One of our core values is that we are sprint-savvy. For us, a sprint is a period of 2 weeks in which 'something' is delivered. It is based on the scrum approach and in this blog we explain why.
1. The origin of scrum
The term scrum comes from the sport of rugby, where the ball is passed around at a furious pace. The photo above says it all.
But it is also a frequently used term in product development.
Scrum is an Agile approach, a collective name for methodologies for developing products. The Agile umbrella includes various ways of developing software:
- Extreme programming
- DSDM (Dynamic System Development Method)
- ASD (Adaptive Software Development)
- Crystal
- Scrum
The above is a list of technical terms, but they have in common that they are all methods with as little bureaucracy as possible. These methods have been around for years, but were laid down in 2001 Agile Manifesto. It is a short and powerful English statement of 68 words and translated into Dutch:
WI show that there are better ways to develop software (and products and services) by demonstrating in practice that it works and by helping others with it. That's why we prefer:
People and their mutual interaction over processes and tools
Working products above comprehensive documentation
Collaboration with the customer over contract negotiations
Responding to change over following a plan
Fortunately, Agile is no longer reserved for software development alone. The basis of the philosophy is applicable to almost every organization. The essence is continuous learning and improvement, quick and frequent delivery and ownership.
On the website of project-management.com you can find a detailed explanation and the underlying principles. In this blog we focus further on scrum.
1.1 Focus in product development
Scrum is a very transparent and results-driven approach. It focuses on product development, collaboration, quality and the continuous maximization of added value from the project team.
Baulds has consciously chosen this approach because it is simple, has little overhead and is results-oriented. It's one of ours four core values that emerged during our rebranding process has been made more explicit.
“Scrum is a transparent and results-driven approach”
2. The benefits of scrum
A project is tackled together with the team. The team members are involved in planning, identifying issues and blockages and dividing the (sub)tasks. The starting point is that the team members are well informed about the content. What does it yield?
- Scrum increases the effectiveness of the team;
- Offers an optimal ROI (Return Of Investment)
- Result-oriented, because every 2-week sprint involves the delivery of a piece of working software/hardware
- Scrum offers clear insight into the progress of the project/software development
“Scrum ties in with our other core value: realizers”
3. Scrum concepts
There are many (English) technical terms and below is an overview that we use.
3.1 Daily standup
Every day our team holds a short meeting of approximately 15 minutes, which we call the 'Daily standup'. Also known as the Daily Scrum.
The purpose of this short meeting is to ensure that everyone is working as effectively as possible. To keep the meeting short and effective, everyone stands and answers the following 3 questions:
- What have I done since the last meeting?
- What am I going to do until the next meeting?
- What issues do I have and what help do I need?
3.2 Definition of Done
The Definition of Done describes what the result of a sprint must meet. It is a tool for the team to keep the quality of work consistent.
The team draws this up themselves and describes things such as testing, unit testing, documentation, etc.
3.3 Product Backlog
The Product Backlog is a list of remaining work for the product. These items are also called User Stories.
All Backlog items have business value or priority. This indicates how much value an item has for the customer or user.
The items are provided with an estimate by the team. The Return on Investment (ROI) can be calculated based on the expected value and the required effort.
Formally, a Product Backlog is prioritized based on the ROI. We sort by priority. This ensures that the available capacity is always used optimally.
3.4 Product owner
A Product Owner is an important role. He or she represents the interests of the customer and other stakeholders. He ensures that the team is doing the right things.
To this end, the Product Owner maintains a list (Product Backlog) of items that still need to be added to the product.
The Product Owner's most important task is to determine priorities. The work that needs to be tackled in the sprint must deliver maximum value for the customer.
The Product Owner also ensures coordination of those priorities with various stakeholders, in our case the customers.
3.5 Division of roles
There are three roles in Scrum, some of which have already been mentioned above:
- Product Owner, who represents the customer's interests;
- Scrum Master who supports the process through coaching. With us it is the Team Lead;
- The team that delivers working software and/or hardware in a short time.
The Scrum Master ensures that the team adheres to the rules of Scrum. He protects the team during the Sprint so that the team maintains focus on the goals to which commitment has been made.
This role helps the team to improve itself, increase speed and deliver higher quality by removing obstacles (Impediments) for the team.
We at Baulds have appointed a Software Team Lead and a Hardware Team Lead.
3.6 Sprint
Scrum is an iterative method. Each iteration is called a 'Sprint'. With us, a Sprint takes 2 weeks. Within this time, the team picks up a pre-selected and agreed amount of work that is fully completed.
The result of each Sprint is a piece of working software, product or hardware. This means that the product can be used quickly and the team receives quick feedback on the product and the process.
Within the Sprint, all the work is done that is divided over several phases in other project management methods. The short iterations give the customer much earlier insight into the progress of the project and the business and the development team remain better aligned.
“Scrum is an iterative method and each iteration is a 2-week sprint”
3.6.1 Sprint backlog
The Sprint Backlog is a task list that the team must complete in the Sprint. Items from the Product Backlog are divided into tasks by the team during the Sprint planning (ours) bi-weekly meeting.
Tasks from the Sprint Backlog are not assigned, but the team members themselves tackle tasks that are urgent and match their knowledge and experience.
3.6.2. Sprint planning meeting
Each Sprint starts with a Sprint planning meeting. In our bi-weekly meeting, the Product Owner discusses the work he would like the team to have done.
The team then selects the items from the backlog that can be addressed in one Sprint. These items are developed by the team into tasks and those tasks are provided with an estimate.
The result is a Sprint plan that can be implemented in a short period of 1 or 2 weeks with certainty about the outcome.
4. Team
The team is often multidisciplinary and self-managing. This means that the team is independently able to take care of all tasks from design, realization, testing to delivery.
A team consists of 5 to 9 participants. The (software, hardware or project) team is responsible for both planning and executing the work during a Sprint.
The special thing about Scrum is that the team itself is responsible for the work process. By concluding each Sprint with an evaluation, we continuously work on improvements to this process.
5. Sprinting skills
There is a whole philosophy behind the core values of being sprint-savvy. It is the essence of our working method to achieve results in a relatively short time. We have mastered this approach over the past year. That doesn't mean we won't continue to improve. We learn every day and if we see an opportunity to improve, we immediately go for it.
Questions about our working method? Don't hesitate to contact us!
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