Agile New England

AI-Powered Agile

Shashi Kiran Pilli — Thu, 01 May 2025 03:03:13 +0000

Join Eric Tucker for a fast-paced, interactive session that reveals how to blend Agile practices with AI tools like ChatGPT. No jargon, no fluff: you’ll see live demos, work through real-world examples, and get a taste of hands-on exercises taken straight from Eric’s experiences. If your backlog is out of control, stakeholders are demanding quicker results, or your retros need fresh ideas, this talk is your chance to see how AI can cut overhead and boost team engagement. Walk away with practical tips, prompts, and a plan for immediate impact. Plus, there’s a special bonus for attendees who want to dive deeper.

About the Speaker:

Eric Tucker discovered Scrum in 2004 and has never looked back. He is a former coder who has served as a project manager, Scrum Master, and product owner. He is now an Agile coach and trainer whose course offerings include CSM, A-CSM, CSP-SM, CSPO, A-CSPO, CSP-PO, CSD, CAF, CAL-1, CAL-2, and Agile OKRs. Clients like Fidelity, Nike, and the US Military trust his hands-on approach to get real-world results. Participants in his courses gain the confidence and expertise to lead and thrive with Agile and Scrum.

Agile New England’s Monthly Keynote Speaker is Virtual!

Please note our June 2025, keynote will be fully virtual with no in-person meeting. The new timeline follows:

5:30 – 6:30 pm ET – Agile 101 breakout with Garry Miller (or network in main Zoom session)

6:30 – 8:00 pm ET – Keynote Speaker, followed by announcements and free-form networking

Building a Holistic Agile Practice: Bridging Technical and Value Creation Skills

Shashi Kiran Pilli — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 22:44:57 +0000

For Scrum Masters and Agile coaches in today’s Agile environments, technical fluency is no longer optional—it’s essential. It is not enough to master ceremonies and team dynamics. Agile leaders need to understand DevOps, CI/CD, and technical constraints—such as legacy system limitations, architectural dependencies, and infrastructure bottlenecks—so they can pinpoint these constraints, advocate for impactful changes, and translate delivery metrics like DORA into business value. Technical acumen builds credibility with teams, unlocks meaningful feedback loops, and drives systemic improvement. Agile leaders must learn how to combine technical awareness with business insight so they can go beyond facilitating to become enablers of delivery, quality, and flow.

About the Speaker:

Alex Hilton is a seasoned Agile trainer and a Certified Team Coach (CTC) specializing in AI-driven insights, DevOps, and Agile transformations. He has a background in analytics, program management, and Theory of Constraints/Lean practices, and a proven track record driving operational efficiency, innovation, and business agility. He leverages his expertise in AI and DevOps to enable high-performing teams, and in his spare time explores the future of quantum computing for utilities. Alex is currently on Agile New England’s board of directors as Treasurer.

Agile New England’s Monthly Keynote Speaker is Virtual!

Please note our May 2025, keynote will be fully virtual with no in-person meeting. The new timeline follows:

5:30 – 6:30 pm ET – Agile 101 breakout with Garry Miller (or network in main Zoom session)

6:30 – 8:00 pm ET – Keynote Speaker, followed by announcements and free-form networking

Thriving in an AI World: Transforming Agile Careers and Skills

Shashi Kiran Pilli — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 03:22:47 +0000

Join Heidi to explore how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is changing the tech job market and transforming agile career landscapes in 2025 and beyond. We’ll talk about the profound impact of AI on career development, jobs, and essential skill sets. You’ll learn how the latest AI trends are reshaping the employment arena and how to arm yourself with effective strategies to adapt to the changes. By the end of the session, you’ll be equipped with the knowledge and tools to successfully navigate the job market, anticipate rapid market changes, and prepare for the future of work in a world increasingly influenced by AI..

About the Speaker:

Heidi Araya is a global consultant, keynote speaker, and patented inventor. After more than two decades as a technical writer, business analyst, agile coach, director of engineering operations, and enterprise transformation consultant, she is now on her third career as CEO and chief AI consultant at BrightLogic, LLC, where she helps people and organizations unlock their full potential in the AI era. She is a leading presenter about AI-powered productivity and efficiency at conferences and meetups around the world, known for her pragmatic approach and real-world stories.

Engineering the Future: Agile for Hardware with the MAHD Framework

Shashi Kiran Pilli — Wed, 29 Jan 2025 15:56:00 +0000

Developing physical products—those that integrate hardware, software, and firmware—is uniquely challenging. Unlike software, physical products can’t be easily updated in the field. Teams must navigate long procurement lead times, high production costs, and multi-disciplinary collaboration across engineering, manufacturing, software, and procurement. Traditional Waterfall methods dominate because many Agile approaches, designed for software, fail to address these realities, leaving hardware teams stuck with inefficient, often chaotic processes.

The Modified Agile for Hardware Development (MAHD) Framework bridges this gap. MAHD adapts Agile principles to the constraints of physical product development, enabling organizations to achieve superior results by focusing on hardware-first strategies. Since 2017, MAHD has been successfully implemented in 100+ hardware organizations, leading to competitive, technical, and organizational success.

About the Speakers:

Vishal Sheth is a seasoned business transformation and Agile efficiency expert, with a proven track record in driving organizational peak performance. He ran PMO organizations at VISA and Thermo Fisher Scientific, enabling large, global teams to deliver a portfolio of industry-leading solutions driven by streamlined processes adapted to those organizations.

Dorian Simpson is an accomplished product development expert and creator of the Modified Agile for Hardware Development (MAHD) Framework. With over 25 years of expertise in engineering and business leadership, Simpson has played a pivotal role in integrating Agile methodologies into hardware development to align Agile practices with strategic business goals.

