Paul is a coach in agile development and certified Scrum trainer. He's the founder of training company agilify and his book 'Improving Teams' brings together his work in agile and improv theatre, highlighting the overlaps and connections between the two.

In conversation we talk about the cost of change in the workplace and how similarities in agile and improv allow for efficiency in fields like software development. How adapting is as much about a given project as it is the people involved, and introducing improv for learning. We also touch on the geographical differences in recognition of improv in the US and UK for the  approach agile and improv use to introduce game play as a tool.

"Scrum master". Number 8 in the 10 weirdest job titles in the UK.

Paul's book on Amazon: Improv-ing Agile Teams: Using Constraints To Unlock Creativity

Bullet Points

• An overview of Agile and Scrum.
• The agile manifesto.
• Scrum coaching.
• Traditional software development vs agile.
• Technology, culture and the dilemma of linear planning.
• Seeing what you don't want, to find out what you do.
• Making the cost of change lower.
• The comedy store players / Neil Mullarkey.
• Connecting improv and agile.
• Keith Johnstone.
• Agile conference 2012.
• suffer fromt he same legacy agile and improv.
• Being open to learning and client rapport.
• Fear of failure in computer science.
• There is one truth, one outcome.
• Preparing for change, adapting personally and professionally.
• Slowing down to reflecting on a process and make improvements.
• Scrum masters, putting games in timeboxes.
• Scrum master - The 10 weirdest job titles in the UK - The Independent.
• Relating back to the personal - Paul's book examples.
• Storytelling and the agile product owner.
• Good companies have compelling narratives.
• The Applied Improvisation Network.
• US vs UK, Regular improv and agile approaches are built into the fabric of large tech companies. 10 years.
• The sprint retrospective
• Working with a group and creating in a safe environment for gameplay
• Inspiring others through improv practices
• Pixar, agile and storytelling.

Links:
www.agilify.co.uk | Paul on Linkedin

Direct Link

Cathy Salit is CEO of Performance of a Lifetime. She has delivered hundreds of keynote speeches on how using performance in everyday life helps with growth and productivity.

She's the author of Performance Breakthrough' A radical approach to success at work.

In conversation with Cathy we chat about her work at POAL, and how treating life as a great performance can be a strong catalyst for growth and change. How her company has developed over time using performance, improvisation and psychology  to create a safe 'playground' and lead to a diverse range of projects including working with inner city 'cops and kids' to to improving the doctor/patient relationship.

Direct Link (MP3 file)

Links: Performance of a lifetime | Cathy on Linkedin |  Performance Breakthrough

Bullet Points;

• The human side of business strategy
• Performative psychology
• Who we are becoming; tapping into the natural ability to perform from childhood
• Choose to Grown blog
• Cathy the Jazz singer
• The All Stars Project - Cops and kids finding common ground
• Elisabeth Cleaners street school
• Art and business building together
• Form of life -  Ludwig Wittgenstein
• David Nackman, Fred Newman
• Your life story in one minute
• Devising improv for medical residents - improving  the doctor patient relationship.
• Using improv to create a 'playground' to approach emotionally difficult. conversations such as doctor patient DNR (do not resusitate).
• Stephen Nachmanovitch, Free play.
• Emotinal intelligence...why the need to prefix "intelligence"?
• "The Sales Whisperer" - Daniel Pink, author of To Sell is human.
• Bringing performance to the sales pitch.
• Our ability to change is a performance choice.
• We need weird! Doing something new to find change.
• The art of selling, networking and other schmoozy things.
• Don't worry about the sale.