Sharon Bowater

If you missed Lean Agile London 2024 and all the great talks, they’ll be coming online very soon. I was honoured to speak at this brilliant event. If you want to find out why you can’t trust what customers tell you and how to become ‘antifragile’ in product management, you can catch up with my talk online: https://lnkd.in/eBdmfBqk My talk wasn’t entirely original. The reason for highlighting it is to point to ProKanban.org’s new Accelerating Product Value course, which my talk is based on. The course gives strategies product managers and teams can use to protect investments and drive towards greater product value. I’ll be teaching this course again later this year. If you’re interested in finding out more, please send me a message. #product #productmanagement #value #kanban #strategy #lean #agile #london

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Missed our #NHS Staff Bank white paper? This is a quick read, full of valuable insights on how we drive cost savings and embed a zero-tolerance for off-framework agency use. Click here to download: https://lnkd.in/eij3C_Pj

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Understand the successful user centred design process used by Scotpayments https://lnkd.in/eN3DgsdY #govtech #servicedesign #payments

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Learn from Monzo Bank on how they are assisting vulnerable customers with debt management approaches at the Utility Week Consumer Vulnerability & Debt Conference 2024, taking place 17 September. Download the brochure to find out more https://bit.ly/44SMq7M

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Did you know that credit unions are co-ops? We are backing @CooperativesUK's Call for #CoopGrowth this #CoopFortnight. #Coops are brilliant, resilient and democratic businesses. Co-ops help communities to thrive, but they need more support to unlock their potential. Here's more - www.uk.coop/coopgrowth

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📣 Bank of England Statistical Notice The Bank’s Data and Statistics Division plans to update the Statistical Data Point Model and will release a public working draft (PWD) in Q4 2024. 🎙 A UAT window will be available following the PWD release, with exact dates to be announced later. The update focuses on resolving known issues in data modeling and validation rules while ensuring alignment with current reporting definitions. This update does not change the existing reporting requirements, so the current definition documents remain valid. 👉 Importantly the Statistical Utility tool will be withdrawn with this update, as it was initially provided to aid the transition to XBRL reporting in 2022. #Vermeg #BoE #XBRL

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One of the best parts of being an agile coach for me is helping people start out on their journey in learning to channel a more agile mindset. Once I start talking about the magic I see in agile ways of working, something lights up in me that then spreads to the teams I'm working with. Check out these reactions to my Intro to an agile mindset presentation and if they make you a bit more agile curious, get in touch.

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"What gets me very excited about banking is that it is so much about the customer … They have decided to come into a branch. So let’s make it easier for them to do what they need to do."   Ahead of her appearance at BankSpaces, Principal Helen Herrick provided some insight into how design can be used to entice people to visit physical branches as online banking becomes more popular.   Follow the link below to read more: https://lnkd.in/ggnXffu3 #MBHArchitects #Design #Architecture #BankSpaces #BankDesign #Banking #Design

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Thanks IIBA for publishing my blog which pulls together three themes from #BADigest 😊. If you haven't yet seen it, the link is below 👇

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The Payments Association Invites Incoming Chancellor to Show Leadership, Unlock the Potential of UK Payments as an Enabler of Growth, and Effectively Combat Fraud “We see the Chancellor’s appointment as an opportunity to maximise the potential of the payments sector while refocusing on its greatest threats”, said Tony Craddock, Director General of The Payments Association. “It is essential that the new government and the payments industry work collaboratively to protect the UK’s global leadership position. A clear vision and strategy from the new Government will generate significant investment and promote the UK’s position as the global payments leader solidified and see sustained growth in every UK region.” https://lnkd.in/e_fUujKT #fintech #finance #banking #paytech #payments #fintechnews #paymentsnews

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Another week, another article talking about how Scrum Masters and agile coaches are no longer in demand. The premise of this week's article was that so many people who've been filling these roles got certifications with no practical experience and due to this the perceived value of the role has diminished throughout the industry. Something else I've been noticing, Product managers are beginning to get the same treatment as agilists are. In the last 2 weeks I've seen a bunch of articles about how Product roles are being cut and how PMs aren't necessary and too many were hired during the pandemic. Product and Agile roles are only tangentially related, yet both seem to be suffering from similar fates right now. I wonder, what is this signaling as a larger shift to the ways of working? Part of me feels like since tech companies are feeling headwinds for the first time in almost 2 decades, they're quickly reverting to the way of working gives company leadership the most sense of security, and that's command and control, project based waterfall. The trick for agilists right now will be to weather this storm, keep our jobs, and keep the human focused ways of working while giving the sense of security to leaders that command and control waterfall gives. I'm wondering if anyone in my network has had luck with products like Actionable Agile's monte carlo simulations to add some metrics and predictability to their agile ways of working in an effort to stem the backslide to waterfall. #Agile #waysofworking #waterfall #product #TheFuture

