1/4/12

My Top 10 problems with using Scrum

English: The Scrum project management method. ...Image via WikipediaWhat are the top 10 problems I've encountered using an agile methodology like Scrum?

10) The waterfall mindset.  Management prefers the monolithic plan, regardless of how unwieldy it may be. Additionally, development teams who have done waterfall development will tend to slip back into it.

9) Ignoring the "definition of done." Either features that meet the definition stay sticky, where some team members want to further perfect the feature, or the feature is considered "done" without having really been completed.

8) Sprintus-interruptus. Although the team is working in a sprint, management interrupts the team with a high-priority external project.

7) When sizing stories, people start to think of features in absolute sizes rather than relative sizes. Each team is different, so sizing only makes sense to that particular team.

6) It takes a while to get a rhythm for a two-week sprint. Sometimes the team doesn't deliver value until halfway through the sprint, and by then it's almost too late.

5) Stories might be ill-defined.  I've seen stories that omitted who wants it, why, and what's the value.

4) Teams forget to share the work. People prefer to work in their own area, ignoring what other people need or are working on.

3) Team members ignore aspects of Scrum -- such as sizing or prioritizing the backlog. Without a sized, prioritized backlog you aren't managing the process, the project manages you.

2) It's hard to know where and how to document requirements as they evolve

1) People fail to use face-to-face communication.  This is the most efficient way to communicate nuanced information.

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