Publication
Agile Transformations: Why Leaders Resist and How to Bring Them on Board
https://www.toptal.com/project-managers/agile/agile-transformations-leadership
Andy is currently unavailable
Andy Deighton
Verified Expert in Project Management
Project Manager
Brighton, United Kingdom
Toptal member since September 17, 2020
Bio
Andy was a senior Java web developer for over a decade before becoming a product-focused scrum master and Agile coach. From startups to multinationals, from fintechs to commercial banking, from data science to web development teams, Andy has a wide gamut of experience. As a Professional Scrum Master, he helps teams thrive and discover what customers need. In managing projects, Andy uses the latest analytical methods to help clients answer the question, “When will it be done?”
Project Highlights
From Scrum to Kanban With Data Scientists
Led the adoption of Kanban and flow analytics with four teams of data scientists and engineers.
Fintech Product Management
Advised on the product discovery of a leading pensions advice solution.
Certification Highlights
Certified Agile Team Coach
ICAgile
Professional Scrum Master (PSM)
Scrum.org
Certified Scrum Master
Scrum Alliance
Expertise
- Agile Coaching
- Agile Practices
- Agile Project Management
- Jira
- Kanban
- Product Discovery
- Product Management
- Scrum Master
Work Experience
Agile Project Manager
2019 - 2020
EDF Energy
- Led EDF’s data science team's Agile journey by implementing Scrum, which was accomplished after three months. EDF Energy is the UK's largest electricity supplier, responsible for generating a large portion of the UK's nuclear energy capacity.
- Served as an agile coach and scrum master to four data science and data engineering teams and mentored team members who later took over scrum master duties.
- Introduced the organization to a more data-led approach to project forecasting in the form of Kanban combined with advanced flow analytics. Using Agile analytics, we predicted team capacity and delivery dates more accurately.
- Coached and mentored seven employees individually, covering subjects as diverse as retrospectives, difficult team members, communication, development patterns, testing, and personal confidence.
Team Coach
2018 - 2019
Mind Tools
- Introduced Agile practices, flow efficiency, and work visualization to a team of 10 software developers responsible for the company's flagship product that was built with Python. Mind Tools is a supplier of online learning materials for businesses.
- Prepared the organization for cross-functional teams that included business representatives.
- Provided coaching to the lead project manager and project manager in Agile principles and practices.
- Introduced a SonarQube code quality analyzer as a means of measuring technical debt. Technical debt-reduction strategies were implemented following the adoption of SonarQube.
Agile Coach
2018 - 2019
National Grid
- Provided executive-level coaching to the head of National Grid Metering, the UK's power grid infrastructure owner and operator.
- Created and facilitated Agile workshops for the National Grid Metering leadership team.
- Coached individuals on the leadership team in the ways of agility.
Scrum Master
2017 - 2018
Lloyds Bank
- Led a department's adoption of Agile practices and Scrum. The department was responsible for producing millions of customer communications each year.
- Created four distinct Scrum teams, each comprising remote workers spanning England, Scotland, and India. Selected and trained their respective scrum masters.
- Advised department heads with regards to best-practice Agile project management.
Product Advisor
2016 - 2016
Wealth Wizards
- Trained and coached the company's product owner in product management methods and best practices. Wealth Wizards is an award-winning fintech, specializing in automated pensions advice.
- Initiated a new product discovery program with the product management team.
- Introduced Scrum to the development team of seven and acted as their scrum master, delivering multiple iterations of the company's key offering.
Scrum Master
2014 - 2016
Asset Bank
- Served as the scrum master on a project for a client that is currently the world's largest company. Across three-week sprints, we constantly delivered iterations of their product that's designed to manage the real-time capture of digital assets.
- Created and subsequently implemented Agile contracts with several of the company's clients. Bright is a digital asset management provider and custom- software supplier.
- Practiced sociocratic facilitation across the organization.
Technical Scrum Master
2009 - 2014
Crunch
- Shaped and developed the core product offering (developed in Java) as a senior developer during the company's explosive pre-investment growth phase.
- Rolled out many critical features of the product and consistently met delivery targets.
- Managed several Scrum teams and introduced them to Scrum and Agile principles.
- Negotiated with the leadership team and product owners with regard to product stories and successfully brokered many high-quality and high-value releases.
- Co-implemented a thorough testing regime across the product development teams and brought in extreme programming practices such as pair programming and test-driven development.
Java Developer
2006 - 2007
BMW United Kingdom
- Led analysis, design, and implementation of the company's internal business applications.
- Conducted internal customer requirements gathering and rolled out iterations of applications across the company's WebLogic platform.
- Ensured that code quality was kept at its highest level through reviews with developers.
Project History
From Scrum to Kanban With Data Scientists
Led the adoption of Kanban and flow analytics with four teams of data scientists and engineers.
I organized 15 data scientists and data engineers into four Scrum teams. After several months, I guided them through reteaming and then, ultimately, on to adopting the Kanban method as a way to measure and control their flow of work, which involved using AWS, PySpark, Python, Java, Pandas, and Jupyter Notebooks.
Using a more evidence-based approach to forecasting allowed stakeholders, and the teams themselves, to get a better handle on when work would be delivered.
Fintech Product Management
http://wealthwizards.comAdvised on the product discovery of a leading pensions advice solution.
I started by structuring a Scrum team for the company, comprising JavaScript, Node.js, UX, and QA engineers. Once the team was up and running with Scrum, I introduced product discovery techniques including impact mapping, user story mapping, and generative and evaluative user research. This led to subsequent versions of the product that better met the company’s users’ needs.
Other Experience
Certifications
FEBRUARY 2020 - PRESENT
Certified Agile Team Coach
ICAgile
FEBRUARY 2019 - PRESENT
Professional Scrum Master (PSM)
Scrum.org
OCTOBER 2015 - OCTOBER 2016
Certified Scrum Master
Scrum Alliance
Skills
Tools
Jira, Flow, Atlassian Suite, Confluence, Jenkins, SQL, Apache Ant, Apache Maven
Paradigms
Scrum, Kanban, Agile, Agile Project Management, Agile Leadership, Agile Delivery, Agile Product Management
Platforms
Java EE (Jakarta EE)
Industry Expertise
Energy, Banking & Finance
Other
Scrum Master, Agile Coaching, Certified ScrumMaster (CSM), Backlog Grooming, Sprint Planning, Sprint Ceremonies, Agile Sprints, Agile Practices, User Stories, Facilitation, Scrum Coaching, Product Discovery, Coaching, Technical Project Management, Software Development, Team Management, Discovery Workshops, Estimations, Stakeholder Management, Java, Workshop Facilitation, Product Management, Systems Thinking, Analytics, UX Research, User Interviews, Story Mapping, Impact Mapping, Feature Backlog Prioritization, Opportunity Assessments, Product Research, Fintech, Commercial Banking, Agile Data Science, Smalltalk, Web Development, Accounting, MySQL, Apache Struts, Jakarta EE (Java EE or J2EE), Hibernate, Stakeholder Engagement, PSM-1, Product Ownership
Collaboration That Works
How to Work with Toptal
Toptal matches you directly with global industry experts from our network in hours—not weeks or months.
1
Share your needs
Discuss your requirements and refine your scope in a call with a Toptal domain expert.
2
Choose your talent
Get a short list of expertly matched talent within 24 hours to review, interview, and choose from.
3
Start your risk-free talent trial
Work with your chosen talent on a trial basis for up to two weeks. Pay only if you decide to hire them.
Top talent is in high demand.
Start hiring