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Why you should be using GQM to measure software quality and value

In ConnectALL, Tech Talk, Value Stream, Value Stream Management by Lance Knight

Note: Originally published on Tech Beacon Organizations have been measuring output in some form and using it to fine-tune their efforts for ages, yet every generation seems to struggle to identify key metrics. In the software realm, since the first bit of software code was executed successfully in 1948, companies have striven to boost their software’s value and quality, often with mixed results. Between 2014 and 2016, in particular, renewed interest in reaching the “pinnacle” of software excellence only seemed to cause confusion, as project managers and their teams argued over what constituted software value. For example, functionality enabled as part of defect …

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ConnectALL Assists in Freeing Freighter from Flow Fiasco

In ConnectALL, Value Stream, Value Stream Management by Lance Knight

The ship Ever Given was removed from blocking the Suez Canal — how did that happen? One value stream management company played an important role in opening up this critical global supply vein. ConnectALL’s team has worked tirelessly with both the Egyptian authorities and excavation crews on the ground to create strategies to improve the flow of the Suez Canal. While the company normally specializes in optimizing software delivery, this recent event has provided a unique opportunity to apply value stream management concepts to the delivery of physical cargo. In close collaboration with ConnectALL, salvage crews were able to see, measure, and automate the flow of this valuable freight through the canal.

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What Can Super Bowl LV Teach Us About VSM?

In Value Stream, Value Stream Management by Lance Knight

In the United States, the first Sunday in February is Super Bowl Sunday, perhaps the most famous “unofficial” holiday in America. This year, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 31-9. We thought it’d be a great idea to analyze this most-loved and most-watched American sport and what it teaches us about value stream management. The purpose of this blog post is to to better understand the best practices associated with effective value stream management. We have outlined how we can utilize the three key steps of value stream management (See, Measure, Automate) to understand the reasons why the Buccaneers defeated the Chiefs and how this process can then be applied to improving the outcomes of software delivery.

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Can You See Your End-to-End Value Stream?

In Value Stream, Value Stream Management by Soumya Menon

Most companies that have adopted value stream management (VSM) to help make work visible haven’t really got it right. Why? To see across the value stream would mean having control over the value stream with an end-to-end view into enterprise workflows, and not just focusing on orchestrating or automating lower-level activities. The challenge in managing these end-to-end value streams is that they inevitably span several systems, some of which are even on the cloud. Without visibility or dynamic flexibility, organizations can’t address issues in a timely fashion.

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Uncovering the Secret to ConnectALL’s Success in 2020

In ConnectALL, Value Stream, Value Stream Management by Soumya Menon

We’re often asked, “how did ConnectALL accomplish so much in 2020?! What’s the secret sauce you guys are cooking up over there?”
2020 was an extremely exciting and action-packed year at ConnectALL, with a tidal wave of momentum leading to mentionable and proud moments. ConnectALL is a true pure-play Value Stream Management Solution Platform, as recognized by leading industry analysts. With the world changing to adapt to the pandemic, we set foot into a world of unknowns and have come out a leader. We’ve changed the software landscape by highlighting the unlimited possibilities Lean-Agile practices like value stream management bring to the table. In short, we have set the ball rolling for a new era of making everything agile with a differential human aspect to software development and delivery.

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3 Easy Steps for Using VSM in Everyday Life

In Value Stream by Lance Knight

Value stream management principles have helped organizations across the globe leverage lean strategies to optimize their software development processes. However, the benefits from effectively managing value streams are not limited to only software. Value streams exist all around us whether we realize it or not. The goal of this blog post is to help explain how value stream management works in the context of software delivery by applying VSM concepts to an activity we experience every day.

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Learning to see your value

In Value Stream by Andrew Fuqua

It’s difficult to manage your value streams effectively if you can’t see them, can’t comprehend them, or aren’t aware of them. What helps — value stream mapping, making work visible, implementing the Kanban method, and a value stream manager. In an organization, different people have different views of the value streams, and potentially conflicting improvement objectives, it is important to share one vision of these streams and align on improvement goals. In this post, we will focus on getting a shared understanding of the streams.

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Objectives and Key Results: Not Just a Means to an End for Businesses

In OKR, Value Stream, Value Stream Management by Soumya Menon

OKR is an approach that organizations of varying sizes use to measure the ongoing health of their processes and align efforts up and down the organizational hierarchy around important improvement opportunities. You might think OKR is a relatively new approach; however, it has been around for decades. The truth of the matter is that scaling Lean-Agile practices requires organizations to evolve the way progress is measured. So instead of focusing only on completion of projects, OKRs help organizations set goals in a trackable manner — tying your project goals to business objectives and measuring the results against the overall objective.