On this page, you can find a number of resources that will prove to be useful as an introduction to getting started with Essence. The videos are mostly independent of one another and can be used for reference, but when starting we'd recommend watching them in order to ensure you don't miss anything.
Introduction to resources
Essence User Experience - Introduction
This video demonstrates the modern user experience of Essence.
Essence WorkBench™ (formerly TeamSpace) Overview
In this video, we'll be showing you the key navigation features of Essence WorkBench so you can easily find your way around the product. We'll start by signing in and then explore the homepage, which has four key things to keep in mind. On the right-hand side, you'll see your team rooms, which are the home for your practices. Inside a team room, you'll find the practices you've chosen to work with and a series of game boards where you can track the state of your work. Finally, we'll show you the practice collections, which are ecosystems of practices that work well together and where you can start a new team room.
Getting Started with the Scrum SaaS Product
In this video, we'll show you how to get started with Essence WorkBench and use it to understand your scrum team better and improve. To begin, click the button to create an account or log in if you already have one. Once you're in, you'll see the game board where we do the work. There are three different games you can play to help you understand your team and find ways to improve. Each game has instructions and a video to guide you. On the left-hand side, you can add shapes and post-it notes to the navigation boards. At the top, you can load other game boards or create a new blank canvas to invent new games. You can also check out worked examples of the game board to get some ideas for your team.
Improve My Scrum - Overview
This video contains an overview of how to use the Improve My Scrum gameboard in Essence WorkBench.
Map My Scrum Game
This video explains how to play the Map My Scrum game in Essence WorkBench.
Practice Patience Game
This video explains how to play the Practice Patience game in Essence WorkBench.
Practice Spotlight Game
This video explains how to play the Practice Spotlight game in Essence WorkBench.
Articles
“Our 50+ year journey on the software engineering road is lined with corpses” - an article explaining one of the key drivers for the creation of Essence:
A longer article on “The Who, What, and Why of Essence”:
“The Craziest Things with Methods and Frameworks”:
Essence for Agility
In 2021, we created the Essence for Agility MeetUp group aimed at exploring Essence, which has now garnered significant interest among people interested in agile ways of working. Recordings of each of the sessions can be found below:
