Scrum Theory

Scrum Ceremonies/Events

- Sprint planning session - Daily Scrum - Sprint Reviews - Sprint retrospectives

Product Backlog

A prioritized list of user requirements used to choose work to be done in a Scrum project

Release

A release means a version of the product is delivered to final users. But a release can also refer to the period of time during which one version is under development, going through successive sprints, until the delivery. To put it simply, a release is the result of multiple sprints.

The Sprint

A set period of time, normally two to four weeks, during which specific work must be completed and made ready for review when using Scrum methods During the Sprint: -No changes are made that would endanger the Sprint Goal; -Quality does not decrease; -The Product Backlog is refined as needed; and, Scope may be clarified and renegotiated with the Product Owner as more is learned. A Sprint could be cancelled if the Sprint Goal becomes obsolete. Only the Product Owner has the authority to cancel the Sprint.

User Story

A small, concise statement of functionality or quality needed to deliver value to a specific stakeholder.

TASK

Tasks, and possibly sub-tasks, are technical activities that helps respond to user stories. Ideally, these activities should be the same size (in the sense of working complexity) but may be of a different nature: design, development, test, etc.

Burn Down Chart

a chart showing the evolution of remaining effort against time. Burn-down charts are an optional implementation within Scrum to make progress transparent.

Spring Planning Topics

-Topic One: Why is this Sprint valuable? -Topic Two: What can be Done this Sprint? -Topic Three: How will the chosen work get done?

Kanban Board

A Japanese word meaning "card" or "visible record" that refers to cards used to control the flow of production through Scrum.

Scrum team or development team

A cross-functional team of 5-9 people who organize themselves and the work to produce the desired results for each sprint

Scrum Master

A person who ensures that the team is productive, facilitates the daily Scrum, enables close cooperation across all roles and functions, and removes barriers that prevent the team from being effective. n other words, the Scrum Master's role is to help everyone improve interactions to maximize the value created by the Scrum team.

CAPACITY

At the planning phase of the sprints, we also focus on the "capacity" of the team. It represents the "availability" of team members during one sprint. Training or vacation periods can, for example, change the overall capacity of the team.

Ways the Scrum Master serves the Scrum Team

Coaching the team members in self-management and cross-functionality; Helping the Scrum Team focus on creating high-value Increments that meet the Definition of Done; Causing the removal of impediments to the Scrum Team's progress; and, Ensuring that all Scrum events take place and are positive, productive, and kept within the timebox.

Responsibilities of a Developer

Creating a plan for the Sprint, the Sprint Backlog; Instilling quality by adhering to a Definition of Done; Adapting their plan each day toward the Sprint Goal; and, Holding each other accountable as professionals.

Daily Scrum

Daily time-boxed event of 15 minutes, or less, for the Development Team to re-plan the next day of development work during a Sprint. Updates are reflected in the Sprint Backlog. The goal is to enable team members to gather daily to discuss tasks progress and potential problems, to overcome possible blockages, and to promote mutual support. To make things more visual and to see the list of all the tasks and the progress of the project, the stand-up meeting often involves a cardwall (see below) or a Kanban board.

Developers

Developers are the people in the Scrum Team that are committed to creating any aspect of a usable Increment each Sprint.

Responsibilities of a Product Owner

Developing and explicitly communicating the Product Goal; Creating and clearly communicating Product Backlog items; Ordering Product Backlog items; and, Ensuring that the Product Backlog is transparent, visible and understood.

Scrum Values

Focus, Courage, Openness, Commitment, Respect

EPIC

Generally speaking, an "Epic" is a macro functionality of the product to be developed. Epics can also be described as multiple sets of user stories grouped by categories or themes.

Ways the Scrum Master Serves the Product Owner

Helping find techniques for effective Product Goal definition and Product Backlog management; Helping the Scrum Team understand the need for clear and concise Product Backlog items; Helping establish empirical product planning for a complex environment; and, Facilitating stakeholder collaboration as requested or needed.

Velocity of a Sprint

How much work a project team can get done per sprint. It is typically used to estimate how many features can be accomplished each sprint.

How the Scrum Master Serves the Organization

Leading, training, and coaching the organization in its Scrum adoption; Planning and advising Scrum implementations within the organization; Helping employees and stakeholders understand and enact an empirical approach for complex work; and, Removing barriers between stakeholders and Scrum Teams.

Transparency

Pillar of Scrum Theory. each team members must have access to all information regarding the product to deliver

Inspection

Pillar of Scrum theory. Regular evaluations are essential to readjust the project if necessary.

Adaptation

Pillar of Scrum theory. The implementation of new measures is necessary when inspection shows deviations from the measured results.

Product Owner

Product Owner is the bridge between the business part and the technical part of the project. Therefore, he is the link between the client and the development team. The Product Owner carries the vision of the Scrum product. Fully integrated to the Scrum team, he is responsible for writing user stories and for keeping the Product Backlog up to date. The product owner is one person not a committee.

Burnup Chart

Representation of the amount of stories completed, with points plotted on an X and Y axis that map an upward trend of work completed until reaching 100%.

The composition of a Scrum team.

The Scrum Team consists of one Scrum Master, one Product Owner, and Developers.

STORY POINT

The points assigned to a user story by the team depending on the difficulty of the story.

SPRINT PLANNING

Time-boxed event of 8 hours, or less, to start a Sprint. It serves for the Scrum Team to inspect the work from the Product Backlog that's most valuable to be done next and design that work into Sprint backlog. The Sprint Planning meeting is one of the most important steps in a Scrum project. During this meeting, the development team selects the priority elements of the Product Backlog that they think they can achieve during the sprint. This collaborative work of the whole Scrum Team results in the creation of a sprint plan.

Sprint Retrospective/Review

time-boxed event of 3 hours, or less, to end a Sprint. It serves for the Scrum Team to inspect the past Sprint and plan for improvements to be enacted during the next Sprint. By analyzing graphs (Burnup chart, Burndown chart, Velocity), but also freely discussing and taking a step back from the past sprint, the team seeks improvement and wonders how to optimize even more the interactions between individuals to gain in well-being and motivation, to raise product quality, and overall, to improve its productivity.

POKER PLANNING

variation of the delphi technique Uses a deck of cards that represents an estimate in days Moderator describes particular task, feature, deliverable, or user story to be estimated. Attempts to reach consensus in a few rounds of "play"