Claim OwnershipKatAnu Connect Podcast
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© 2026 KatAnu Connect Podcast
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Kate Megaw & Ryan Smith host a variety of discussions around any and all things Agile!
162 Episodes
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Meetings are full, but participation is missing! In this episode, we explore why multitasking, dominant voices, and silent participants have become the norm, and what actually helps teams engage again. We unpack common facilitation challenges like uneven participation and low psychological safety, then share practical techniques teams can use right away: stacking, clear working agreements, intentional agendas, and smarter meeting design. If your meetings feel quiet, chaotic,...
Is your calendar full of meetings that go nowhere? You're not alone. In this kickoff episode of our "Bold Solutions for Big Problems" series, Kate, Anu, and Ryan dive into the universal challenge of bad meetings－and the costs are staggering. We explore the most common symptoms plaguing organizations today: unclear purposes, too many attendees, multitasking participants, lack of follow-through, and the loss of meeting etiquette in our virtual world. From people showing up in ...
Stop overthinking Agile philosophy and start implementing these battle-tested tweaks that actually work! You know what's exhausting? All the theoretical debates about Agile frameworks. You know what's actually useful? Simple, practical tips that make your Scrum teams run smoother starting tomorrow. After years of coaching teams across industries, we've learned that the biggest improvements don't come from grand transformations, they come from small, strategic tweaks that eli...
Transformations don’t fail because the framework is wrong, they fail because the people system isn’t ready. In this episode, we unpack the patterns that derail Agile, AI, and “pick-your-flavor” change efforts: unclear purpose, missing champions, fuzzy roles, cultural resistance, and plans so complicated everyone checks out. We’ll also share what actually works: start with a clear why, build visible sponsorship, keep it simple, and use transparency + inspection + adaptation to earn...
Prioritization sounds simple, until everything is labeled “urgent,” stakeholders are shouting, and teams are stuck context-switching instead of finishing meaningful work. In this episode, we explore why prioritization breaks down at the individual, team, and organizational levels, and why the real issue isn’t effort, it’s clarity. We unpack the shift from “high priority” thinking to intentional ordering, the role of capacity and value in making better decisions, and how unclear pr...
Trust doesn’t show up on an org chart. It isn’t tracked in Jira. And yet it determines how fast work moves, how decisions get made, and whether teams feel safe enough to do their best thinking. When trust is present, teams move with confidence, leaders step back, and progress accelerates.When trust is missing, control creeps in, fear takes over, and even “good” processes start to collapse.This podcast explores why trust is the foundation of effective teamwork, how it quietly erode...
Busy doesn’t equal valuable－and “we shipped 100 points” doesn’t mean a customer’s life improved. This episode challenges the trap of productivity theater (endless tickets, reports, and metrics nobody uses) and reframes how teams define success: outcomes over outputs, clarity over chaos, and goals over noise. You’ll hear why weaponizing metrics backfires, how Sprint Goals protect focus, and the simple question that exposes busy work instantly: What value does this create ... and fo...
We love to say we’re Agile… but then we bury our teams under complexity, overstuffed user stories, bloated processes, and “just in case” documentation. In this episode, Kate Megaw and Ryan Smith unpack one deceptively simple piece of Scrum wisdom inspired by a quote from Steven Merchant: You can always simplify. From product backlog items that read like novels, to daily scrums that feel like executive status meetings, to processes that exist only because “that’s the rule” - this conversation ...
In this fast-paced, slightly ranty, totally real conversation, Kate Megaw and Ryan Smith dive into the invisible force that quietly slows teams down: the lack of permission. Permission to simplify. Permission to say, “I don’t know.” Permission to experiment, to stop doing pointless work, to make decisions without perfect information, and to say a confident “no” (or at least, “not right now”). They swap stories from real teams, bug backlogs, funding models, and leadership workshops...
End-of-year retrospectives don’t have to feel like grim post-mortems or blame-fests. In this episode, Kate Megaw and Ryan Smith break down how to run a year-in-review retrospective that’s fun, psychologically safe, and actually leads to change! Drawing on the Team KatAnu R3 facilitation model (READY-REACH-RAP), they walk through how to set your retro up for success, design engaging activities (for in-person and virtual teams), and keep the focus on improving the process -not attacking p...
