Agile2019

Abstract:
Does your Scrum team start all its stories on Day 1 of the Sprint? Do stories sometimes carry over into the next Sprint? Or perhaps testing always gets crammed in on the last day of the Sprint? If any of these sound familiar, your team may benefit from improving its flow.
Flow metrics are commonly associated with Kanban, but can provide tremendous value to any team, including those using Scrum. In this interactive workshop, we’ll start by exploring the value of achieving a smooth flow of work versus simply achieving maximum utilization. Next, we'll introduce lead time, cycle time and throughput metrics and explain how to create and interpret a cumulative flow diagram (CFD). We'll review what each represents, discuss easy ways to collect these metrics, and show how they are similar and different from common Scrum metrics. As each metric is introduced, we will provide sample sets of metrics for you to review in small groups, practicing how to read and interpret them in order to find opportunities for team improvement. You will leave the workshop knowing how to interpret and capture all these valuable metrics, so your agile team can improve its flow!

Learning Outcomes:

• Participants will learn about flow in the context of an Agile team
• Participants will be able to explain the difference between utilization and flow
• Participants will be able to describe why flow matters for both Scrum and Kanban teams
• Participants will learn how to interpret and capture lead time, cycle time (average, median, and scatterplot), throughput, and a cumulative flow diagram (CFD)
• Participants will learn how flow metrics can be used in both Scrum and Kanban contexts
• Participants will get practice using the metrics to identify bottlenecks and gain insight into the flow of their team or system

Attachments:

• Agile2019_Measuring Flow_Metrics That Matter_8.8.19.pdf

Abstract:
Using metrics for punitive reasons is a problem as old as time. In software, this is further complicated by the fact that people rarely agree on why we are collecting metrics in the first place. In this session we will explore how we can use metrics for good instead of evil.
By focusing on the goal of system improvement, rather than individual performance, we can begin leveraging data to make a positive difference in how we work while also delving into why we work the way we do.
This session will include real-world examples of problems that organizations create for themselves by using metrics for the wrong intent. We will also discuss examples of good metrics and how they can be used to make our lives better.

Learning Outcomes:

• Know why we need good metrics
• Describe why organizations, often unintentionally, capture harmful metrics
• Explain how good metrics can drive good behaviors and how bad metrics can drive bad behaviors
• Understand how to identify good metrics at each tier of business
• Able to analyze an organization’s current metrics and determine whether they are being used for good or for evil
• Comprehend how to continuously improve the behaviors we see in our organization by continuously improving the metrics we use to measure success

Attachments:

• Metrics for Good - Agile2019.pdf