AGILE IN ACTION

Poster at d-tools Originally uploaded by sjb140470

Showcase is popular Originally uploaded by sjb140470

We've always used Cruisecontrol but in the last project we spent a lot of time deep in the code and it stank, big time. So despite, the facelift , we've decided to try Hudson on our new project. So far, so good. We've got our avatars on the big visible build screen and we've got some new build hats from the Oktoberfest .

We recently started working with a new client and have been located in a new office. The pictures below were taken on the first day in the first hour with people busy setting up their machines. We'll be starting Iteration Zero on Wednesday .

Brian Marick recently blogged about power steering in reference to that old XP metaphor of the Customer driving the project like a person driving a car. He says: When you drive, you don't think about the steering wheel, you simply think about turning the car, and it turns. But when the power steering goes out, what was once a simple reflex is now a conscious act. In our new office, we're colocated with our Product Owners , our Product Sponsor, and our customer. The opportunity to be colocated to this degree doesn't happen often. It's usually obstructed by silly reasons such as office politics, silos and hierarchy, or part-time team members from the business side having to be located elsewhere. Our thanks go to our client for recognising the benefits of colocation and for wanting to do things properly. Everyone is buzzing about the approach we're using and I'm excited about facilitatating power steering to achieve continuously improving levels of customer collaboration and feedback and value flow to our customer.

A short while ago, Brian Marick identified discipline as one of four values missing from the Agile Manifesto . Brian was recently asked:

The Product Owner needs a blend of the skills usually separated by traditional roles, should have empathy with the customers and and should have some knowledge of how software is developed and deployed. Product Owner Skills Originally uploaded by sjb140470 Product Management Synthesises the needs of the customers and the various stakeholders. Performs competitive research and analysis. Assists with product marketing strategy and devises pricing model. Conducts acceptance tests. Demonstrates the product to customers. Collects customer feedback and transforms it into new features or enhancements. Project Management Responsible for the business value delivered by the team. Helps the team plan the content of each iteration given costs (estimates) and risks. Provides feedback and makes decisions that steer the team based on what's delivered every iteration. Communicates progress to the Product Sponsor and stakeholders. Programme Management Why not put the Product Owner in charge of the budget? After all, he is responsible for maximising return on investment in every iteration. Business Analyst Articulates the product vision and business strategy to the team and defines goals that realise the product vision. Writes and evolves user stories to a suitable level of detail given their position in the Product Backlog. Communicates the details of the user stories so they can be captured as acceptance tests. Prioritises user stories in the Product Backlog by business value. Manages the Product Backlog in response to changes. Business Intelligence Collect information about the product to help make better decisions relating to future functionality and business value.

Via Christopher Avery . Accountability is an agreement to be held to account by another for your operations or the results you produce. If meetings are called to determine who was acccountable, you're looking for people who are trying their best to hide. Not the sign of a healthy culture. Responsibility is a feeling of ownership and stands out when you are leading, learning, correcting, and improving. The sign of a healthy, high-performing culture.

Jeff Patton gives us some good advice about how we view our estimates: