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Spotify model

5 minutes 5 Questions

The Spotify model, although not a framework, is a people-driven, autonomous approach for scaling Agile and Scrum that has been used as a reference model by many organizations. In Spotify’s model, autonomous squads of no more than eight members each are responsible for different aspects of the product. While each squad essentially operates as a Scrum team, the model also introduces additional roles such as chapters, tribes, guilds, and alliances in order to foster knowledge sharing, alignment, and quality control across the organization.

A Comprehensive Guide to the Spotify Model

Why is the Spotify Model Important: The Spotify model is a framework for large-scale Agile project management that promotes flexibility, teamwork, and innovation. It's crucial because it allows large, dynamic teams to work on complex projects while maintaining Agile principles.
What is the Spotify Model: The Spotify Model is a people-driven, autonomous approach for scaling Agile, named after its creator, Spotify. It emphasizes the importance of culture and network over structure and hierarchy.
How Spotify Model Works: Spotify model organizes employees into squads, tribes, chapters, and guilds. Squads focus on a particular feature, tribe comprises different squads, chapters are a group of squad members across tribes sharing similar skills, while guilds are a larger group with shared interests.
Exam Tips: Make sure you understand the core components (squads, tribes, chapters and guilds) and principles behind the Spotify model. Apart from this, focus on understanding the benefits and limitations of the model, the cultural relevance and how the model handles alignment and autonomy.
Answering Questions on Spotify Model: For any questions regarding the Spotify model, ensure you approach answers with the autonomy, culture, and network in mind. Be sure to explicitly mention the different units of the model, and how they collectively contribute to an Agile working methodology.
Note: The Spotify model has been valuable for Spotify; however, it's not a one-size-fits-all solution. It should adapt to different organizational cultures and contexts.

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Question 1

A Tribe lead in the Spotify model feels the squads they oversee are losing focus on their mission due to constant context-switching. What might be the best solution?

Correct Answer: Create a role of 'Mission Leader' who ensures that squads maintain focus on their primary task.

The best solution would be to 'Create a role of 'Mission Leader' who ensures that squads maintain focus on their primary task.' This would ensure a single point of responsibility for keeping the mission focus sharp, reducing the chance of context-switching. The role will not only oversee the tasks, but also act as a supporter and motivator to keep the squads encouraged and focused on the mission. The other answers are not as effective. 'Increase the number of squads to reduce the workload on each.' might reduce the load, but it does not necessarily solve the issue of context-switching and might result in more fragmentation. 'Ask squads to stop current work and reassess their mission.' might disrupt the workflow and result in loss of productivity. And finally, 'Instruct squads to take breaks more frequently to avoid burnout.' While breaks are important, frequent interrupting of work might actually lead to more context switching, defeating the purpose.

Question 2

If a squad is in need of a skill that is not present in their current setup, how should that be handled in the Spotify model?

Correct Answer: They can temporarily borrow someone from another Squad who has the skill.

The best answer is 'They can temporarily borrow someone from another Squad who has the skill.'. The Spotify model is built around agile methodologies and the concept of squads. Squads are self-organizing, cross-functional teams. If a certain skill is lacking, it makes sense for a squad to borrow a member temporarily from another squad that has the required skill-set. This way, squads maintain their autonomy and agility. The other answers are not ideal. For instance, 'The squad should manage without the skill.' contradicts the concept of cross-functionality in squads. 'They should immediately recruit a new permanent member with that skill.' may not be practical or efficient in the short term. 'Only a Scrum Master can join from another Squad.' is incorrect because any team member with the needed skill can join, not just a Scrum Master.

Question 3

A squad in the Spotify model is consistently failing to deliver on its commitments and meet its goals. What is the most effective way for the squad to address this problem?

Correct Answer: Conduct a retrospective to identify the root causes and develop an action plan to improve their processes and practices.

The most effective approach for the squad to address their performance issues is to conduct a retrospective. A retrospective allows the team to openly discuss and identify the root causes behind their failure to deliver on commitments and meet goals. By understanding the underlying problems, the squad can then develop a targeted action plan to improve their processes, practices, and ways of working. This could involve adjusting their workflow, improving communication and collaboration, removing impediments, or acquiring necessary skills or resources. Retrospectives promote a culture of continuous improvement and empower the squad to take ownership of their performance. While other options like replacing the Squad Lead, re-assessing objectives, or adding more resources might help in some cases, they do not directly address the fundamental issues affecting the squad's performance. The retrospective approach is more likely to lead to sustainable improvements driven by the squad itself.

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