Doc Norton

If your strategy is just copying others,
you’re not leading—you’re following.
Differentiation requires courage, creativity, and experimentation.

#Leadership #ExperimentationMindset

Know the problem you are solving — Doc Norton & Associates “Know the problem you are solving” is about knowing the specific problem and for whom this problem exists. It isn't about knowing what solution a persona lacks but about truly understanding a…

Shipping every story isn’t the goal.
Solving the right problem is.
If half the backlog becomes irrelevant, that means you’re learning.

#KnowTheProblemYouAreSolving #SoftwareDevelopment

In complex domains, optimizing steps often accelerates waste, not progress.

Know the problem you are solving — Doc Norton & Associates “Know the problem you are solving” is about knowing the specific problem and for whom this problem exists. It isn't about knowing what solution a persona lacks but about truly understanding a…

Understanding the problem is the first step toward crafting effective solutions.

buff.ly/V8vg06k

#KnowTheProblemYouAreSolving

VP of Delivery @docondev.bsky.social shares reflections on what bug bashes reveal about the underlying system. https://docondev.com/blog/2025/9/25/bug-bashes-are-a-smell

It is easier
to write an
incorrect program
than
understand a
correct one.

~ Unknown

Don't let your tools become your process.

Great teams are less like awesome machines and more like awesome organisms. - Team of Teams

Escape Velocity — Doc Norton & Associates Michael Norton (Doc) is a software delivery professional working to make the world of software development a better place. His experience covers a wide range of development topics. Doc declares…

Stop obsessing over velocity. Focus on flow. Good flow makes velocity both informative and unnecessary.

buff.ly/g9ewEUP #EscapeVelocity

Create simple things in small steps — Doc Norton & Associates Simple Things When I say simple, I don’t necessarily mean easy. And I certainly do not mean crude in form or incomplete. Simple indicates something that does not have superfluous parts or multiple…

Smaller steps are lower risk.

buff.ly/AuCy68p #CreateSimpleThingsInSmallSteps

Leadership is giving people the space to decide and the safety to act.

In complex domains, doing tasks faster doesn’t necessarily mean creating more value.

I’ve noticed sprint commitments leading to blame and pressure, not partnership and progress.

Favor automation over documentation — Doc Norton & Associates Favor automation over documentation is, to a great extent, about reducing friction - reducing the cognitive load and minutia required to get the work done, allowing you to focus on the value being…

Good automation is living documentation. #FavorAutomation buff.ly/gBX0wsh

Release ridiculously often — Doc Norton & Associates The seventh behavior, “Release ridiculously often,” is usually met with nods from half of the crowd and raised eyebrows from the other half. The nodders want to know why it isn’t higher on the list…

Every release is a chance to learn. #ReleaseOften buff.ly/2KZTMir

Validate Before, During, and After — Doc Norton & Associates To validate is to confirm something has the quality of being well-grounded or correct. Validate before, during, and after is a reminder that teams should be confirming along the way.

Feedback isn’t one-time—it’s continuous. #ValidateBeforeDuringAfter buff.ly/mNw9ldP

Be Meticulous about composition — Doc Norton & Associates Composition refers to the way in which something is put together. Composition is a key element in many of the things humans create. Whether it be a musical piece, a painting, a garden, or a building,…

Well-composed systems invite change, not fear it. #CompositionMatters buff.ly/W0vAE3Z

Create simple things in small steps — Doc Norton & Associates Simple Things When I say simple, I don’t necessarily mean easy. And I certainly do not mean crude in form or incomplete. Simple indicates something that does not have superfluous parts or multiple…

Big bang releases are big gambles. #SimpleSteps buff.ly/5fW6dlH

Work Together — Doc Norton & Associates When I say, “work together”, I mean just that. Do the actual work together. Every aspect of the product lifecycle is an opportunity for collaboration - Identifying problems to solve, user and market…

Sharing problems builds shared solutions. #WorkTogether buff.ly/0y3ZGUe

Make the work visible — Doc Norton & Associates A lot of teams have a backlog of some sort and some form of Kanban board — whether it is Jira, Trello, Monday, Asana, MS Project, or a bunch of post-its on a wall. These are all ways of making the…

Visibility creates accountability and alignment. #MakeWorkVisible buff.ly/YOK4PSj

Know the problem you are solving — Doc Norton & Associates “Know the problem you are solving” is about knowing the specific problem and for whom this problem exists. It isn't about knowing what solution a persona lacks but about truly understanding a…

Good solutions start with clear problems. #KnowTheProblem buff.ly/MWfjBSP

Create simple things in small steps — Doc Norton & Associates Simple Things When I say simple, I don’t necessarily mean easy. And I certainly do not mean crude in form or incomplete. Simple indicates something that does not have superfluous parts or multiple…

Big bets fail big. Small steps build momentum. #SimpleSteps buff.ly/5fW6dlH

Work Together — Doc Norton & Associates When I say, “work together”, I mean just that. Do the actual work together. Every aspect of the product lifecycle is an opportunity for collaboration - Identifying problems to solve, user and market…

Strong teams solve harder problems faster—together. #WorkTogether buff.ly/0y3ZGUe

Make the work visible — Doc Norton & Associates A lot of teams have a backlog of some sort and some form of Kanban board — whether it is Jira, Trello, Monday, Asana, MS Project, or a bunch of post-its on a wall. These are all ways of making the…

Invisible work slows teams down. Visualize flow to unlock progress. #MakeWorkVisible buff.ly/YOK4PSj

Know the problem you are solving — Doc Norton & Associates “Know the problem you are solving” is about knowing the specific problem and for whom this problem exists. It isn't about knowing what solution a persona lacks but about truly understanding a…

Clarity beats speed. Don’t start coding until you know the problem. #KnowTheProblem buff.ly/MWfjBSP

Work Together — Doc Norton & Associates When I say, “work together”, I mean just that. Do the actual work together. Every aspect of the product lifecycle is an opportunity for collaboration - Identifying problems to solve, user and market...

We move faster when we move together. #SoftwareDevelopment #WorkTogether

Validate Before, During, and After — Doc Norton & Associates To validate is to confirm something has the quality of being well-grounded or correct. Validate before, during, and after is a reminder that teams should be confirming along the way.

Test ideas with customers before building. #ValidateBeforeDuringAndAfter buff.ly/mNw9ldP

If you don’t know who you’re building for,
you don’t really know what you’re building.
Start with the humans, not the code.

#KnowTheProblemYouAreSolving #SoftwareDevelopment

buff.ly/45r9N6G

A company that stops learning stops growing.
Encourage curiosity, invest in development, and adapt—
or risk being left behind.

#ExperimentationMindset #Excellence

Velocity should measure customer impact,
not how busy the team looks.
If no value is delivered, velocity is zero.

buff.ly/oLeYLL9