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Our recent research has found that 77% of UK bank innovation leaders say challenging the status quo can put careers at risk. But if everyone is afraid of raising their head above the parapet what does that mean for innovation? Today we published our report – Core Banking Modernisation: The Pitfalls and The Promises. The report analyses data from a survey of 150 innovation leaders at UK retail and business banks showing that while nearly all UK banks recognise the need to modernise on cloud, the road to modernisation is littered with potholes and broken promises – as almost two-thirds of respondents think most cloud-based core banking platforms are just the same legacy tech with a new lick of paint. But of course, not all cloud banking is created equal and the successful adoption of cloud-native core banking is about more than technology. To read the full report, “Core Banking Modernisation: The Pitfalls and The Promises” visit our website, https://lnkd.in/ezndxWvQ #corebanking #cloudbanking #bankingtechnology #fintech #datadrivencore #agileinnovation

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Monzo Bank introduces trio of new fraud controls. Monzo has introduced a trio of security controls to help customers diminish the prospect of fraudulent payments out of their accounts from phone theft, shoulder surfing or impersonation scams. The controls, which are called Known Locations, Trusted Contacts and Secret QR codes, are opt-in for customers and will be rolled out over the coming weeks. Customers need to have at least two of these controls set up and can choose the limits at which each control is activated when making bank transfers or instant access savings withdrawals from pots. For Known Locations, customers choose places like home or work that they need to be in when making bank transfers or savings withdrawals over their chosen limit. If they are outside of their chosen known location, the transfer will not complete. Customers can also invite a trusted friend or family member who uses Monzo to help check whether a transaction over their chosen limit looks safe or is suspicious before they make the transfer or savings withdrawal. Source: https://lnkd.in/eyADznTz #banking #bankingindustry #bankingtechnology #bankingtech #payments #digitalpayments #fintech #financialtechnology #financialservices 

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As a Scrum Master or Delivery Manager, you're supposed to be the most knowledgeable on the team when it comes to working together effectively to deliver value to customers and users. Therefore, when a team is constantly shooting itself in the foot and delaying the delivery of that value, there are times when it is absolutely the right thing to do to *tell the team what they are doing wrong, and how to do it correctly*. While telling the team what to do should always be your last resort (only to be used after you've tried coaching, etc.), far too many SMs and DMs shy away from it, in order to avoid confrontation or to avoid spoiling the "friendly" atmosphere on the team. It's part of your job to have those difficult conversations, people. If you're just being nice to your team ALL the time, you're not helping them at all. And neither are you helping your customers or users.

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Join us at Professional Pensions Live 2024 to hear from industry experts Gary Sallows and Lisa Lyon on the crucial topic of pension administration and data. Their insights will be invaluable for anyone looking to enhance their pension management strategies. Don't miss this opportunity to learn how rigorous digital verification and up-to-date data can transform your pension processes. Take action now to secure your future! #PensionsLive #DigitalVerification #PensionSecurity

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Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of delivering the Scrum.org Professional Scrum with Kanban course in collaboration with TheScrumMaster.co.uk. This course covers - how Kanban can complement Scrum - How we can bring life to Scrum events - How we can make data-guided decision The course provides actionable insights, and our learners agree! A big thanks to Nick Sullivan for sharing this fantastic review. The highlight of the review for me is "the improvement i can bring into my teams." This encapsulates what the training is all about—focusing on actionable learning and real-world application, not just certificates.

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Monzo is openly testing their emergency banking mode on a small group of users. The best part? If selected, you won't be bothered again for five years. This transparency and commitment to reliability dispel any doubts about neobanks. Monzo proves that they're not just for small transactions but are built for robust, stable operations. Kudos to Monzo for setting a high standard in banking infrastructure! 💪 #Fintech #Banking #Innovation

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🚨Gift Card Scams: What You Need to Know 🎁 Gift card #scams are on the rise and can be incredibly deceptive💰 As Paul Maskall, Strategic Fraud Prevention and Behavioural Lead for UK Finance, says: "The emotional side is really important. If I'm a criminal I'll try and create a response to get you to do what I want." How Gift Card Scams Work 🎁 The scammers will often try to take advantage of your good nature by: 👭 Posing as a friend/family in need 🏆Claiming you've won a prize but need to pay fees first 👮‍♀️Impersonating authorities like the DVLA or HMRC demanding payment Their goal? To get you to buy #giftcards and share the codes, so they can drain the funds 😲 Maskall warns, "You might have 'won' a prize or a lottery, and the scammers will say you need to authenticate this, so go and buy a certain amount of gift cards and then give us the codes to unlock your prize." 🚩 Red Flags to Watch Out For 🎯 Urgency and pressure to act quickly 🎯 Requests to buy specific gift cards 🎯 Asking for codes from the back of gift cards 🎯 Unusual payment methods for bills/fines As Maskall advises, "Legitimate organisations won't do that – and they won't have an issue in you getting in contact with them to check." 💡 How to Protect Yourself 1️⃣ Slow down and think critically before acting 2️⃣ Verify requests through other channels 3️⃣ Never share gift card details with strangers 4️⃣ Report any suspected scams immediately "Stop, take that moment - take five - and reflect on that situation and challenge it. Challenge your own emotions," says Maskall.

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