SCRUM IN REAL LIFE

Experiences of SCRUM at Brightside Group

Our scrum journey

Agile process evolution

Persistence of a species through change

The butterfly/moth analogy

The Isabella Tiger Moth

The Monarch

The same?

The Brightside Scrum Journey

In 2010 we decided to adopt Scrum. This is our story.

Our scrum journey

So I just fell out of the tree. It was a pretty long way down but I fell really fast. I think they call that MIGRATION.

MIGRATION huh? Well that sounds pretty frightening and a little painful. It’s not for me…but you carry on and see if it works better for you than the whole leaf chewing thing

LOOK AT ME!!..........I’M FLYING!!

Phase 1 - FragileStumbling with something someone once heard in a bar

TeamsRole Specific (developers and testers in different teams)Various SizesSignificant turnover of people (6% per quarter)

Development PracticesNo clear directionUs & Them relationships between developers, testers &

architectsPrioritisation and Estimating

Wander in and shoutNo forward planningWork changed daily

Our scrum journey

Have you heard of this thing called MIGRATION?.....Other species do it and I think we should too! But it may mean some flying.

Wait…I have WINGS! Let’s give it a try right now. It’s bound to be an improvement on our current existence

Are we MIGRATING yet? I don’t know, if I’m honest. I don’t feel any different. But let’s say we are, so we don’t look bad in front of the moths.

Phase 2 - TragileSome aspects of scrum being brought in, like sprints. Agile

coach employed

TeamsStill Role Specific, of random sizes and still losing good peopleTerrorists in our mistDevelopment PracticesDeveloper Bingo & Numbers WitchSprints that flexed and grew (14 week Sprint 37!)Architects reviewing all work (OVER 4000 items in their backlog)Prioritisation and Estimating“Upper Funnel” Process led to a massive, unstructured backlogWork estimated by managers and “experts” – usually under estimated

Our scrum journey

So dad told me about a thing called MIGRATION. I think we should do it…..to MEXICO!

I have no idea where this ‘MEXICO’ is or how to get there, but it sounds awesome. Let’s go…right now!

Let’s do this! Ready whenever you are

MEXICO is pretty wet this time of year

…and a tad cold

Phase 3 - ScrummerfallBased on a compromise, called “Scrum” but wasn’t

TeamsMulti-SkilledProject Manager per piece of workCertified Scrum Master and Product Owner training beginsTeam leaders sitting within the teamsDevelopment Practices“User Stories” that had multi-page specifications attachedMultiple “Development Streams” with painful merges after releaseAutomated testing begins in earnestPrioritisation and EstimatingUnstructured and very short term. Changed frequently.

Our scrum journey

Ok…MIGRATION….to MEXICO. We fly in that direction until we get there…

Wow, that’s a long way. Let’s break the journey down into stages and make meaningful estimates on how long each will take based on a conceptual ‘complexity’ scale

Good planning session everyone

We may need a mid-migration review somewhere around Texas

I can achieve the same result in less time by going to California. I’ll readjust my short term goal

Bienvenidos a México

Phase 4 – Scrum?Where we are currently

Teams7 +/- 2 per team, Scrum Master per team, no team

leadersProduct Owners follow the work but are from a different

departmentNo one left the department in Q1 2013

Development Practices“User Stories” of various sizes, but written mostly with

the teamsSingle “Development Stream” with auto build, test and

deploy“Future Architecture” project in progress, TDD,

Code ReviewsPrioritisation and Estimating

Formal but relatively ineffective prioritisation meetingTeams commit to work, it’s not dictated to them

Our scrum journey

In SummaryOur journey

TeamsFrom “role specific” to “multi-skilled”From “informally trained” to “certified”From “6%” quarterly turnover to “<1%”

Development PracticesFrom “us and them” to “cohesive team”From “complex multi dev stream” to “automated single

dev stream”From “get it out the door” to “leave it better than you

found it”

Prioritisation and EstimatingFrom “he who shouts loudest” to “realistic medium term

view”From “estimation by management” to “team driven,

trusted estimates”Our scrum journey

Next StepsInspect & Adapt!

TeamsMore teamsTraining, development and career growthDevelopment PracticesContinuous improvementExpanding communities of practice & improvement communitiesAllowing space and time for innovationBetter focus on non-functional requirements (constraints)Prioritisation and EstimatingA better understood, longer term backlog aligned to business strategyDevelopment involvement in future work earlier

Our scrum journey