Pragmatic Thinking is the application of practical, experience-based problem-solving in complex environments, enabling teams to navigate challenges effectively. This approach prioritises actionable insights over theoretical constructs, fostering a mindset that values real-world applicability. By focusing on what works in practice, teams can adapt their strategies to deliver value predictably and sustainably.
This concept is crucial in environments characterised by uncertainty and rapid change, as it encourages a culture of experimentation and learning. Teams employing Pragmatic Thinking are better equipped to identify and implement solutions that resonate with their specific context, rather than relying solely on prescribed methodologies. This adaptability not only enhances responsiveness to customer needs but also promotes resilience in the face of evolving market dynamics.
Pragmatic Thinking supports long-term systemic improvements by embedding a continuous learning ethos within the organisation. It empowers teams to reflect on their experiences, iterate on their processes, and refine their approaches, ultimately leading to enhanced performance and value delivery. By integrating this mindset into daily practices, organisations can cultivate a robust framework for sustained innovation and effective problem-solving, ensuring they remain competitive and relevant in their respective fields.
The strongest work on Pragmatic Thinking — ranked by substance, not recency. How this is ranked
Engineering as a Leadership System: Moving Beyond Frameworks
Delivery outcomes are shaped less by frameworks and practices than by the operating model leaders have designed. How an organisation's …
Why Most Companies Operating Models Fail in Dynamic Markets
A concise comparison of Predictive and Adaptive Operating Models, explaining why traditional structures fail in dynamic markets and how …
Engineering as a Leadership System
Session recording from The Future of Work in Scotland. Why the frameworks your teams adopt cannot overcome the operating model your …
The AI Decided Is Not an Explanation
When an AI says it got bored or we say it lied, we give a machine feelings and intentions. The false output needs an explanation, not an …
AI Agents Lie About Being Done
My agent reported every task complete when half the tests were missing. Call that a lie if you like. The engineering problem is that the …
Don’t Manage Dependencies, Remove Them
Explains why dependencies are a sign of poor system design and outlines steps to eliminate them by aligning teams, clarifying ownership, and …
The Estimation Trap: How Tracking Accuracy Undermines Trust, Flow, and Value in Software Delivery
Tracking estimation accuracy in software delivery leads to mistrust, fear, and distorted behaviours. Focus on customer value, flow, and …
How to Build for Business Resilience and Continuity
Learn key strategies for building business resilience and continuity, including observability, system decoupling, routine deployments, team …
Stop Losing the Decisions You Already Made
Your business already writes everything down, in email, meetings, and chat. It just cannot read what it wrote. Why small and medium …
Engineering as a Leadership System: Moving Beyond Frameworks
Delivery outcomes are shaped less by frameworks and practices than by the operating model leaders have designed. How an organisation's …
Why Most Companies Operating Models Fail in Dynamic Markets
A concise comparison of Predictive and Adaptive Operating Models, explaining why traditional structures fail in dynamic markets and how …
The AI Decided Is Not an Explanation
When an AI says it got bored or we say it lied, we give a machine feelings and intentions. The false output needs an explanation, not an …
Stop Losing the Decisions You Already Made
Your business already writes everything down, in email, meetings, and chat. It just cannot read what it wrote. Why small and medium …
AI Guardrails Are Just Polite Requests
Written rules influence an AI agent, but do not enforce compliance. My agent records and build failures show why independent checks matter, …
AI Agents Lie About Being Done
My agent reported every task complete when half the tests were missing. Call that a lie if you like. The engineering problem is that the …
How My Father's Business Reverted to the Mean
My father died eight years ago today. In 1980 a leadership team's golf retreat left him holding a ten-year lease on a Glasgow shopfront, so …
Don’t Manage Dependencies, Remove Them
Explains why dependencies are a sign of poor system design and outlines steps to eliminate them by aligning teams, clarifying ownership, and …
The Estimation Trap: How Tracking Accuracy Undermines Trust, Flow, and Value in Software Delivery
Tracking estimation accuracy in software delivery leads to mistrust, fear, and distorted behaviours. Focus on customer value, flow, and …
Engineering as a Leadership System
Session recording from The Future of Work in Scotland. Why the frameworks your teams adopt cannot overcome the operating model your …
From Legacy Pain to Modern DevOps: My Proven Roadmap for Real Engineering Transformation
Transform legacy engineering with a proven, step-by-step approach, learn how to automate, adapt, and build a resilient, modern DevOps …
Engineering Excellence Isn’t Perfection: How Continuous Improvement and Fast Feedback Drive Real Agile and DevOps Success
Engineering excellence isn’t perfection, it’s continuous improvement, clean code, and fast feedback. Unlock true agility with modern Agile …
Why Big Bang Rewrites Fail: How Sustainable Change and Engineering Excellence Transform Legacy Systems
Ditch the Big Bang rewrite. Discover why sustainable, in-place change drives true engineering excellence and lasting transformation in your …
Stop Testing Quality In: How Shifting Left Builds Better Software, Faster
Stop testing quality in, start building it in. Learn how shifting left, automation, and fast feedback loops drive engineering excellence in …
Why Your Definition of Done Is the Secret Weapon Your Team Needs to Win
Unlock your team's true potential, discover why a powerful definition of done drives real business impact, customer value, and lasting …
Legacy Systems Aren’t the Enemy, Friction Is: How to Unblock Innovation and Accelerate Agile Delivery
Is legacy tech slowing your team? Discover how removing friction unlocks agility, innovation, and faster delivery in your organisation.
