Scrum: an iterative and incremental agile software development framework for managing product development.
Every system – particular a complex one like a cross-functional development team – has constraints. Somewhere along the way from “Ready” to “Done” something impedes productivity and flow, be it drag or turbulence, viscosity, or excessive effort. Some folks call these issue bottlenecks, blockers, setbacks, obstacles, impediments, obstructions or waste. …
The Sprint Review, just like the iteration retrospective, is one the most important feedback loops in a Scrum team’s toolbox. According to “The Scrum Guide,” the purpose of the Sprint Review is to “inspect the increment and adapt the backlog as needed.” Let’s unpack that a bit. During the review the team and their stakeholders …
tl;dr: How will we know if we’re done (with the right level of quality) on this thing? Are we there yet? Coming close matters only in horseshoes and hand grenades… I’ve had the topic of “Definition of Done” on my to do list for quite some time. And I’ve started …
A Virtuous Agile Circle While the values and principles of Agile are minimalistic (See: Agile – What it means…) “rules” do abound – particularly in Scrum (“Generally Accepted Scrum Practices”). How we learn, follow, break, and eventually create new rules is a process much like the development of a martial artist. …
tl;dr: The pomodoro technique breaks down periods of work into short (typically 25-minute) intervals called “pomodori” (from the Italian word pomodoro for “tomato” – the shape of the kitchen timer creator Francesco Cirillo originally used), separated by brief breaks. The method is based on the idea that: Multitasking, context switching, distractions …
