Scrum provides an Agile product development mechanism for different individuals or teams to collaborate on a particular project. Although Scrum principles can be used in different contexts, the primary domain for this methodology works is software development. Let’s explore Scrum’s benefits for the organization and the basic scrum framework, which drives the whole process.
What is Scrum?
Scrum project is an Agile framework for product manufacturing, especially software development. It focuses on clear instructions, aggressive deadlines, and constant incorporation of feedback in the process for the completion of the end product.
It is a fast, flexible, adaptive, and effective process towards a well-defined goal, which encompasses maximum feedback, so the entire process remains on track. At the same time, it also incorporates product backlog to help the development team to float and skim through ideas with greater ease. In the Scrum process, definitive activities must be completed in the predefined period. These periods are known as sprints and are an important part of the scrum methodology.
A brief history of Scrum
The history of the Scrum project is just a few decades old. Started in 1986, Harvard Business Review (HBR) published an article titled “The New Product Development Game,” explaining the mechanism that companies like Honda and Canon follow for product development.
Based on the topics discussed in this article, many concepts used in Scrum methodology were developed. Jeff Sutherland created the current Scrum framework for the software development process in 1993. Since then, different industries have adopted this process to create team agility and a customer-focused product.
Scrum artifacts
Scrum artifacts provide the details on how different stages of the process will be executed. It works like a tool to make the complete process more manageable. The Scrum artifacts are a reference point for evaluating, adapting, and maintaining transparency in software development. The scrum team defines the artifacts for the particular project. Usually, three major scrum artifacts are applicable in any project that gives insights into the performance.
These include:
Product Backlog
The product backlog consists of the changes required in the existing product. Specifically for the software development, bug fixes, feature additions, speed improvement, and other necessary tasks to be completed for improving the end product. It always remains Live and evolving because of the constant upgrades incorporated in the process. The product backlog source is often the users’ input or the information gathered in the testing phase-besides the competitor’s analysis and general business environment.
Sprint Backlog
You can refer to the sprint backlog as the next stage of the scrum artifacts, where the information or the tasks from the product backlogs are selected to be catered to within a particular time frame, referred to as the sprint. Once the sprint backlog is completed, deliverables are set for the next improvement cycle; no additions are made to the finalized goals. However, the activities needed to achieve those set deliverables might be changed to some extent when the actual work starts on the software development.
Product Increment
This is one of the Scrum artifacts that marks the end of the sprint, where the deliverables are highlighted depending upon the definition of done set at the earlier stages. The potentially reasonable product increment scrum artifact must indicate real-time improvement instead of fixing minor errors. By the end of each sprint, there must be at least one increment in the list.
Scrum methodology & process
Scrum methodology is an evolution of the agile process that divides the activities involved in an agile software development process into smaller and temporary phases, the sprints. The process has a definite starting point and a clear set of objectives that ensures the deliverability of the project. However, there is room for constant learning and evolution. The things that the scrum team isn’t aware of at the start, they usually learn eventually while going through the project.
Benefits of Scrum principles
Below are the main benefits of the scrum methodology and the mechanism through which Scrum team works:
- Teamwork
While using scrum principles, you can expect better teamwork. It is because the description of tasks is transparent, with a straightforward process established for software development task execution. Besides, a clear line is set for communication between the software development teams or the individual members by adopting this mechanism.
- Flexible approach
Scrum requires the developers and the software development teams working on the project to modify their definitions of concepts according to the development stages. Besides, the product backlog allows the scrum teams to prioritize tasks before they are added to the sprint phase. So, till the tasks aren’t added to the sprint phase, they are flexible.
- Reduction in risk
Adopting the scrum methodology reduces the risk in a process considerably. There are specific deadlines with predefined deliverables within the software development process. So, the chances of getting off the track or moving away from the goals are limited.
- Incorporation of continuous feedback
As the entire development process is divided into smaller sprints where new feedback is incorporated, it ensures the delivery of quality results and lesser rework.
- Higher ROI
The return on investment to expect on the projects created with Scrum framework is higher because the feedback incorporation allows the scrum teams to understand what is in demand. Besides, lesser mistakes are made because of this framework leading to lower costs. All of it reflects in higher ROI.
