11.11. Key Terms

Agile Development: Essentially a learning process through which the developer and the product owner create a shared understanding of how many features they can create, given the allotted time and money. 11.2

Agile Procurement: A collaborative approach that focuses on outcomes. 11.4

Agile Project Management is Iterative (Repetitive): Short processes focused on customer feedback and satisfaction.  In such processes, the customer is allowed to verify that the features are being developed as they want, and suggest improvements 11.2

Agile Scrum: Designed for completing complex projects, as described on ScrumGuides, Scrum is the most widely used form of Agile. When people talk about Agile, they are usually talking about Scrum. 11.2

Backlog. A backlog is the amount of work a member commits in a certain amount of time before the next sprint. It is a list of everything that needs to be completed that is distributed to the team. 11.7

Daily Scrum:  This is the core of Agile project management.  There are daily meetings which are called “scrum.” Every day, at the same time, in the same place, the team meets (usually standing and sometimes in a circle) and take turns answering important questions: 11.7

Development Team:  A group of people who work together to deliver the product/service.  They have cross-functional skills and are the group that accomplishes the sprint goals.  They build the product or design the service. 11.6

Extreme Programming: Emphasizes short development cycles with frequent releases of software for evaluation, after which a new development cycle begins. You can read more about extreme programming at “Extreme Programming: A Gentle Introduction” 11.2

Human Resources Specialist and Scrum in Motion: would design a roles and responsibilities document (similar to a job description, however, must be less detailed).  They would be involved in the recruitment and selection of the Scrum Master and the Development Team. 11.6

Product Owner:  Represents the customer and acts on behalf of the customer.  This person could be a manager from within the company or a manager from the customer’s company. 11.6

Rapid Product Development: Emphasizes “simultaneous, coordinated activities by multi-functional teams, striving for smooth transitions between phases for the most rapid time-to-market” (ORC International: Expert Advisory Services). You can read more about Rapid Product Development in this “Introduction to Rapid Product Development.” 11.2

Release Meeting:  Establish the goals and broad plan for the project. The team decides how the project will be completed the expectations. 11.7

Scrum Master:  A person who helps the team learn and apply the Scrum process.  They do whatever they can to help the team meet their goals.  They also are invested in the Product Owner, and ensure this person is kept up to date and involved. 11.6

Self-Organizing Team: As a “group of motivated individuals, who work together toward a goal, have the ability and authority to make decisions, and readily adapt to changing demands” (Mittal, 2013). 11.5

Sprint Planning:  At the beginning of each sprint, the Product Owner and the team negotiate where to start, which features are most important to least important, and who is responsible for each component.  They also decide on how long it will take to complete the sprint.  The team works with the team to break down the pieces of the project.  Everything is recorded.  The goals cannot be changed once the sprint is over. 11.7

Sprint Retrospective: The team reflects on how well they think the last sprint went and set up an action plan to improve, if necessary.  The Scrum Master facilitates the meeting.  The team is always working toward continuous improvement of the project. 11.7

Sprint Review:  At the end of the scrum meeting, if there is a sample of the product/service to “show and tell”, the members show their specific work.  They ask and receive feedback related to changes, improvements; and are praised for their work to date by the team.  The product owner may approve work done to date. 11.7