High Performing Teams

I’ve been leading and coaching teams — especially Agile teams — for over 20 years, and while working in a truly high-performing team is an awesome and energising experience, few teams live up to the name.

I am skilled in setting up new teams for success and in diagnosing and remedying problems in existing teams: going from striving, to surviving, to thriving. Besides working with internal team dynamics, I also work with the organisational culture and norms in which teams are embedded.

Dan [was] a great Scrum Master and a passionate Agile evangelist. That passion was infectious on his Scrum team and through his leadership they were able to deliver great results for the business.
If you’re embarking on the Agile journey, Dan is a good man to have in your corner.
Chris Jackson, Development Manager, Medibank Health Solutions

Top team challenges

How many of these problems sound familiar?

Lack of camaraderie and psychological safety
Working harder, not smarter
Selfishness and blaming: “I’m ok: the hole’s in the other side of the boat”
Fear: Can’t say “no” to work
No time to learn and improve
Agile in name, but not in spirit or substance
Insufficient attention to detail, design, and technical excellence
Inability to estimate, prioritise, and appropriately slice work
Poor understanding and relationships with customers and stakeholders
Low energy and lack of fun

You can’t fix these problems by superficial interventions like telling people to cheer up, toughen up, or by sending them off on a course. Instead, I connect with and work with teams and their stakeholders to change the game, often with fit-for-purpose Agile approaches, and by invitation rather than imposition.