As a product manager, there are a range of systems that must be consistently checked up on, otherwise it can make it difficult to lead a group through the content creation process. Organization and goal setting are some of the most important strategies to utilize when it comes to managing a team. In agile marketing, having set short-term, medium-term, and long-term goals. Read more about agile marketing here. Without these strategies, teams can fall behind on tasks and become collectively unmotivated. In this article, I lay out the beginning with my struggles as a product manager and how I positioned myself to get through them and solve them in the future.

Having a self-sufficient team that is well-organized can seem impossible, but there are techniques that can be implemented to make it possible. The first agile technique that I had lacked using in the beginning of managing the website was goal-setting. Having long-term to short-term goals established a directive for that part of the process. Through the website, I did not emphasize the need for an iterative and long-term goal for each sprint. This meant establishing what the content will be every single sprint iteration, which wastes a lot of time.

Having single sprint goals, and then expectations for future sprints is a great way to use agile marketing and make managing a team ten times easier.

Agile Sprint Reviews and Retros

Aside from setting goals, proofing content in an efficient and productive way is integral for quality content. As we went through the process of reviews and retros there were some things that consistently came up and had to be addressed. Without these agile reviews and retros, content creation would fall apart. Everyone makes mistakes, especially when they have never done something before, so expecting perfection from the start is not a good way to run a team!

Sprint review #3: During the third sprint review, after completing the first version of our product, I had made the mistake of doing the sprint review after the distribution of the product. Since our first product was a rush to get the frameworks of each part of the process cultivated, parts of the process took a hit which included the sprint review and retro. For the next version I was able to do the sprint review and retro in the middle of the sprint before it even made it to the rough draft of the website.

We were doing a sprint review of content centered around alumni spotlight. Through the lean meeting we discovered some problems that needed to be addressed in our sample executions for content:

• Detailed wireframes, exact template for website
• Pages of alumni included in content
• More organized
• Less text
• Break up content into pieces

After we completed the review, we decided that our next immediate step to ease content into the website builder was to build a wireframe and copy it exactly to the content so we can easily put it into the website. Here is a picture of that process happening immediately after we conducted one of our reviews. Without prompting it, he decided to get down his portion of the wireframe so he can be prepared to deliver great content. Good job Jordan!

Sprint 3 Retro: With a retro, which is focused on the process of completing the product, was also very productive. In relation to how I was doing as a PM, and how we could improve the efficiency and communication of the group there were 3 ways we categorized how the process was going: What went well, what didn't go well, what can be improved.

• What went well: Having a detailed agenda at the beginning and end of each meeting
• What didn't go well: Letting work get left behind in the Kan Ban, work attachment issues
• What can be improved: Communicating through each part of the sprint process

The agile system for the retro is imperative to every product because it helps outline the dos and don'ts of a process. Organization and communication can be improved every step of the way, and with new content creators it might be challenging for them to understand the process right from the start. I learned as time went by, that the process will improve with every iteration and they begin to understand what it means to be a part of a team.

I am so glad I was able to work with such a dedicated, organized and motivated team to complete such a great website for the Western Marketing Program. If anyone is interested in checking out our work, visit Inclusion in the Marketing Program. I am glad we were able to build such an inclusive website that could give insight and help to all students in AEID.

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