Tag: project management

My experience speaking at DevOpsCon, Singapore 2024 – Talks, Learning, and Inspiration

Nishi Grover GargLeave a comment

Last week, I had the wonderful opportunity to attend and speak at DevOpsCon Singapore, an event that brought together some of the brightest minds in the DevOps and agile communities. It was an experience filled with learning, sharing, and connection, all while revisiting the vibrant city of Singapore.

My Talks at DevOpsCon

I had the privilege of delivering two talks, each centered on topics I am deeply passionate about:

  1. Mastering Test Automation: Strategies for Maximum Efficiency and Impact
    In this session, I explored how teams can elevate their test automation game to ensure faster feedback, better quality, and smarter integration into CI/CD pipelines. We discussed practical strategies, real-world examples, and tools that can help achieve these outcomes. The engagement and thoughtful questions from the audience truly made this session a delight.
  2. Navigating the Agile Seas: Program Management in Startup Waters
    This talk was all about managing the unique challenges faced by agile teams in fast-paced startup environments. I shared insights and anecdotes from my own experiences, focusing on strategies for balancing speed with quality, fostering collaboration, and keeping teams aligned with business goals amidst chaos.

Both sessions were well-received, and I was deeply encouraged by the feedback and conversations they sparked. Knowing that my insights resonated with the attendees is always a humbling experience.

The Power of Learning and Collaboration

One of the highlights of the event was attending Ben Linders‘ workshop on Agile Teams Gamification. The session was not just informative but also incredibly interactive, showcasing how gamification can be a powerful tool to foster team collaboration and innovation. The exercises and insights were eye-opening, and I’m already thinking of ways to incorporate some of these ideas into my own work.

Workshops like these remind me of the endless possibilities for learning and the value of sharing knowledge within a community. It’s moments like these that inspire us to challenge conventional thinking and embrace fresh perspectives.

Reflections on the Event

Events like DevOpsCon are a testament to the power of tech communities. From engaging discussions with fellow speakers and attendees to exploring ideas that can reshape the way we work, the experience was nothing short of invigorating.

Beyond the technical learnings, it was also about connecting with people—whether it was hearing about their challenges, sharing stories over coffee, or simply realizing how much we all have in common in our pursuit of excellence.

Gratitude and Looking Ahead

I’m immensely grateful for the opportunity to represent my ideas on such a global stage, and for the chance to learn from some of the best minds in the industry. Sharing my knowledge, while also growing from the knowledge of others, is what drives me to keep pushing forward.

Here’s to more opportunities to learn, share, and grow together! If you attended the event or my talks, I’d love to hear your thoughts and continue the conversation.

#DevOpsCon #AgileLeadership #ContinuousLearning #Grateful #TechCommunities

I am speaking at DevOpsCon, Singapore

Nishi Grover GargLeave a comment

I am elated to share that I have been invited to speak at DevOpsCon, SIngapore – an event by devmio. This event is known for its power workshops, practical learning avenues and networking with international community of Agile & DevOps enthusiasts, I am excited to be presenting not one but 2 sessions – one focused on Agile Delivery and another on Test Automation Strategies!

The conference offers 4 full days of learning in the form of sessions, keynotes and workshops, with options to attend in-person or online – here is the full program https://devopscon.io/singapore/program-singapore/

As I prepare for the sessions and my travel, I am also looking for recommendations and ideas for things to include in these sessions. Please share your thoughts and suggestions on what you would like to be included in these topics – here are the details of my sessions:


Navigating the Agile Seas: Program Management in Startup Waters

Agile teams in startups can be in a constant state of flux, and creating harmony there requires mastering adaptive leadership techniques, relooking at processes and leaning them out to suit the needs of the teams. In this session, we will dissect the intricate dance of leading software delivery in startup agile teams, and discover actionable strategies for navigating the complexities of program management in fast-paced environments. Program and engineering leaders will gain valuable insights into aligning team efforts with business goals while maintaining agility and high-quality standards.

By the end of this session, you will:​

  • Gain insights into adaptive leadership techniques tailored for startup agility.
  • Learn practical approaches to balance speed and quality in software delivery.
  • Explore effective methodologies for orchestrating agile programs in dynamic startup ecosystems
  • Navigating the Agile Seas: Program Management in Startup Waters

Mastering Test Automation: Strategies for Maximum Efficiency and Impact

In today’s fast-paced development cycles, effective test automation is essential for delivering high-quality software at speed. This talk will guide you through selecting the most impactful test automation strategies by focusing on aligning with business goals, ensuring scalability, and optimizing test coverage. Attendees will learn how to prioritize which tests to automate, choose the right tools, and create a balanced approach that maximizes efficiency while minimizing maintenance overhead.

Grateful for the opportunity to share my word with the community, and looking forward to travelling the world!

See ya there!

Cheers,

Nishi

The experience of #TribeQonf 2024

Nishi Grover GargLeave a comment

Speaking at #TribeQonf was definitely a highlight of my year so far! What an fantastic event put together by an amazing team led by @Mahesh Chikane, Ashutosh Garg and so many more!

I was excited to see the grand setup, the massive stage was a sight to behold and so was the packed room in front! The hallway was flowing with delegates, sponsor booths and so much chatter, with interesting conversations, networking and smiles in all corners!

So much has already been said by the delegated and esteemed speakers in their posts. This conference surpassed most events in the kind of energy, enthusiasm, connections and learning that was seen and experienced.

My session was all about “Building Harmony in Chaos” wherein we talked about Orchestrating Agile deliveries in a startup environment. It was a jam packed room and definitely a great experience to deliver a session at this scale. I am thankful to have received such great feedback and kind words from the attendees after the session. Here are a few glimpses of my talk:

This event was definitely a highlight of my year so far, and looking forward to many more in the coming months! Thanks for the partnership @The Test Tribe.

Cheers,

Nishi

How To Compliment Software Outsourcing With Agile Development? 

Nishi Grover Garg4 Comments

As technology advances at a breakneck pace, speed and adaptability have become critical for fulfilling client requirements. While traditional project management systems such as the waterfall approach are incredibly precise and controlled, they do not foster adaptation or feedback.

However, firms across a variety of sectors have succeeded in transforming the way their projects are managed through the use of the Agile development technique. Businesses whose primary business is software development have profited the most from the Agile methodology. 

Today, the value of agile methods in software development is well recognized. Not to mention, the benefits are only brought to those who are clear on what precisely to expect from a software development service provider. Agile improves your development team’s effectiveness and results in a more coordinated project management strategy. Therefore, thorough research before hiring makes a lot of sense in order to work on your expectations.

Along with the increasing popularity of Agile software development, another trend is picking up quickly, and with good reason is software outsourcing. Outsourcing software development has overtaken in-house development as the second most popular trend in the industry. 

Indeed, several businesses have begun to include agile methodologies into their offshore development processes as well. Their purpose is to combine the cost savings associated with outsourcing with the adaptability associated with agile development procedures. However, this begs the following question:

Is it possible for software outsourcing and agile development to coexist?

IT  Outsourcing is a widely used method of accelerating corporate operations and making them more efficient and competitive. Outsourcing enables organizations or independent software vendors to accelerate project delivery. Given the benefits that both Agile and Outsourcing provide to the software development cycle, collaborating on a project is undoubtedly a good option.

Coordination with an overseas team, on the other hand, might be challenging owing to a lack of face-to-face contact, cultural differences, and time zone differences, among other factors. Meanwhile, if a strategic strategy is used to integrate these masterstrokes for software development, the project delivery cycle may be accelerated and elevated.

To overcome the obstacles that collaboration between Agile and Outsourcing entails, both sides (companies and technology partners) must work together. The below section explores some effective strategies for establishing a successful Agile-Outsourcing relationship.

How To Compliment Software Outsourcing With Agile Development?

1. Choose A Trustworthy/Skilled Technology Partner

A technology partner is a business that comprehends the underlying concept of the program and assists in its execution. To begin, a comprehensive investigation of the organization should be conducted, determining whether their portfolio and prior expertise are applicable to your project. Thus, a set of indicators may be reviewed to determine whether the technology partner has the capability to execute a project according to the needs and standards established in advance. 

2. Assess the Team as a Whole, Not Individuals

Finding excellent programmers with extraordinary talents is not a difficult task for customers wishing to outsource a software project. Agile development, on the other hand, necessitates a high level of team participation; it is all about collaboration, not individual perfection. Each team member is critical to the project’s success, and each member must feel at ease cooperating with others, whether in offshore locations or in their own nation. 

As a result, the programmers’ track record in a team context is more essential than their individual accomplishments. Consider utilizing behavioral interviewing techniques to pick team members in the same way that you would when employing staff for your business.

3. Interact

To flourish as an outsourced and Agile software firm, there is a need for adjustment, since these two concepts do not always mesh well. To be successful, it is necessary to carefully modify the Agile software development process as well as the communication channels between the customer and the outsourced provider.

4. Mitigation of Risk

Everybody will claim to be agile. Therefore, if you are otherwise satisfied with the provider, condition awarding the project on a successful iteration/sprint that results in the delivery of functioning software to you. Make Certain that your sprints are brief. Define the success criteria in detail, including acceptance tests and the delivery timetable, as well as any additional criteria that are critical to you and your business. Following each sprint, you’ll have the chance to evaluate the offshore team’s performance, make required improvements, and lead the project in the correct path.

After analyzing the team’s performance and working style, you should be able to determine whether you can accomplish your business objectives while collaborating with this offshore team.

Conclusion

Embedding agile practices throughout the IT department is a journey – a lengthy one. By enlisting a vendor as a partner on the journey, businesses may alter their IT development while retaining the benefits of outsourcing. This dispersed agile partnership necessitates collaboration on a variety of levels, as well as the ability to learn from and adapt to the outcomes. The incentives are substantial for those that do it right, including much cheaper costs, access to a big pool of technology-savvy labor, and the capacity to operate constantly and fast across different time zones.

<This is a guest post by Emily Cooper.>

Author Bio – Emily Cooper is a technical writer with a passion for writing on emerging technologies in the areas of software development, .NET and Dedicated Software Development. 

<Image Credits – Unsplash.com>