Technology Fears and Scapegoats

Shashi Kiran Pilli — Fri, 17 Jan 2025 01:02:04 +0000

In their recent book, Technology Fears and Scapegoats, Robert Atkinson and David Moschella debunk 40 widespread myths about Big Tech, Big Data, AI, privacy, trust, polarization, automation, and similar fears, while exposing the scapegoating behind many of these complaints. In this session, David will focus on widespread misconceptions about the speed of technology change, the roots of misinformation, technology’s impact on privacy, and other topics.

About the Speaker:
David Moschella is a senior fellow at Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), the world’s leading digital policy think tank. Previously, he was in charge of worldwide research for IDC, the largest market analysis firm in the information technology industry, responsible for the company’s global technology industry forecasts and insights. David’s books include Technology Fears and Scapegoats: 40 Myths about Privacy, Jobs, AI, and Today’s Innovation Economy; Seeing Digital—A Visual Guide to the Industries, Organizations, and Careers of the 2020s; Customer-Driven IT, and Waves of Power.

Organizational Design and Value Stream Mapping

Shashi Kiran Pilli — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 03:40:06 +0000

In this session, we’ll explore three distinct organizational design patterns and dive into the practice of Value Stream Mapping for each. We’ll also examine the key differences between operational and development value streams, and how we can approach value streams as interconnected networks to optimize flow and value.

About the Speaker:
Miljan Bajic is a coach, trainer, and organizational change leader with over 20 years experience. With a career spanning technology and business, he focuses on collaboration to help organizations work smarter and achieve their goals. Miljan is dedicated to making a positive difference in people’s lives.

Crimes Against Agility

Shashi Kiran Pilli — Wed, 20 Nov 2024 00:08:49 +0000

Agile is DEAD! Or is it? We will expose a horrific series of crimes that have been committed against the agile principles, that may (or may not) have ultimately led to their demise. As members of the jury, you will explore the charges and the evidence to arrive at a verdict and sentencing to ensure the perpetrators do not strike again. The intent is to explore the anti-patterns to agility that prevent individuals, teams, and organizations from achieving desired results.

About the Speaker:
Kim Poremski is founder and president of Agile Prowess. As a Scrum Alliance Certified Scrum Trainer (CST®) and SAFe 6.0 Practice Consultant (SPC), Kim draws upon 30+ years of IT and product management experience, coupled with 16+ years in the agile arena. She coaches individuals, teams, and leaders and facilitates interactive workshops in person and online. Kim is a frequent speaker at regional and national Agile events and served as the conference emcee for 2023 Global Scrum Gatherings in Portland, Oregon and Amsterdam.

Agile Change – Engagement Is Not Rocket Science, It’s Neuroscience

Shashi Kiran Pilli — Thu, 26 Sep 2024 01:53:58 +0000

Most change management approaches are check-the-box exercises that don’t change anyone’s behavior. Few agile transitions get past wagile (hybrid waterfall-agile). To avoid these outcomes, Alex Yates has designed for people who lead agile delivery efforts a sticky and simple framework that is less art and more science. Prepare for a fun, interactive session that will shift how you see Change and show you how to produce true people-first results.

About the Speaker:
Alex Yates is currently Assistant Vice President of Change Management at Genpact. He’s worked in senior change transformation and communication roles with companies in the media, healthcare, and consumer goods industries, and in Major League Baseball. Alex loves learning about AI, neuroscience, and human-centered design, as well as travelling and cliff jumping.

Will Artificial Intelligence Kill Agile Coaching?

Shashi Kiran Pilli — Thu, 05 Sep 2024 16:09:07 +0000

As Artificial Intelligence (AI) continues to revolutionize industries, its impact on Agile coaching is inevitable. This session explores the evolving relationship between AI and Agile methodologies, questioning whether AI can replace the human touch in coaching or enhance it. We will examine how AI tools are already being integrated into Agile practices, their benefits, limitations, and the role of human intuition and empathy in coaching. Join us for a thought-provoking discussion on the future of Agile coaching in an AI-driven world and discover how to thrive in this changing landscape.

About the Speakers:

Justin Chapman

Justin Chapman is an experienced Product Operations/Management professional, known for his proficiency in applying an Agile mindset against dogma and his skill in talent management and design thinking.

Steve Jaccaud

Steve Jaccaud is a seasoned Enterprise Agile coach and consultant, noted for his expertise in transformation and change management, organizational design and development, and leadership effectiveness coaching.

Together these two practitioners will host an interactive session exploring whether or not AI could kill Agile Coaching.

Productivity versus Effectiveness

Shashi Kiran Pilli — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 16:58:03 +0000

The success of product teams shouldn’t be measured by how much they produce, but rather by the outcomes their products drive. What if product teams could achieve more by doing less? What would happen if they focused not on sheer output, but on delivering high-impact outcomes that truly resonate with customers? To realize this potential, teams must rethink their approach and shift from a focus on output and relentless productivity to one of outcome-driven effectiveness. Join us as we explore how changing the way organizations think about Agile can empower teams to drive high impact outcomes that deliver results.

About the Speaker:
Dan Gallagher is driven by the notion that life is too short to build products people won’t use. He has logged 30 years as a product designer, product manager, product owner, agile team member, product executive, product consultant, and even scrum master. Dan has battled on the ground, led from the trenches, fought through the middle, and surveilled from above. He has combined this experience with extensive product research, wisdom from pundits (applied and validated), and life observations to evolve the Product Agility methodology into a powerful force for change in product development.