Amplio’s Highlights

The following lists those aspects of Amplio not in the popular Agile frameworks or are only given lip service. Many of these concepts are in approaches based on Flow, Lean, and/or the Theory of Constraints. Because these are based on universal and scale-free practices, they can be applied anywhere. They can be used to create your own approach or to improve one you already have. Pre-defined configurations, that you can quickly choose based on your situation, are also available. 

Foundations and tools

Amplio is based on an integration of theory and experience. This is the cornerstone of science. Experience tells us what works and doesn’t, while theory explains why. This enables us to step into the future with confidence of which actions will be beneficial. Providing practices without theory often leads to them being resisted. For more in depth discussion go here.

• Systems thinking. This provides the big picture as well as focusing our improvement initiatives on the workflow instead of our people.
• Value stream analysis. Value stream analysis can improve a system and provide insights to people who are used to focusing on local improvements.
• Inherent simplicity. An aspect of the Theory of Constraints is that only a few elements can explain the causes and effects in a complex system.
• Human-centered development. It is critical to understand how people listen, react, and resist. Without this understanding, improvement efforts are doomed to fail because they are not accepted.

What to build

Changing how people work is important. But if you merely cut down the size of your releases into smaller chunks, any process will improve. Step one is to determine what is important. Then figure out how to create it even more efficiently.

• Quickest valuable releases. Focusing on the quickest valuable release is essential. The generic terms of MVP and minimal epics do not create the clarity needed for alignment.
• Requirements by Objectives. While we can’t see all of the details of the functions (outputs) and benefits (outcomes) at the start of a project. We should be able to have clarity on what the objectives are with the details coming later.
• Clarity on the role of the MVP. The MVP term has been bandied about in so many different ways that it has lost its ability to help align people. Amplio uses Eric Ries’  use of the MVP as a vehicle to challenge our assumptions about the entirety of the product we are considering building.
• Shift in perspective. Software is notoriously difficult to use. The core reason is that most developers focus on the system they are creating and then explaining it to the people using it. It needs to be created from the perspective of the stakeholders using it.
• Jobs to be done approach.  This focuses on the jobs the consuming stakeholders are doing. It goes beyond solving problems and creates better ways of working.

Improving workflows

The focus needs to be on continuous learning and improving our workflows not on a framework we’ve adopted. Amplio’s combination of principles and patterns enables quick improvement in many ways. Integrating practices with principles sets up continuous learning.

• Selecting practices to implement by selecting from a list of capabilities that detail what useful practices are in the form of patterns as solutions to recurring problems in a context.
• Eliminating delays in your workflow to achieve quicker feedback in order to eliminate waste.
• Providing a holistic view to overcome silos and create alignment across the organization.

A critical aspect of Amplio is to integrate Edgar Schein’s observation that “We don’t think and talk about what we see, we see what we are able to think and talk about.” By providing theory and practices Amplio’s turns people’s attention on the work itself, not on following a framework which often has us miss easy opportunities for improvement.

Getting started

How to get started is a critical decision. It should be obvious that this requires a diagnosis of the situation before starting. Unfortunately, no Agile framework provides for this. Their focus is on being simple. But “simple” should mean “simple for those starting”, not simply designed but difficult to implement.

To be “simple to use” requires being:

• Fit for purpose. Otherwise, it will be difficult to adopt.
• Understandable. Otherwise, it will be rejected.
• The right amount of change. Too little will lose momentum. Too much will overwhelm people.
• The right scope. Trying to change things without proper backing usually fails.
• The right level of skills. Teaching people new skills beyond their capability leads to frustration and resistance.

To do this Amplio provides:

• A way to diagnose your organization to see what the problems are.
• A way to create a roadmap for improvement.
• A way to implement a quick start based on a short analysis (hours for a team, a few days for an organization).