Processes

The term Scrum describes an agile project management methodology. The key to a scrum is breaking projects into smaller, “time-boxed” (typically 30 days) iterations called Sprints. At the beginning of a Sprint, the development team holds a planning meeting to identify and prioritize a product backlog – then commits to completing specific tasks during the allotted time. At the end of the Sprint, the team demonstrates completed functionality and decides how the process can be improved for future iterations.

This iterative, agile approach has several benefits

  • Business value is achieved faster
  • True status of development projects becomes more visible
  • Business and technical teams collaborate more effectively – leading to higher quality solutions

Here are a few questions to determine whether your organization could benefit from an agile development methodology

  • Do you want to improve speed and throughput?
  • Do you feel like development projects are a “black box” – and want better visibility into their real status?
  • Do you want to know that your developers’ priorities match your business functionality?
  • Do you need improved software quality and usability?
  • Do you compete in a dynamic business where development teams must quickly respond to changing requirements and priorities?
  • As a product manager / business owner, do you want to refine your role and improve your effectiveness in working with your development teams?

Sysvine can help. Our certified ScrumMasters have experience leading and coaching small (3–5 members) and large (25–30 members) software development teams and product managers on the best practices of agile development – and we know how to scale our approach and process to your organization. We can:

  • Write user stories / use cases
  • Plan releases and iterations
  • Report on progress through burn-down charts
  • Improve the QA process with test-driven development and design
  • Respond quickly to changing business requirements
  • Release working software every 2-4 weeks
  • Improve the relationship between Software Engineering and business by fostering shared ownership
  • Add development horsepower to complete a project
  • Rescue a struggling initiative
  • Coach your team on agile software development
  • Own a project from end to end