--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Someone Is Wrong On The Internet About Systems Thinking

This episode, we are at CITCON 2025, celebrating 400 episodes of Troubleshooting Agile. Join Squirrel and Jeffrey as they look back on the past 400 episodes, discuss how the podcast served as a tool to flesh out ideas for their book ‘Agile Conversations’ and what they would do differently in the past - or might do differently in the future!

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/

Reflections on Episode 400, Live from CITCON

This episode, we are at CITCON 2025, answering listeners’ questions live. Join Squirrel, Jeffrey and our live audience as we discuss integrating tools from methodologies beyond Agile, borrowing practices from different domains such as CBT, Lean Manufacturing, and strategic selling, and Squirrel’s spontaneous approach for solving problems.

Links: 
- David Burns: https://feelinggood.com/list-of-feeling-good-podcasts/
- CBT: https://beckinstitute.org/
- Shu Ha Ri: https://www.pluralsight.com/tech-blog/shu-ha-ri/
- Red Green Refactor: https://www.jamesshore.com/v2/blog/2005/red-green-refactor
- Boy Scout Rule: https://medium.com/engineering-managers-journal/the-boy-scout-rule-for-better-code-e6ffda090902
- MCP: https://modelcontextprotocol.io/
- Thinking, Fast and Slow: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/114683/thinking-fast-and-slow-by-daniel-kahneman/

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com
And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Live from CITCON: Listener Questions

Were we wrong about systems thinking? In the first episode of a three-part series, Squirrel and Jeffrey revisit the contentious discussion around system thinking and their reaction to an article by Ed Braden. They hear from listeners, as well as Ed himself, emphasizing the importance of precise language and shared understanding.

Links: 
- Ed Bradon's article: https://worksinprogress.co/issue/magical-systems-thinking/
- Ed's reply on Twitter: https://x.com/EdBradon/status/1971266284990976361
- Previous episode/rant: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/someone-is-wrong-on-the-internet-about-systems-thinking
- Shape Up episodes: 
  https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/ryan-singer-on-basecamp-and-shape-up-part-i
  https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/ryan-singer-on-basecamp-and-shape-up-part-ii
  https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/ryan-singer-on-basecamp-and-shape-up-part-iii

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts
Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Systems Thinking Rant Redux Part I

Systems thinking isn’t the problem! In the second episode of a three-part series, Squirrel and Jeffrey revisit the contentious discussion around system thinking and their reaction to an article by Ed Braden. They clarify misconceptions about systems thinking, argue its benefits, and propose that it has shifted the 'Overton window' in project management.

Links: 
- Ed Bradon's article: https://worksinprogress.co/issue/magical-systems-thinking/
- Part I of this series: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/systems-thinking-rant-redux-part-i
- Works in Progress magazine: https://worksinprogress.co/
- Strangler Fig pattern: https://martinfowler.com/bliki/StranglerFigApplication.html
- Overton window: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overton_window
- Case studies Ed referred to: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/systems-thinking-for-civil-servants/case-studies

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/

Systems Thinking Rant Redux Part II

We’ve got examples! In the third episode of a three-part series, Squirrel and Jeffrey revisit the contentious discussion around system thinking and their reaction to an article by Ed Braden.They look at successful examples of systems thinking implemented in both small and large government projects, like the UK's automatic enrollment in pensions and Vietnam's education reforms.


Links: 
- Ed Bradon's article: https://worksinprogress.co/issue/magical-systems-thinking/
- Parts I and II of this series: 
- Part I - https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/systems-thinking-rant-redux-part-i
- Part II - https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/systems-thinking-rant-redux-part-ii
- Gall's Law: https://personalmba.com/galls-law/
- Religion and Science episode: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/religion-and-science
- How Big Things Get Done: https://sites.prh.com/how-big-things-get-done-book

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You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/

Systems Thinking Rant Redux Part III

What can a solo around-the-world sailing race teach us about software development? In this episode, Squirrel and Jeffrey discuss the ‘Maintenance Race’ - a story of robust preemptive maintenance, which highlights the importance of proactive maintenance in your agile team.

Links:
- Stewart Brand's chapter: https://books.worksinprogress.co/book/maintenance-of-everything/the-maintenance-race/the-maintenance-race/7
- Brian Marick, Ease and Joy: http://exampler.com/ease-and-joy/
- Previous episode on root-cause analysis: https://agileconversations.com/blog/root-causes/

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You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/

A New Boat Every Day

Is “Systems Thinking is dead” the new “Agile is dead”? In this episode, we do a summary episode on what became a 4 episode series stemming from a disparaging article about systems thinking by Ed Braden. We react to the article, get Ed’s response and then - using a little help from Google Ai - offer successful examples of implementing systems in large government projects.

