I have 20+ years of experience with embedded SW. Roles have changed, starting as a developer and more recent as a 'change agent' aiming for a more Lean & Agile way of working. Over the years I have found that a few 'rules' does hold water.'What is the problem?' If you can't agree on what to solve, you will never agree on any ever so 'brilliant' solution.'The solution must be simpler than the problem.' If you replace a 'bad' complicated solution with a 'clever' complicated solution, there is no real progress.'Waste is Evil, stay Lean'. If you know what you are doing, or decided to do it anyway, removing waste, re-work or any other task that does not add 'value' should be a priority.'The future belongs to the Agile.' To ability to improve is a must if you want to stay competitive e.g. the time between detecting a flaw and fixing it. A flaw can be anywhere, the development process, product quality, customer understanding, staffing skills, ....