Module #5: Frameworks

There are many frameworks under the banner of “Agile” but a few key ones cover most Agile adoptions.

Main Agile Approaches: The three most common (non-scaling) frameworks address over 80% of Agile adoptions. This topic covers

• what an “ideal” method might mean,
• how Scrum, XP and Lean fit together, and
• the frequency of adoption frameworks.

Lean Systems Thinking: Agile concepts can be traced back to the evolution of Lean concepts in the 50’s and 60’s. This topic covers

• what Lean represents,
• Lean concepts and principles,
• systems thinking,
• wastes in software development, and
• value stream mapping.

Kanban: Perhaps the most common application of Lean ideas in recent years has been the adoption of Kanban. This topic covers

• what is Kanban,
• push vs pull systems,
• basic Kanban board features,
• elements of a Kanban tracking card,
• basic Kanban system ideas,
• Scrum and Kanban compared, and
• When Kanban might not work.

Scrum History and Overview: As the most widely adopted Agile Framework, Scrum heavily influences what people associate with “Agile.” This topic covers

• basic Scrum framework overview,
• roots of Scrum’s creation, and
• the roots of Scrum applied to software.

Agile Scaling Frameworks: Over the years, as organizations have expanded the size of their Agile adoption, trying to manage larger numbers of teams when there are dependencies among them has become a concern. This topic covers

• Five scaling approaches,
• Scrum-of-Scrums and Nexus,
• Large Scale Scrum (LeSS), and
• the Scales Agile Framework (SAFe).

Module #6: Iteration Events

Regardless of the specific Agile framework chosen, there are common events that occur regularly during an Agile iteration.

Iteration Planning: The start of each iteration is a planning session to identify what work the team feels they can accomplish during that iteration. This topic covers

• basic planning focus
• planning divided in two sections,
• the iteration backlog,
• the iteration commitment, and
• under commit and over deliver.

Daily Meeting: Often referred to as the Daily Standup or Daily Scrum, each day the team gathers to consider if their iteration plans require any changes. This topic covers

• a basic Daily Meeting approach,
• information “radiators,”
• the Burndown Chart,
• the Burnup chart,
• some Daily Meeting challenges.

Iteration Review: At the end of each iteration, the team presents the results of their work to all interested customers and stakeholders. This topic covers

• basic review framework,
• review purpose and considerations, and
• key review practices.

Retrospective: As the last thing teams do during the iteration, they gather to consider how they could improve the way they work. This topic covers

• the Retrospective Prime Directive,
• Kaizen and continuous improvement,
• focus on getter better every iteration,
• using data to drive Retrospectives,
• a sample Retrospective format,
• Retrospective challenges, and
• revitalizing Retrospectives.