Links:
- Bradon's article: worksinprogress.co/issue/magical-systems-thinking/
- Bradon's self-responses on X: x.com/EdBradon/status/1966470317288616342
- Ed's reply on Twitter: x.com/EdBradon/status/1971266284990976361
- Gall's Law: www.driverlesscrocodile.com/processes-w…-galls-law/

Shape Up episodes:
Ryan Singer on Basecamp and Shape Up, Part I
https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/ryan-singer-on-basecamp-and-shape-up-part-i
Ryan Singer on Basecamp and Shape Up, Part II
https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/ryan-singer-on-basecamp-and-shape-up-part-ii 
Ryan Singer on Basecamp and Shape Up, Part II
https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/ryan-singer-on-basecamp-and-shape-up-part-iii 


Full episodes on this topic:
Someone is wrong on the internet about systems thinking! https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/someone-is-wrong-on-the-internet-about-systems-thinking
Systems Thinking rant redux, Part I https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/systems-thinking-rant-redux-part-i
Systems Thinking rant redux, Part II https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/systems-thinking-rant-redux-part-ii
Systems Thinking rant redux, Part III
https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/systems-thinking-rant-redux-part-iii 

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. 
You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Greatest Hits: The Systems Thinking Rant

What can we learn about learning from driving in Alabama? On this episode of Troubleshooting Agile, Squirrel and Jeffrey discuss the challenges and rewards of learning and focus on three times of learning - knowledge, methods and skills - and how Squirrel applied all of them (but not quite well enough) when he had to drive in Alabama to visit family.

Links:
- CFAR workshop: https://www.rationality.org/workshops/upcoming
- Mundanity of Excellence paper: https://fermatslibrary.com/s/the-mundanity-of-excellence-an-ethnographic-report-on-stratification-and-olympic-swimmers

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Three Types of Learning Part I

What happens when you have the knowledge but not the skills? On this episode of Troubleshooting Agile, Squirrel and Jeffrey continue to discuss the three basic elements of learning, how they apply to software development, and what problems arise when you have one or two of them, but not all three.

Links:
- Orienteering: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orienteering
- Building to learn: https://www.strategyzer.com/library/dont-build-when-you-build-measure-learn
- Thinking, Fast and Slow: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thinking,_Fast_and_Slow
- Three Types of Learning Venn Diagram: https://squirrelsquadron.com/images/threetypesoflearning-25Nov2025.png
--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/

Three Types of Learning Part II

What is ‘movie logic’ and how does it work in real life? Listen to this episode of Troubleshooting, as Squirrel and Jeffrey talk about how movies rely on artificial drama and withheld information to create tension, but open communication and marginal gains is how effective teams really thrive.

Links:
- Cate Hall, "Are You Stuck In Movie Logic?": https://usefulfictions.substack.com/p/are-you-stuck-in-movie-logic
- James Clear on UK Cycling's marginal gains: https://jamesclear.com/marginal-gains

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts
Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/


Montage vs Marginal

Want to be more productive, creative and joyful? That’s the outcome of Vibe Coding, a new concept and book by Gene Kim and Steve Yegge. In the first of a three-part series with co-author Gene Kim, he talks about how he got started on this project and how Vibe Coding offers new ways of working to tech and non-tech people alike.

Links:
- Gene Kim: https://itrevolution.com/author/gene-kim/
- Vibe Coding book: https://itrevolution.com/product/vibe-coding-book/
- Steve Yegge: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Yegge
- Erik Meijer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erik_Meijer_(computer_scientist)

--------------------------------------------------

You'll find free videos and practice material, plus our book Agile Conversations, at agileconversations.com

And we'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show: email us at info@agileconversations.com

--------------------------------------------------

About Your Hosts

Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick joined forces at TIM Group in 2013, where they studied and practised the art of management through difficult conversations. Over a decade later, they remain united in their passion for growing profitable organisations through better communication.

Squirrel is an advisor, author, keynote speaker, coach, and consultant, and he's helped over 300 companies of all sizes make huge, profitable improvements in their culture, skills, and processes. You can find out more about his work here: douglassquirrel.com/index.html

Jeffrey is Vice President of Engineering at ION Analytics, Organiser at CITCON, the Continuous Integration and Testing Conference, and is an accomplished author and speaker. You can connect with him here: www.linkedin.com/in/jfredrick/

Gene Kim on Vibe Coding Part I

We continue chatting with Ryan Singer, Head of Strategy at Basecamp and author of Shape Up. Ryan explains the "shaping" and "betting" processes in more detail, including who does the various roles and what is crucial to get right when you set up a design-and-build system like the one they advocate.