Scrum ceremonies or events
The sequential or repetitive tasks a development team is expected to perform are known as ceremonies or events. Although these ceremonies are essential to the scrum framework, you can adjust them according to your project needs and development team requirements. Not all software development teams follow the ceremonies in every sprint.
Here are a few vital scrum ceremonies; you can be a part of them for a few sprints before you finally decide whether these events will be part of future sprints.
- Sprint Backlog Grooming
One critical event often considered in Scrum is that the product owner has to maintain the sprint backlog and move forward with the suggestions that have been accepted by all the stakeholders or align with the overall software development goals set. The meeting set for this purpose is the sprint backlog meeting.
- Sprint Planning Meeting
A sprint planning meeting is another main event performed by the scrum teams. In this process, the sprint details are planned. Often the responsibility of the scrum master, sprint meetings assign tasks to every team member and clarify any confusion.
- Daily Scrum or Stand-ups
You might or might not opt for these meetings. But this event is designed to clarify the action plan for the next 24 hours based on the sprint planning. These meetings are quick and often conducted in the morning to answer specific questions and explain daily tasks regarding software development queries.
- Sprint Review
After the completion of the sprint, the development team members evaluate the sprint and the activities performed during it. Simply put, a sprint review is conducted. The purpose of this event is to decide if the increment should be released and is in accordance with sprint planning. All members can pour in suggestions, but the project owner is the authority to make the decision.
- Sprint Retrospective
This event presents an overall view of the sprint, including things that worked and the ones that didn’t, including the techniques, roles, and relationships. The purpose of sprint retrospective in scrum methodology is to create a better collaborative environment that can improve team spirit and help generate better project results. The product owner and scrum master play an important role during the process.
Three essential roles for Scrum success
The three prominent roles conduct the entire process: scrum master, product owner, and the team.
Image Source: scrum.org/Author Jasper Alblas
Scrum Master
The scrum master is responsible for defining goals and keeping the Scrum up to date. They work as a coach or guide toward their team. Another role responsibility is helping the entire team manage things and keeping the project smooth from sprint planning to the end. He also arranges the required resources for the execution of the goal and keeping up the high spirit.
Product Owner
The product owner handles the execution part. This role is also the representative of the stakeholders working on the project and is responsible for prioritizing the product backlog for better results and maximizing ROI. As a product owner, the individual must be the expert in the business activities and be clear about the goals to be achieved.
Scrum Teams
The scrum team is the executory focus in this model. They are the ones who carry on the instructions and produce results. Often the scrum team works in a group of 5-7 individuals. Ideally, the scrum team must be co-located and well-connected.
Within such a small team, people with diverse capabilities are part of the scrum project. They help in cross-training each other to reduce the bottlenecks. The collective responsibility and individual flexibility make the scrum team distinctive.
Scrum, Kanban, and Agile
Scrum, Kanban, and Agile are often used as interchangeable terms. But that’s not the reality. Scrum framework and Kanban are the Agile frameworks that rely on agile software development, where flexibility in the process is the main motive towards achieving the end goal.
Both frameworks, i.e., Kanban and Scrum, believe in dividing the main tasks into smaller activities and including team members to generate the best results. For Scrum, it is done through sprint planning, while in the Kanban input stage helps in doing so. However, in Scrum, the smaller sprints are part of the agile framework. But there is no such thing in Kanban, and it is an ongoing process.
Why should you choose Scrum?
If you are skeptical about considering Scrum methodology to carry on your projects, here are a few reasons you should choose it. The Scrum project is easy to understand. Once understood, the roles (scrum master, product owner, development team), artifacts, and events can be easily applied to the scrum project.
Besides, the roles and the tasks to be done by each team member are clear, ensuring better collaboration and clarity of goals. Transparency and collective ownership are both benefits that can be achieved through the Scrum process.
Moreover, the sprints are small-duration activities with a clear deliverable. It helps in keeping the entire development team motivated to continue working and achieve the bigger goal. Be mindful that there is an initial learning curve before you can get these benefits, but the long-run benefits are much more significant than the time you’ll have to spend to master the scrum process.
Summing up
Scrum Principles can help in the software development processes. Usually, the development teams find online applications that provide a facility to create a customized scrum process. AppMaster is one such tool that can help software development by significantly reducing time to market as well as development cost and maintenance costs.