If your meetings could be replaced by an email, we have a problem. In this high-energy guide, we’ll walk you through the facilitation moves that we use to transform virtual meetings from “snooze-fest with slides” into engaging, interactive working sessions where people talk, think, decide, and actually do things. From virtual whiteboards and breakout rooms to timers, templates, and webcams, you’ll learn how to shift from “I’m presenting” to “I’m facilitating” and never drone on ag...
In the final episode of our Leadership Growth Wheel series, Kate and Ryan welcome back the brilliant Anu Smalley to unpack the eighth domain: Facilitative Leadership. After months journeying through Self, Relational, Strategic, Team, Adaptive, Operational, and Partnership Leadership, we close the wheel by exploring the three skills that transform good leaders into catalytic ones: Coaching, Mentoring, and Facilitation. Join Team KatAnu as we talk about shifting from command-and-cont...
If leadership feels lonely, you’re not “elite”－you’re exhausted. Partnership leadership flips the script: instead of carrying everything on your own, you intentionally build influence, negotiate for shared success, and engage stakeholders as true allies. In this high-energy deep dive into the Partnership domain of the Leadership Growth Wheel, we’ll unpack three core skills－Influence, Negotiation, and Stakeholder Management－plus the mindsets of abundance, curiosity, and accountabil...
Shadow work: those hidden tasks inside “done” and the off-board favors your team quietly takes on, silently steals capacity, tanks predictability, and frustrates everyone. This high-energy, practical guide shows you how to name it, measure it, and design simple team agreements that bring invisible effort into the light so you can plan realistically, deliver confidently, and protect your people.
If your meetings and events feel flat, formulaic, or just plain exhausting, it’s time to shake things up. In this lively, practical guide, we explore three meeting formats that actually work: Lean Coffee, Open Space, and World Café. Whether you have 60 minutes, half a day, or a full day to play with, you’ll find the perfect approach to energize your team, spark real dialogue, and co-create meaningful outcomes. Get ready to turn “just another meeting” into a space where ideas...
Big personalities can bring energy, but when one voice takes over, the team loses out. In this lively episode, we dive into practical ways to tame the talkers, without shutting them down. Discover facilitation moves that give quieter voices confidence and create balance: one-word openers, rotating debriefers, visible timeboxes (yes, even sand timers!), structured breakouts, dot voting, and parking lot magic. We’ll also share a respectful coaching script to partner with stron...
Stop the Madness! You’ve coded like a rockstar, but the sprint clock is ticking, and QA is still pounding away! This episode tears down the biggest myth in Scrum: the phantom finish line. Is it "done" or is it "done-done with a big D"? We're dropping the truth bomb: it's either done, or it's not done! Period. Get ready to smash the silos, ditch the "I'm done my bit" mindset, and transform your team into a Done-Achieving Machine! Discover the root causes of that a...
Ready to finally Settle the Great Debate Over Bugs and Spikes (or at least get a coherent philosophy)? We’re diving into the details with high-impact takeaways! Stop the confusion and start delivering—we'll clarify the essential difference between a bug, a defect, and technical debt, giving you the clarity to triage like a pro. Learn exactly why spikes aren't just a waste of time (and why you definitely don't need a spike for every user story). Get ready for actionable advic...
Backlog refinement (formerly “grooming”) isn’t a Scrum event: it’s an activity. That’s exactly why so many teams either skip it, cram it in at the end of the sprint, or turn it into a rabbit hole of solutioning. In this episode we unpack a practical, facilitator-friendly approach: what “ready” really means, how much work to keep refined, a simple REFINED mnemonic you can teach your team, and concrete ways to keep voices balanced, estimates honest, and discussion moving. Expe...
Retrospectives are one of the most powerful opportunities a team has to improve. Yet far too often, they’re skipped because “we don’t have time,” rushed through as an afterthought, or treated as a dull box-checking exercise. Even worse, sometimes they turn into blame sessions that leave people feeling drained rather than energized. It doesn’t have to be that way. A well-facilitated retrospective can be the most valuable hour of your team’s sprint: the time where psychological safe...
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