SHOW LINKS:
- Shape Up: https://basecamp.com/shapeup/?ref=df

- Daring Fireball intro to Shape Up: https://daringfireball.net/linked/2019/08/04/shape-up

- Extreme Programming Explained: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Extreme-Programming-Explained-Embrace-Change/dp/0321278658

- Feature Factory: https://cutle.fish/blog/12-signs-youre-working-in-a-feature-factory

- Petition the King: https://ronjeffries.com/xprog/articles/petitiontheking/

- Art of Action: http://www.stephenbungay.com/Books.ink


***

We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.

Email us: see link on troubleshootingagile.com

Tweet us: twitter.com/TShootingAgile

Also, if you'd like to leave us a review on iTunes (or just like and subscribe), you'll find us here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/troubleshooting-agile/id1327456890?mt=2

Ryan Singer on Basecamp and Shape Up, Part II

We conclude our conversation with Ryan Singer, Head of Strategy at Basecamp and author of Shape Up, by asking him how the team functions without requiring code reviews or QA checks. Then he goes on to describe in detail their "hill" metaphor for progress measurement and why this method provides a useful narrative that goes way beyond sprint duration or story points.

SHOW LINKS:
- Shape Up: https://basecamp.com/shapeup/?ref=df

- Daring Fireball intro to Shape Up: https://daringfireball.net/linked/2019/08/04/shape-up

- Extreme Programming Explained: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Extreme-Programming-Explained-Embrace-Change/dp/0321278658

- Feature Factory: https://cutle.fish/blog/12-signs-youre-working-in-a-feature-factory

- Petition the King: https://ronjeffries.com/xprog/articles/petitiontheking/

- Art of Action: http://www.stephenbungay.com/Books.ink


***

We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.

Email us: see link on troubleshootingagile.com

Tweet us: twitter.com/TShootingAgile

Also, if you'd like to leave us a review on iTunes (or just like and subscribe), you'll find us here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/troubleshooting-agile/id1327456890?mt=2

Ryan Singer on Basecamp and Shape Up, Part III

When a client tells Squirrel "of course there are no releases on Fridays", it's a red rag to a bull. After Squirrel rants for a bit, he calms down and we argue strongly for releasing often, even when it hurts—in fact particularly when it's difficult!—to "bring the pain forward" (Jez Humble).

SHOW LINKS:
- Jez Humble on doing painful things more often: https://continuousdelivery.com/
- Dr. David Burns on anxiety and exposure: https://feelinggood.com/tag/exposure/

Episode transcript: https://www.conversationaltransformation.com/posts/doreleaseonfridays/

***
 
Our new book, Agile Conversations, will be out in May 2020! See conversationaltransformation.com where you can pre-order and get a free video when you join our mailing list!
 
We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
 
Email us at info@conversationaltransformation.com
 
Tweet us: twitter.com/TShootingAgile
 
Also, if you'd like to leave us a review on iTunes (or just like and subscribe), you'll find us here: itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/troub…d1327456890?mt=2

Do Release On Fridays

Coming to the final chapter of Agile Conversations, we look at how leaders can not only provide accountability for others, but be accountable themselves, including stories from the early days of agile and from today's clients.

SHOW LINKS:

- XP Explained book: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/67833.Extreme_Programming_Explained
- Rapid Development book: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/93892.Rapid_Development
- Dynamics of Software Development ("don't flip the bozo bit"): https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1416996.Dynamics_of_Software_Development
- Nurtureshock: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6496815-nurtureshock
- Greenshifting: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/greenshifting
- Kent Beck Ease at Work: https://www.infoq.com/news/2007/04/beck-ease-at-work/ and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeA4CBInqKo
- The Art of Action: https://www.stephenbungay.com/Books.ink
- Radiating Intent: https://medium.com/@ElizAyer/dont-ask-forgiveness-radiate-intent-d36fd22393a3
- Accountability and Compassion: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/mutual-learning-model-accountability-and-compassion

Episode transcript: https://www.conversationaltransformation.com/posts/accountability-leaders-are-accountable-too/

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Our new book, Agile Conversations, is out now! See https://conversationaltransformation.com where you can order your copy and get a free video when you join our mailing list!

We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
 
Email us at info@conversationaltransformation.com

Accountability: Leaders are Accountable Too

Troubleshooting Agile is a problem-solving session for agile teams. Jeffrey Fredrick and Douglas Squirrel look at common problems agile teams face and provide practical, immediately useful advice for getting back on track.

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