At DevFacto, we build software that humans love to use. In order to effectively deliver on this promise, a number of elements come into play including ideation, design, development, testing and support – just to name a few. However, one key component is imperative to project success: process. Without an effective process or approach to project management, even the most talented development teams will not deliver the best possible outcomes on their own.
Enter: Scrum. Scrum is an Agile framework that is transforming project management across every industry, every business, and even in our everyday lives. It empowers teams to react more quickly and respond more accurately to change.
In 2019, DevFacto is offering Scrum Master training to our entire organization – from development teams to delivery executives to management. We believe that understanding this framework will equip our teams to better focus, collaborate, communicate, and ultimately accomplish what truly needs to be done — successfully.
Over 40 DevFactonians participated in Scrum Master training in February 2019
5 Reasons We Love Scrum
We are committed to producing outcomes that exceed our clients’ expectations. By using scrum, we:
1. Release Usable Solutions More Quickly
Scrum has been proven to deliver value to the end customer 30-40% faster than traditional methods.
The highest-value and highest-risk requirements can be delivered before lower value/risk requirements, thereby incrementally delivering value to the customer. By releasing “done” chunks of prioritized work in a sprint, portions of the product are in market faster than by traditional methods where completed work is released as a whole at project completion.
2. Produce Higher Quality Solutions
Scrum provides the framework for continual feedback and exposure to make sure that quality is as high as possible. It directly enhances the quality of a solution through::
- continual testing run from the beginning of the project;
- frequent releases which rely on good quality code and proactive management of technical debt;
- regular communication between the team and the product owner.
3. Increase ROI and Decreasing Risk
In addition to time-to-market benefits, ROI with Scrum also increases by:
- addressing course corrections regularly and early in the process;
- limiting costly defects due to automation and up-front testing;
- reducing the cost of failure by failing early if scrum teams are going to fail at all.
With Scrum, issues and changes are visible and communicated as soon as they arise, helping to lower expenses and risk across the board. Because sprints are short and processes are broken down, mistakes can be fixed in a timely fashion.
4. Heighten Team Morale
Because Scrum teams are self-managed, they are empowered to be more creative, innovative and are acknowledged for their expertise. Scrum also improves team morale by:
- breaking down organizational barriers to align technical and business priorities;
- organizing development team structure around people with specific work styles and personalities;
- focusing on sustainable work practices and cadence to avoid burn-out;
- having a Scrum Master who removes impediments and shields the development team from external interference.
5. Improve Customer Satisfaction
All of our teams are committed to producing products and services that make our clients happy. Scrum helps accomplish this through the following:
- collaborating with customers as partners, keeping them involved and engaged throughout the project;
- transparency and visibility so that both the Scrum team and stakeholders know how the project is going at any given time;
- a product owner who has expertise on both product requirements and customer needs;
- delivering product to end customers faster and more often;
- incrementally funding projects instead of requiring large up-front investment; and so much more!