I figured a good way to start my blogging experience as a Product Owner is to list the top 5 tools I have in my toolbox as a PO.

1. Microsoft OneNote
I use this just as it was intended, as my notebook.  My binder is full of everything I need to know to direct the projects I own.  This great little Microsoft tool provides the ability to create tabs (Sections) in my binder.  I have a tab for each project.  And, just like a physical binder I can add pages to each tabbed section.  On these pages I can write, paste, insert links or documents or emails, anywhere.  I can create tasks which are linked to Outlook with all the reminders and features Outlook provides.  I keep track of sprint schedules by team.  I then create a page for each team's sprint commitments and update these as the ScrumMaster sends out daily statuses or from I learn in daily scrums.  I used to carry around a physical binder with all this stuff, I'm now saving the lives of so many trees.

2. Microsoft Excel
Given most of my current projects area based on reporting solutions we write the details of most of our user stories in Excel.  We are a reporting solution provider so often our user stories deal with defining tables and charts which, when it comes to defining Acceptance Criteria, just don't fit on a 3x5 card (although I personally keep epic story cards for user story mapping).  We simply add a link to the Excel story from the Product Backlog item.

3. Axure RP Pro
To accompany our user stories or when we are scoping out a project, this wireframe and prototyping application is amazing.  A WYSIWYG / drag & drop editor with event handling is great for creating a 'functioning' wireframe or product prototype.  This increases more accuracy when the teams are estimating against the user stories.  It can also provide that high level view of the product. (Axure RP)

4. SharePoint Portal
When it comes to a central area for our Product Backlog or knowledge sharing, SharePoint has been the solution for us.  It's central and accessible by all 3 roles of Scrum. I'm on our portal all day long.

5. Google Docs
Similar to the way SharePoint provides that central and sharable solution for a Product Backlog or Knowledgebase, Google Docs provides that same functionality with the added feature that mutliple users can be accessing our planning spreadsheet at the same time.  This is great for planning day as well as estimating sessions.

Having a set of tools to increase my productivity is so necessary for the way my brain seems to work.

Cheers!

Two sport fishermen had a successful weekend of remote fishing.  When the bush pilot arrived to retrieve them, he soon notified them that with the added weight of the fish they had caught and all their gear, he would have to make a return trip.  Not wanting the extra trip, the sportsmen convinced the pilot to pack everything in tight and offered him extra cash.  Reluctantly he agreed.

As the plane took off the weight was too much for the plane to handle and they crashed beyond the end of the lake.  No one was seriously injured and as they came to, one of the fisherman asked, “What happened?”  To which the other responded, “We crashed . . . . . about 100 meters further up than last year.”

Scrum as an agile framework isn’t just about being agile enough to be able to create great software products but also allows Product Owners, Scrum Masters, and developers as individuals and as a team to learn, grow and adapt.

Scrum provides us the Sprint Retrospective at the end of each sprint providing each team member to share their perspective on such things as:

What worked really well for us as a team?
What could we change that might make the team better?
Can we make the processes more enjoyable?
How can we adapt our definition of "Done" to improve quality?

But simply meeting, providing answers to these questions, and having them recorded isn’t enough. Teams are only a sum of each individual member.  So for a team to adapt for the better, each individual must take it upon themselves to improve.  Otherwise, whether one or all, and thereby the team (where we go one, we go all), will continue to be at risk to fail or to become stagnant.

If your team has chosen Scrum as its development framework and with it the Sprint Retrospective. Embrace it, learn it and be an active participate.  Else, I guess we’ll see you again next year . . .  crashed just beyond the lake.

Cheers.