Agile Articles

  • Choosing a Scrum Pilot
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] When an organization decides to implement the Scrum method of agile software development, its first task is to determine which project will make the best pilot. Without previous experience in Scrum environments, selecting that initial project can seem like a guessing game. What makes one project better suited for success with Scrum than another, anyway?
  • How Agile Methods Resolve Chaos and Unpredictability in Software Projects
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] This paper attempts to show why an Agile methodology makes sense for managing software projects, as opposed to traditional waterfall methodologies, commonly used to date. The paper will make the case that software projects are inherently chaotic and unpredictable, and as a result, cannot be managed by processes that are best suited to well-defined problem domains. The paper will also make the distinction between the status quo in waterfall development and hyper-productivity, where organizations, such as Yahoo, have experienced ROI’s in the order of 666% on one project and 250% overall, since adapting Agile Software Development methodologies.
  • Scrum Careers
    [Business:Careers-Employment] As the popularity of Scrum continues to rise, the number of employment opportunities in Scrum environments is booming. But because it’s a relatively new management paradigm, many software professionals have questions about how to pursue a career in Scrum.
  • Estimating Agile Software Projects – How to Stay Within Budget
    [Business:Strategic-Planning] The average software development project runs twice as long as initially intended or estimated. More than 60 percent of the features build in software is hardly or never used even once by the client after the software is delivered. Almost 70 percent of all software development projects run substantially out of budget.
  • What is Agile Software Testing?
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] History: To understand the testing process in Agile development methodology, it is important to understand the paradigm of Agile development. The Agile Development paradigm is not new. Although Agile Software Development Manifesto was launched in February 2001, the concepts existed well before this and have been expressed in different ways.
  • Scrum Epics
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] In the Scrum method of agile software development, each user story is assigned a corresponding effort estimate by the team that will complete the work. But what happens when a team can’t settle on an appropriate estimate? What if a story includes too many variables to really know how big it is?
  • Scrum Product Owner
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] The product owner is the single individual who is responsible for success among the scrum team. Learn about the role of the product owner in a scrum environment and what responsibilities they have.
  • Agile Scrum – Incorporating Usability Practices and UCD Processes in Agile Projects
    [Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Web-Development] Incorporating Usability processes in agile projects is a tough call, especially since UCD is perceived to be an expensive, elaborate and subjective field. I would like to share some of my experiences of integrating usability process in a very light weight and single artifact oriented approach still successfully achieving project goals and maintaining process agility.
  • Agile Development Brings IT, Business Together
    [Business] I write a lot about the general importance of improving communications between IT and the business and the havoc that poor communication between the two camps can wreak. Considering the strategic importance of software applications to many companies and the high costs of development and, in particular, of going back and doing major code fixes, development is one process where communication would appear to be especially important. There’s also users’ general dissatisfaction with enterprise applications to consider.
  • What is Agile Software Development?
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] Agile software development is a framework utilized software development projects. It was born out of frustration within traditional project management activities. This article will be the reader an overview and introduction to Agile Software Development.
  • Scrum With a Physical Taskboard
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] Agile methods, including Scrum, were originally developed for use in small, collocated teams. A scenario in which a team’s size is between five and 10 members and all its members are located in a single place is the ideal work environment.
  • Scrum Acceptance Criteria
    [Business:Team-Building] Before a Product Owner would ever deem a team’s work “done/done/done,” he or she would always consult the corresponding user story’s acceptance criteria. In the Scrum method of agile software development, acceptance criteria are the requirements which must be met for a story to be completed.
  • Scrum Backlog
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] The single most important thing in a scrum environment the product backlog. Learn about the product backlog and understand its meaning.
  • Six Sigma and Agile Software Development
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] Six Sigma is a system of management designed to achieve lasting business performance. Agile software development is a form of iterative software development encouraging rapid and flexible response to change. In our experience we have found that Six Sigma provides tools and techniques that can be leveraged to achieve more reliable Agile software development project delivery.
  • Scrum Retrospective
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] Learn about the Scrum Retrospective meeting and the sprint review meetings that take place after a scrum sprint is completed. Learn what to address in your Scrum Retrospective meetings and what they should accomplish.
  • Scrum Teams
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] In the Scrum method of agile software development, there are three fundamental roles: the Product Owner, the ScrumMaster, and the team. In my last two articles, I discussed the roles of the Product Owner and the ScrumMaster. Finally, I’ll discuss the development team and how it functions within an agile paradigm.
  • Agile Planning from Enterprise Vision to Team Stand-Up Part 1
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] This article unveils a planning framework that has been used successfully in large-scale Agile development projects, and investigates the impact of introducing this project management framework on three core Lean principles: Muri, Mura and Muda.
  • Scrum Impediments
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] Scrum Impediments are defined as anything that stands in the way of a team’s productivity. Learn what to do about scrum impediments and how you can prevent them.
  • Project Management 101
    [Business:Management] Project management is an important business concept. This article explains the basics of project management and how it can help businesses reach goals more efficiently.
  • Scrum Product Backlog Grooming
    [Computers-and-Technology:Software] Learn about Scrum Product Backlog Grooming and maintenance. How often it should be done and why scrum product backlog grooming should even be considered.

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