Southern Fried Agile 2016

Most of us believe we are good listeners but we underestimate this skill and are hard-wired to short change it by making assumptions, providing answers and jumping in when we think we know what people are trying to say. In doing so, we rob ourselves of the chance to encourage growth, build trust & respect and promote ownership. Listening is about more than hearing the words; it is about tone, body language and so much more. But wait  - listening well can be learned, so come and join Judith to understand and practice this under-utilized skill.

We will experience how hard it is to listen then understand the effect of good listening and why it has that effect. We will look at ways to identify how you know someone is really listening? We will also practice the art of asking good questions so we can truly listen to the answers. Discover how good listening builds respect, trust and ownership.

Many change leaders approach Agile adoption with naïve expectations. They don’t understand that training and coaching teams alone won’t be enough to ensure that their Agile initiative succeeds. Agile transformation entails change that will be broadly felt throughout the organization in policies, processes, mindset and culture. The key to successfully leading change that runs this deep is organizational change management. Organizational change management helps change leaders usher in extensive operational and structural changes. Even more important, it helps leaders facilitate the human aspects of change that occur during Agile transformations. In this webinar, we discuss what an Agile transformation is, how to successfully engage stakeholders, the critical role of change management and how to lead Agile change successfully.

Learning Objectives

1. Learn proven practices and approaches to organizational change management in the context of an Agile transformation
2. Understand why the transition from a traditional enterprise model to business agility requires a full-scale transformation
3. Understand the role of change management in a successful Agile transformation
4. Understand how change leadership, executives, management and all stakeholders across the enterprise must champion the change through continuous collaboration and communication

We live in a world where everyone is overwhelmed with demands for their attention.

Every day, the people you need to communicate with receive an average of 70 text messages, 147 emails/day, and are  bombarded with as many as 5,000 marketing images and messages.

How can you stand out in a positive way and get your message heard?

In this session, we will cover two principles of communication that will make you stand out from the crowd, plus one specific tool you can add you your toolkit to use immediately.

• Connection increases your influence in EVERY situation
• Connection is all about others
• Connectors do the difficult work of keeping it simple

In this session, we will cover specific, actionable steps that you can take to improve communication and make a real connection with your listener.

IBM is on an agile journey like no other company. This presentation will share how a multinational enterprise has moved forward on the agile journey, unleashing the innovation and team creativity of people around the world to transform how business gets done. A special focus on of this conversation will be on the experiences of the IBM team in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina to jumpstart agile methods and practices across multiple physical locations, multiple business functions, including non-technical functions, and how you can use these same techniques in your company.

Agile makes middle managers very uncomfortable. Why does the team not need me anymore? Do they secretly hate me? Will I have a job in the year?

While some of this anxiety is justified, a lot of it is not. Middle managers need to accept a different role in an Agile organization, but it can be an extremely important one. Be warned, the new job is not for everyone. For managers who embrace this new role, the job can be far more fulfilling than what they were doing before.

During this talk, we will take a Lean perspective on the role of managers. The discussion will center on the tasks and responsibility in the new role, as well as the type of mindset, experiences, and personalities needed to thrive in it. We'll be honest about what challenges middle managers face. We'll talk about managers in the context of scaled Agile frameworks -- not just how to conform to these guidelines, but how managers are needed to decide when they need to be tweaked or replaced.

As an Agile trainer, coach, and researcher, I've had a lot of experience with the middle management layer. I'm currently a senior consultant at Net Objectives. Prior to that, I was practice director for Agile at Cutter Consortium, and a senior analyst at Forrester Research.

Improve performance and results for yourself and your organization with a Purposeful Leadership process that will help you deliver the best results every time.  Attendees will learn the Rapid Process for Excellence in Leadership, which will focus on the following topics:

• Emotional Intelligence
• Mindfulness
• Overcoming Self-induced Obstacles
• Managing Perceptions
• Building Influence with Others
• Inspiring High-Performance Teams 

Delivered by DeAlva Wilson, President and CEO of the D. Wilson Agency, a consulting and leadership development firm focused on helping leaders and organizations improve performance, results and profit. 

Today the D. Wilson Agency provides motivated individuals and organizations with strategies for personal transformation, professional excellence and organizational growth through Purposeful Leadership‘©, a skillfully designed and comprehensive approach to getting what you want.

A short client list includes Bank of America, Wells Fargo, TIAA-CREF, Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools, Federal Highway Administration, Wake Forest University, Target Corporation, Carolina Panthers, Atlanta Falcons, Novant Healthcare, Jack and Jill Foundation of America, and SC Vocational Rehabilitation.

DeAlva's professional career spans over 20 years with a range of executive and senior leadership roles within Fortune 500 companies.   Her experience includes an extensive background in the financial services sector where her roles focused on creating strategy, process design, operations and technology.

DeAlva is a graduate of the Harvard Management Development Program.  She has an MBA and a Bachelor's Degree in Accounting from Winthrop University.  She received her Executive Coach certification from both the University of Georgia.  In addition, she is a Six Sigma Green Belt indicating her knowledge of sustainable process design, and a Certified Bridges Out of Poverty Trainer.

In this hands-on session, we'll apply The Responsibility Process to your life and work so you can unlock your natural ability to live and lead with power. It will be fast-paced, informative, and possibly life-changing. Many people report breakthroughs in this brief session.

What is The Responsibility Process? It's a little-known pattern in your mind you use to process thoughts about taking and avoiding responsibility. It's foundational to leadership, and many believe it is the essence of agility.

Far too many good, motivated, hard-working people get stuck in jobs they don’t want, projects gone bad, work problems and careers they don’t enjoy, and companies they resent. It happens to individual contributors, leaders, and coaches too. It can happen to us all. Those who know how to practice responsibility as a daily habit identify and own what they really really want—and go for it. This changes the choices they make, which in turn leads to enjoying far greater productivity, self-direction, shared leadership, and good will. 

When you learn about, apply, and practice The Responsibility Process you too can discover how you are far more powerful and able than you likely give yourself credit for. You will learn to access a pattern in your mind that you can rely on to create change and behaviors that matter.