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"Communication clarity is more important than technical complexity, because if you do not understand, it's pretty hard to execute." — Iryna Stelmakh
Iryna shares one of her most painful career stories — a project in the healthcare domain focused on cancer treatment research data. When she joined, she was managing around 9 projects simultaneously and agreed to take this one on the condition that a strong technical lead would own the technical direction. The project began with a critical misunderstanding: sales had communicated that the client needed a database redesign, but the client actually needed a migration to a different database type. Similar words, fundamentally different work.
For three months, the team worked through research and discovery phases, trying to understand the actual problem. But communication gaps — compounded by language barriers between the Ukrainian development team and the US-based client — prevented them from identifying the real need in time. Iryna trusted the technical lead's reports that everything was on track. She relied instead of checking. Eventually, the client lost confidence and left. It remains the only project in her career she considers a genuine failure.
The lesson cuts deep: teams must have people who can ask the right questions early. As Vasco observes, the root cause was implicit assumptions that were never discovered or explored by the different people involved.
In this episode, we also talk about the importance of the monitoring and controlling phase in project management.
Self-reflection Question: When you trust a team member's assessment that "everything is fine," what verification steps do you take to confirm that understanding is truly shared across all stakeholders?
Iryna recommends Team Topologies by Matthew Skelton and Manuel Pais as a book that changed how she thinks about Agile leadership. "Great agile leadership is not only about frameworks, but it's about communication, influence, and the ability to align people around shared goals," she explains. The book helped her understand that Agile isn't just about team process — it's about organizational structure, team boundaries, and responsibilities. She also recommends Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss for Scrum Masters who want to sharpen their communication and influence tactics. As Iryna puts it, communication is one of the most important skills a Scrum Master must have.
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🚨 Will Angela's coaching be enough? Find out in Shift: From Product to People—the gripping story of high-stakes innovation and corporate intrigue.
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About Iryna Stelmakh
Iryna Stelmakh is a Project & Delivery Leader and Agile Coach who helps leaders turn complexity into clarity. With 10+ years across US, Nordic, and Eastern European environments, she works at the intersection of business transformation and human systems, building resilient organizations and high-performing teams in complex contexts.
You can link with Iryna Stelmakh on LinkedIn.