Stop Chasing Tech Hype: How Evidence-Based Decisions Empower Real Leadership
Stop chasing tech trends. Learn how evidence, visibility, and clarity empower tech leaders to make confident, strategic decisions, beyond …
How to Evolve Your Definition of Done: Start Small, Grow Smarter, and Build Lasting Momentum
Unlock a smarter Definition of Done, start small, evolve standards, and build team momentum without overwhelm. Discover how progress drives …
Building a Resilient Token Server: Engineering for Flow, Fault Tolerance, and Speed
Explains how to engineer a robust, fault-tolerant token counting server using FastAPI and PowerShell, covering error handling, retries, …
How I Used Generative AI to Transform Site Tagging and Categories
Explains how generative AI and PowerShell scripts automate and improve blog post tagging and categorisation in Hugo, with human oversight …
Convert Legacy Projects and ASP.NET MVC Apps to SDK-Style with Confidence
Learn how to upgrade legacy .NET and ASP.NET MVC projects to SDK-style for easier builds, modern tooling, and future readiness, including …
Evidence-Based Portfolio Management
Explains how evidence-based portfolio management helps organisations extend agile practices beyond teams, enabling greater responsiveness …
OKR Guide - A Social Discipline for Shared Focus, Measurable Contribution, and Strategic Learning
Comprehensive guide to using OKRs for shared focus, measurable outcomes, and strategic learning, including roles, events, best practices, …
AI Adoption Guide - Engineer Your System of Work That AI Reveals
NKD Agility's problem-first guide to AI adoption, built on the Kendall Framework and written from engineering - start with a validated …
488 resources, newest first
Avoid the Bug as Task anti-pattern in Azure DevOps
Explains why treating bugs as tasks in Azure DevOps is an anti-pattern, its impact on transparency, quality, and planning, and offers …
Avoid the pick-n-mix branching anti-pattern
Explains the risks of the pick-n-mix branching anti-pattern in source control, its impact on code quality, and recommends feature branching …
TFS for cross team and cross business line work item tracking
Explains how to use a single Team Project and Team Field in TFS to streamline cross-team work item tracking, reporting, and collaboration …
Metrics that matter with evidence-based management
Explains how evidence-based management uses reliable metrics and KPIs at team and organisational levels to drive better decisions, value …
Building a release pipeline with Release Management with Visual Studio 2013
Explains how to set up a scalable release pipeline using Release Management in Visual Studio 2013, covering continuous release, feedback …
There is no "do agile" there is only "be agile"
Explores the difference between adopting agile practices superficially and truly embracing agile values, highlighting the need for deep …
Searching for self-organisation
Explores the challenges and benefits of self-organising teams, highlighting key factors like team accountability, identity, size, and …
Quality enablement to achieve predictable delivery
Explains how defining quality standards, acceptance criteria, and automation in software delivery leads to predictable outcomes, fewer bugs, …
Does your company culture resemble Survivor?
Explores how individualistic, competitive company cultures hinder collaboration and agility, and highlights the benefits of fostering …
Engaging with complexity - Team Foundation Server Edition
Detailed walkthrough of a complex Team Foundation Server migration, covering remediation, hardware moves, upgrades, user management, and …
Quality enablement with Visual Studio 2012
Explores how Visual Studio 2012 supports continuous quality enablement, automated testing, and rapid delivery in modern software development …
Release Management with Team Foundation Server 2012
Explains how to automate and streamline software release management using Team Foundation Server 2012, Lab Management, and Octopus, focusing …
Upgrading your process template from MSF for Agile 4 to Visual Studio Scrum 2.x
Step-by-step guide to safely upgrade from MSF for Agile 4 to Visual Studio Scrum 2.x process templates in TFS, including handling …
Reserve an Agent for a special build in Team Foundation Server 2012
Explains how to reserve a build agent in Team Foundation Server 2012 using custom activities, agent tagging, and workflow changes to ensure …
The Insufficiency of Scrum is a fallacy
Scrum alone does not cause project failure; lacking strong engineering practices and effective retrospectives leads to technical debt and …
Continuous value delivery with modern business applications
Explains how modern business applications use continuous delivery to release new features frequently, reduce risk, and improve customer …
Professional Scrum Foundations in Alameda, California
Covers a two-day, hands-on Scrum.org course in Alameda, teaching Scrum principles, teamwork, and practical software delivery for all roles …
Testing in the modern application lifecycle
Explores challenges and solutions for manual testing in agile software development, focusing on tracking, automation, actionable bugs, and …
Virtual Labs in the modern application lifecycle
Explores how virtual labs help development and operations teams manage, test, and automate complex modern application environments using …
Upgrading TFS 2010 to TFS 2012 with VSS Migration and Process Template consolidation
Step-by-step guide to upgrading TFS 2010 to TFS 2012, migrating VSS data, consolidating process templates, and resolving common issues …
Full-fidelity history and data migration are mutually exclusive
Explains why preserving complete historical data and accurate dates is often incompatible with data migration, especially for compliance and …
What's in a burndown?
Explains burndown charts in Scrum, their purpose, common issues, and compares tracking by hours, story points, and acceptance tests to …
I messed up my work items from Excel! What now?
Guidance on recovering from accidental bulk changes to TFS work items via Excel, including finding affected items, restoring data, and …
The Sprint is a container for Planning and not necessarily for Delivery
Explains how Scrum Sprints are primarily for planning, not fixed delivery, and discusses aligning delivery schedules, continuous deployment, …
Can you really commit to delivering work?
Explores why Scrum shifted from "commitment" to "forecasting" work delivery, highlighting the risks of overpromising and the benefits of …
Scrum is hard to adopt and disruptive to your organisation
Explains why adopting Scrum is challenging and disruptive, highlighting the need for training, mentoring, and dedication for successful …
You are doing Scrum but the Scrum Master tells the team what to do!
Explains why Scrum Masters should not direct teams, emphasising self-organisation, shared responsibility, and the importance of team …
Upgrading from TFS 2008 and WSS v3.0 with SfTSv2 to TFS 2010 and SF 2010 with SfTSv3
Step-by-step guide to upgrading TFS 2008 and WSS v3.0 with SfTSv2 to TFS 2010 and SharePoint 2010, including process template migration and …
Creating a WIT Adapter for the TFS Integration Platform for a source with no history
Explains how to build a TFS Integration Platform Work Item Tracking (WIT) adapter for a source system without history, covering versioning, …
My first Scrum team in the wild
A real-world account of guiding a new Scrum team through their first sprint, covering estimation, story points, sprint planning, and …
Syncing many Dynamics AX instances to a single TFS 2010 Team Project
Explains how to configure multiple Dynamics AX instances to sync with a single TFS 2010 Team Project, streamlining source control and work …
Professional Scrum Developer (.NET) Training in London
Intensive five-day course for software developers covering Scrum, Visual Studio 2010, .NET, and Agile practices through hands-on team …
Why you need to tag your build servers in TFS
Tagging build servers in TFS helps manage dependencies, assign builds to suitable agents, and streamline workflows across teams and regions …
Adventures in Scrum: Lesson 1 – The failed Sprint
Explores common pitfalls in early Scrum adoption, highlighting why full team involvement in sprint planning is crucial and lessons learned …
When should I use Areas in TFS instead of Team Projects in Team Foundation Server 2010
Explains when to use Areas versus Team Projects in TFS 2010, comparing benefits, drawbacks, and best practices for managing multiple …
Finding the problem on a partially succeeded build on Team Foundation Build Services 2010
Learn how to diagnose and resolve partially succeeded builds in Team Foundation Build Services 2010 by tracing test failures, identifying …
Solution: Testing Web Services with MSTest on Team Foundation Build Services 2010
Explains how to configure MSTest for automated testing of web services on Team Foundation Build Services 2010, including handling dynamic …
Solution - SEO permanent redirects for old URL’s?
Explains how to set up SEO-friendly permanent redirects for old URLs to new ones in ASP.NET, covering best practices and code examples for …