I was having a good discussion with JC last night around the Agile project methodology and a few good points were raised.
For example, when implementing an Agile Methodology it is important not to forget about Planning and Reflection to become a more efficient team.
This is clearly outlined in the very last paragraph of the Agile Manifesto – “At regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behavior accordingly.” – http://agilemanifesto.org/principles.htm
It is also clearly outlined in Agile’s Declaration of Interdependence – “We improve effectiveness and reliability through situationally specific strategies, processes and practices.” – http://pmdoi.org/
It is too easy to get bogged down in simply delivering to a customer and “keeping them happy” and not devoting or allocating any time to Planning. The Agile Methodology dictates a fine balance of Planned and Re-Activist based approaches therefore a lean towards either direction also means to stray away from being Agile.
A ‘Spike’ is a very important part of Planning and I can’t stress how important they are to an Agile project.
Therefore make sure they included in between sprints within your Agile based project.
“Spikes will usually take place in between sprints” – http://agile101.net/2009/09/29/using-spikes-in-agile-software-development/
I suppose I just wanted to stress to all ‘Agilists’ out there that they should at least try and allocate more time to Planning to ensure resources are being used efficiently throughout all aspects of your Agile project. This will surely bring success to all involved.
FW
“Agile on the other hand is a truly open and transparent system of working, one that still gives the client the secure knowledge of fixed charges and fixed timescales by simply adjusting the breadth of features that can be accomplished. So whilst the product owner might not get all of the lower priority features they wished for at that the project’s conception, they are still guaranteed a viable, usable, and working product for no extra or hidden charges. Likewise, less of the job’s budget is spent on project management, change orders and scope limitation so more money goes straight to where its needed: design, development and content.”
http://8gramgorilla.com/applying-agile-development-to-web-projects/
Web Renovators certainly prides itself on delivering quality solutions to it’s customers and agrees that correct use of Agile project management can certainly assist with this.