A short guide to Scrum

Scrum – a framework for developing and sustaining complex products.

Scrum pillars

Product Owner
- one person (not a group of people)
- manages Product Backlog (creating, ordering, optimizing, monitoring items)
- single source for team’s scope of work (set of requirements)
Scrum Master
- one person
- ensures that the Scrum process is understood and accepted (facilitator)
Development Team
- optimal size 3-9 (Product Owner and Scrum Master roles not included)
- no sub-teams allowed each role in the team is ‘Developer’ regardless of work being done
- self-organized
- cross-functional (having all the needed skills)
- delivering ‘Done’ product increments

Sprint Planning
- can take a maximum of 8 hours for 1 month Sprint
- Topic 1: What can be done this Sprint?
  - based on Product Backlog
  - only Development Team can decide on the capacity of work
  - Scrum Master creates Sprint Goal upon the results
- Topic 2: How will it be done?
Daily Scrum
- 15 minutes stand-up held at the same time and place each day
- Questions
  - What did you do yesterday to help the team reaching Sprint Goal?
  - What will you do today to help the team reaching Sprint Goal?
  - Do you see any obstacles to reaching Sprint Goal?
- all obstacles can be discussed right after Daily Scrum
- only Development Team members can participate in Daily Scrum
Sprint Review
- can take a maximum of 4 hours for 1 month Sprint
- held at the end of the Sprint
- key stakeholders invited by the Product Owner should participate
- inspects Product ‘Done’ increments with a possibility to adjust Product Backlog
Sprint Retrospective
- can take a maximum of 3 hours for 1 month Sprint
- occurs between Sprint Review and Sprint Planning for the next Sprint
- identifies ‘Good’ and ‘To Improve’ items, creates a plan for implementing ‘To Improve’ items during the next
- Sprint
- Scrum Team inspects itself and creates a plan for improvement

Product Backlog
- an ordered list of all features that the Product requires
- single source of requirements
- never complete (some items are presented there at any time)
- Product Backlog items should have description, order, estimate, and value
- refinement (adding details, estimates, order) should not consume more than 10% of the Development Team time
- capacity
- items that can be done in the next Sprint are usually marked as ‘Ready’
Sprint Backlog
- items from Product Backlog selected for current Sprint together with a plan for delivering them
- increment – the sum of all items completed during the Sprint

Scrum Master → Product Owner
- provides techniques for effective Product Backlog management
- ensures product planning understanding
- facilitates Scrum events
Scrum Master → Development Team
- coaches in self-organization and cross-functionality
- resolves problems on the way to product ‘Done’ increments
- facilitates Scrum events
Scrum Master → Organization
- coaches organization in Scrum adoption
- advances Scrum Team productivity
- works with other Scrum Masters within the organization

Sprint Goal – objective to be met which is created during Sprint Planning and set for the Sprint.

one month or less for achieving product ‘Done’ increments
no pauses or stops between Sprints
no changes that can endanger Sprint Goal during the Sprint
no decrease in Quality Goal during the Sprint
the scope can be negotiated between the Product Owner and Development Team
Cancellation
- Product Owner can cancel the Sprint
- Sprint becomes canceled automatically if the Sprint Goal is outdated
- all complete items are accepted for release
- all incomplete items move back to Product Backlog and re-estimated