The Bad Apple

 

There's nothing quite like a bowl of colorful, ripe and fresh fruit to entice the taste buds. They are a heathy source of vitamins and antioxidants to keep us healthy and by extension, happy. While apples are not my favorite fruit of all time, I have been told they do keep the doctor away. However, an unripe or bad apple might just bring the doctor to your front door. They certainly aren't the best option for your health, and probably something you would want to distance yourself from, and in some cases throw away.

In Scrum projects, the Scrum Team is that bowl of fresh fruit vital to the health of the project and the happiness of its stakeholders. The team collaborates and works in harmony toward a common goal which is the delivery of a valuable product. Sometimes however, not everyone is on the same page. There is occasionally a "bad apple" amongst the barrel that can threaten the success of the Sprint, release, and sometimes even the entire project.

Here are some examples of Bad Apples?

Negative - these individuals display bad vibes to the rest of the team for a variety of reasons. Perhaps they don't feel the product is viable, the team is not adequate, or the Product Owner is incompetent. These individuals always seem to find something to complain about and focus on the negatives rather than the positives.

Apathetic - these individuals don't seem to possess any interest, concern or passion for the project. They just do the bare minimum to get away with retaining employment. In some ways apathy can be more detrimental than negativity, as a negative person can still perform or exceed the team's expectations (other than attitude of course).

Dominant - normally a legacy of former glory as a team leader or star developer, these individuals don't respect the collaborative and self-emergent leadership attributes of other team members. They are usually confident, loud, and command the center of attention. Invariably more time is spent on these individuals during face-to-face communication.

What is the cure for these Bad Apples?

Well before we discard the bad apple, there may be a way to save it (or them). That should always be the first approach as a responsible Agile leader.

For the negative individual, firstly we need to understand if what they are being negative about is in fact a serious issue that needs attention. If a team member is being negative about a stakeholder that keeps interrupting them and slowing down work, then that is a real concern. Apart from legitimate concerns such as this, the negative person should be coached on the effects that their negativity is having on other team members. They should understand better ways to voice their feelings that are both constructive and not offensive. Further, they should be made aware that this project is a "happy" place where positivity reigns and negativity has no place. Constructive criticism is fine, but not when it crosses into negative waters.

The apathetic individual is a little trickier. They are doing their job to the bare minimum, but they do not embrace the Agile mindset of continuous improvement and optimizing productivity. For these individuals I find the best antidote is to gain their trust while understanding their motivations; what makes them tick. When you understand that, you can engineer ways to incorporate their interests into the project in ways that make them feel a part of the team. Nearly everyone wants to feel a part of something. You just need to make that thing the project.

Last but not least is the dominant individual. Unless you are scared of confronting issues head on, this is perhaps the easiest one to resolve. These individuals need to be coached privately at first on how their behavior is totally inappropriate and detrimental to the success of the project. When someone is too dominant, we don't get the full flavor of alternative opinions that bring life to stories, features, increments and products. These individuals need to be instructed on team rules and taboos that must be adhered to. However, they also need to save face and not feel embarrassed. I find the best way to handle these individuals is to work on an action plan you both agree to (very important) on some key points at a time. For example: "At the next team meeting, I want you to time yourself and not take more than 3 minutes of the 15-minute Daily Scrum, even if you have a lot more to say."

Failing all attempts to change these destructive attributes, the last resort is to remove the bad apple before they infect the rest of the barrel. No one wants to go there, so we need to identify the first bruise on the apple early so we have time to change the behavior. That way, we have the best chance of getting a healthy, happy, ripe bowl of product features to the market.

"A bruised apple is not all bad. It still has tremendous potential." - Seth Adam Smith

Thank you for your interest in the Scrumptious blog. If you have any ideas for Scrum topics, please message me here. Until next time, remember, projects can be Scrumptious!