Michael Tardiff

Michael J. Tardiff loves hearing what people want to do and helping them see the ways in which they might do it. In doing the work, we discover together the work that needs to be done. My aim is to live in happiness and share it with others. I try to be helpful, and failing that, kind.

I appreciate theory but embrace practice, and I love learning more about what I dislike or oppose. I change my mind more often than one would think.

Transplanted from the Northeast, at home in the Northwest, I bring passion, perspective, and patience to helping teams and organizations work happily. At the core of my practice is profound respect for people. I choose to work in teams of people who differ from and me; together, we serve others better than I could alone. 

As a colleague of Diana Larsen’s, I discovered the Agile Fluency Model over five years ago, and found myself appreciating how it looked not at “maturity” or advancement, but at how teams truly learn, grow, and flourish.

I've spent 40 years building software, and long ago spent years on an XP team. That great start led to my having been on, worked with, and helped start many teams. I've engaged with firms medium and large, helping change how they deliver value, and drawing on my extensive real-world experience with Scrum, Kanban, lean and systems thinking. I'm proudest of the engagements where, years after I left, teams and the organization thrive using that they've learned and adapted to their needs. 

I write things at [FeelingAgile.com](http://FeelingAgile.com). @mjt on Twitter is me being short. Still available on iTunes is the “The Agile Coach” podcast. Invite me and I'll talk, wherever and whenever you like. Agile Open Northwest’s annual Open Space brings me joy, and I served as a director for a decade. I find peace sailing the waters north of Seattle. And I dwell in delight with The Love of My Life, Maureen McCauley, in a Seattle cottage next door to her daughter and grandchild.