Articles
User Stories adhere to a specific, predefined structure and are a simplistic way of documenting the requirements and desired end-user functionality. A User Story tells you three things about the requirement: Who, What, and Why. The requirements expressed in User Stories are short, simple, and easy-to-understand statements. The predefined, standard format results in enhanced communication…
Anyone who has taken an introductory psychology course is likely familiar with the work of a man named Abraham Maslow. Outside of Egypt, his pyramid is one of the best around. In 1943, Maslow presented a hierarchy illustrating that different people are at different levels in their needs. People usually start out looking to meet…
The Daily Scrum is one of the most important aspects of the Scrum framework. Scrum’s transparency comes from openly viewable information tools such as the Scrumboard, which shows the progress of the team. The team uses a Scrumboard to plan and track progress during each Sprint. The Scrumboard usually contains four to five columns to…
The Scrum framework is driven by the goal of delivering maximum business value in a minimum time span. One of the most effective tools for delivering the greatest value in the shortest amount of time is prioritization. Prioritization can be defined as “Determination of the order and separation of what must be done now, from…
You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time. -John Lydgate In professional sports, whether you’re a benchwarmer or a superstar, when you become a “cancer” it is more…
One of the guiding principles of Scrum is to develop the functionality of the highest priority to the customer first. Less important features are developed in subsequent Sprints or can be left out altogether according to the customer’s requirements. This approach gives the Scrum Team the required time to focus on the quality of essential…
Using the term “master” to describe someone’s boss today often conjures images of Igor addressing Dr. Frankenstein, Renfield heeding Count Dracula’s dark biddings or The Mountain doing Cersei’s dirty work. But in Scrum, the Master is one who serves you. As a Scrum project begins, one of the important activities or processes is to identify…
The term “agile” generally refers to being able to move or respond quickly and easily; being nimble. In any kind of management discipline, agile as a quality should therefore be a good thing to aim for. Agile project management specifically, involves being adaptive during the creation of a product, service, or other result. A number…
The Agile Manifesto stresses “customer collaboration over contract negotiation.” The Scrum framework adopts an approach in which the Scrum Core Team members collaborate with each other and the stakeholders to create the deliverables that provide the greatest possible value to the customer. According to A Guide to the Scrum Body of Knowledge (SBOK™), collaboration ensures that…
When something goes wrong with a project, who gets blamed? If you are the Product Owner, Scrum Master or Project Manager, you’re probably saying that the leader gets the blame. If you’re a Scrum Team or development team member, you’re probably saying, “We always get blamed.” What if the reality of the situation is it’s…
