For some time, I wanted to share the story of how we started the journey at ASVPM and where we are headed, and it is finally time to share this incredible story!
Let me first begin with my story, because it is the beginning of this unique organization.
In June of 2018, I received an email from a couple of friends asking if I wanted to “own” a blogging system called www.SVProjectManagement.com! I already had a blog platform that I developed which contained a number of entries regarding my technical expertise as well as Agile frameworks and technical project and program management (PPM). Although I did not want another blog system, I discovered that many of the 1,300 posts on the website were very relevant and current. I felt I had a chance to save a few hundred articles authored by a variety of PPM leaders, and was learning from the wealth of information in the many insightful articles. I thought that if I was learning, then why not share the knowledge with others? Then the idea occurred to me to do this while building a community! So I shared my vision with a few close friends and colleagues and we brought this vision to reality. Through this experience, I finally found my partner to share the journey.
Our story starts here; let us build our village!
Donald Stringari responded to my call and we started to build the vision: a community of Agile-minded Technical & Professional Project and Program Managers who would build a collaborative community to serve our members and share collective knowledge. It took a couple of months to strategically build the pillars. And, we gradually built our village by inviting villagers to build it together empirically, one brick at a time.
So we started using a blend of Agile frameworks, initially a hybrid of Scrum, Kanban, and Lean. Our first volunteers joined us in early 2019 and we started a sprint, loosely using the Scrum framework. Our goal was, and still is, to let volunteers set the direction. Donald and I took the roles of “coaches” so that our members could set their goals per the vision of our village.
Now in April 2021, we are starting sprint 14 with three scrum teams of cross-functional and “globally located” members. Our members are all working professionals, project and program managers with some of them between opportunities. A few of our members have found their dream jobs and left us, and some who are working at their dream jobs still help us! We know that we have a long way to go, but we started a journey together and continue to build a community of Agile PPMs who are helping us as we all learn together, in a hands-on manner, consistently getting smarter and better with each sprint.
SVProjctManagement.com was built as the first blogging system by project managers, and now, over two years into our journey, we have registered ASVPM.org as a nonprofit organization to serve our community.
SVProjctManagement.com is the only hands-on platform that publishes the experiences and voices of Agile-minded project and program managers.
We are building a global village of project and program managers with Agile mindset. This is our journey. This is our legacy. What is your legacy?
Join us and help us to strengthen and expand our village, or call us to help your Agile PM world at your organization.
Contact us and be part of our legacy!
Hello David,
Thank you for an inspiring post! I am excited to join your team and learn the Agile mindset through hands-on experience and collaboration.
After a career of 20+ years in manufacturing, I recently quit my job to pursue my legacy. Advancing my education and improving my skills in Project Management is my vehicle to changing my industry to renewable energy or sustainability. My legacy will be the advancement of environmental preservation and conservation for the future generations.
You and your team have built a wonderful community with noble intentions for the world at large. I look forward to being a part your community as well as contributing to your legacy.
Thank you,
Lalaine
Dear David,
This is an amazing article and as a UCSC Silicon Valley Extension graduate and new ASVPM participant, I want to thank the founders of ASVPM for this great opportunity to be involved in the real Scrum environment and use it in practice all the gained knowledge and skills. This helped me to realize that we don`t need to wait until everything is just right. There will always be challenges, obstacles, and less-than-perfect conditions. With every Sprint we take, we`ll grow stronger and stronger, more and more skilled and self-confident and all of this will help us to be more successful in our future job.
Great article…thanks for sharing David! Having been part of ASVPM for over a year, and volunteering in various roles including Scrum Master, Product Owner, and Developer while having a job as well as in between jobs has been a wonderful experience! I was searching to find an organization where I could put my theory knowledge of Agile/Scrum into a practical experience. I was thrilled to find ASVPM as an organization that would allow me to just that and complete my first Sprint in just little over a month! My knowledge of Agile/Scrum has increased drastically. Thank you David for executing your vision and providing an environment for me to get the skills as a Product Owner and Scrum Master and also a create a positive community of agilest that are eager to learn, grow, and support each other and their community!
Thank you very much, Rohini.
It is so uplifting to see many Project/Program Management leaders provide more value to our community, and help us all evolve and sharpen our skills during collaborative works we perform. This is the power of “paying forward” to our community while we grow together. Your input to our organization, the way we work together, and our leadership is beyond a simple “thank you”! We all greatly appreciate your leadership.
Hi David!
This is a great article!
It seems very opportune for me and I know that also for many more of the new members in the team since you clearly explain the process that asvpm has had since the beginning.
And this helps to connect in a deeper way with the meaning that this project has with the community.
Thank you for your support, David.
ASVPM and our volunteers provide an opportunity for all of us to be a part of building our Agile minded professional community. We can learn from each other to collaboratively provide the highest values our customers and our community members want.
I am looking forward to working with all of our community members.