It Takes a Village: Shaping a Culture of Inclusion

Presented by Christa Kirby, Leadership Practice Director, Corporate Education Group

In an inclusive work culture, all employees feel visible and valued. The sense of belonging that underpins each individual’s daily experience enables a rich exchange of diverse perspectives and ideas. Psychological safety fosters an environment where traditional assumptions are questioned, leading to the development of robust and innovative solutions. Creating this kind of culture is a journey, and it doesn’t happen overnight.

“It takes a village” to create a culture of inclusion, with accountability and collaboration across job roles, geographies, and functions. Efforts need to be coordinated and synchronized at both a systemic and individual level, with a focus on inquiry, humility, and commitment. In this webinar, we’ll explore ways to build a culture where conscious inclusion is embedded in business systems and processes. We will investigate ways to configure opportunity, interaction, and communication to realize the potential of diversity. And we’ll also identify ways to foster a sense of belonging where everyone feels welcome to grow, connect, and contribute.

Audience: Public

Date/Time: Monday, April 19, 2021; 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm EDT

Host: Corporate Education Group     @CorpEdGroup

Cost: Free

[REGISTER HERE]

BA Open Mic

Presented by Adrian Reed, Principal Consultant, Blackmetric Business Solutions

Join us for the Business Analysis Open Mic Night — an immersive, informal and interactive chance to discuss all things BA related (and many other things besides!).

This is not your usual webinar. In this session, webcams and microphones will be switched on, and you’ll have the opportunity to ‘grab the mic’ and speak for up to 3 minutes on a topic of your choice. Each 3-minute slot will be followed by a chance for anyone present to discuss and debate the topic in more detail. So if you have a hot topic you’d like to discuss, why not join us?

This session will be facilitated (or should that be ‘compered’) by Adrian Reed.

Feel free to attend to listen, to participate or to speak — the choice is yours. You don’t need to be a BA to attend–absolutely anyone with an interest in business analysis, change or any related discipline is welcome.

Since this is an interactive and informal ‘live’ event it won’t be recorded. Miss it, miss out

Audience: Public

Date/Time: Monday, April 19, 2021; 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm EDT

Host: Blackmetric Business Solutions     @Blackmetric

Cost: Free

[REGISTER HERE]

The Power of Stories

Presented by Peter Gotz, Professional Scrum Trainer

Stories have a powerful impact on humans. Most of us have a favorite story. This can be a book, a movie, a play, an opera, or something else. We can remember details from stories that surpass most of the facts we can otherwise keep in our mind.

And yet in a professional setting we often use facts to transport information and learning instead of stories. In this webinar, Professional Scrum Trainer Peter Götz will discuss why this is wrong and how it can be improved. He will share where he is using stories and what effects can be achieved when we tell each other stories instead of facts.

In his book "The Professional Scrum Team", which is a part of the Scrum.org "Professional Scrum" series at Pearson. He and his co-authors consistently use stories to set the stage and illustrate problems throughout the book. The reader can relate this story to their own experience, which makes it easier to understand the importance and point of the message that comes afterwards. Peter is convinced that we can and should use this effect more often and wants to share some ideas on how to do it.

If you are interested in how to improve your personal and organizational learning by telling stories and how to create a common culture around them, join us in this webinar about stories and storytelling.

Audience: Public

Date/Time: Tuesday, April 20, 2021; 11:00 am – 12:00 pm EDT

Host: Scrum.org

Cost: Free

[REGISTER HERE]

The Business Analyst Role in an Adaptive Environment

Presented by Gina Schmidt, CBAP, PMP, Instructor and Consultant, SoftEd

How do you perform the analysis role when you're working in a rapidly changing agile environment? It is the business analyst who must become the "value manager" to ensure that the value of each sprint is realized while making sure that strategies, other initiatives, enterprise architectures and releases are all aligned. Business analysts need to be the "system thinker" with a view of the whole picture while helping the team to elaborate requirements into needed detail "just-in-time."

In this free webinar, we'll introduce you to the key business analysis activities you'll need when you're part of a team that is applying adaptive principles.

During this hour-long session, you'll learn about:

- How the business analyst role varies by approach
- How to communicate the business analyst's value in adaptive approach initiatives
- Business analysis tools and techniques that can be quickly applied
- Specific techniques that are unique to the approach
- Important hints and tips to address typical challenges.

If you're unable to attend this session, you can still register, and we'll send you the recording after the webinar. 

Audience: Public

Date/Time: Tuesday, April 20, 2021; 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm EDT

Host: Bluegrass IIBA Chapter      @IIBABluegrass

Sponsor: SoftEd                             @SoftEdMan

[REGISTER HERE ]

Defining a Cloud Strategy - Key Considerations

Presented by Dan Johnson

In this webinar, Dan Johnson will outline key considerations and best practices for defining your organization's cloud strategy.

Audience: Public

Date/Time: Wednesday, April 21, 2021; 11:00 am – 12:30 pm EDT

Host: The Great IT Pro

Cost: Free

[REGISTER HERE]

Delivering Innovative Solutions - It’s not just about being Creative

Presented by Richard Branton Vice President, Advanced Strategies

“If the pace of change inside the organization is slower than the pace of change outside the organization . . .  the end is near.”   - Jack Welch, retired CEO, GE

In a world that is constantly moving forward, standing still is a sure way of falling behind. Innovation is not our best hope; it is our only hope for preserving our quality of life in an era of hyper competition. Successful innovation requires transformation. As a Business Analyst, you need to become a ‘go-to thinking partner’ in business transformation and help deliver innovative solutions to your organization’s key imperatives and strategies.

This session will provide an overview of a structured process for delivering innovation, and it is not just about being creative!

Audience: Public

Date/Time: Wednesday, April 21, 2021; 6:00 pm – 7:45 pm EDT

Host: Bluegrass IIBA Chapter    @IIBABluegrass

Cost: Free

[REGISTER HERE]

What’s Product Ownership All About?

Presented by Emily Midgley, President, Cleveland IIBA Chapter

As more organizations transition from project-centric models to a product-centric view, it is important to understand how product ownership is evolving and how that affects business analysts working in this space. What is Product Ownership all about? Is there overlap in the roles Product Owners and Business Analysts play on project teams? What skills and techniques are important in the role?

In this webinar we’ll discuss:

    • An overview of Product Ownership

    • The role of the Product Owner and Business Analysis – the differences

    • What skills does a Product Owner need?

    • Business Analysis techniques and skills that give you an advantage as a Product Owner

Audience: Public

Date/Time: Thursday, April 22, 2021; 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm EDT

Host: International Institute of Business Analysis     @IIBA

Cost: Free

[REGISTER HERE]