Virtual Agility EngageOne 2.0 A successful project with virtual team and Agile processes that won the PMI-MN Project of the Year 2010 award

Agenda What is EngageOne? Challenges Opportunities in Challenges How did we do it? Success stories Lessons Learned Q&A

What is EngageOne? EngageOne Interactive is a flagship product in the Pitney Bowes Business Insight Customer Communication Management (CCM) division. EngageOne is an interactive document production system for creating and delivering customer correspondence. Document templates and content objects are defined by template designers and managed in the content repository. These are made available to front-office users via a Web-based application where they can create and modify a document in a controlled manner and distribute it through delivery channels. EngageOne 2.0 was released in September 2010 with additional platform support and enriched features.

EngageOne 2.0 – Unique and complex challenges Highly distributed and virtual team 11 locations across 6 time zones RIFs Loaned QA resources Immovable deadlines Unknown-Unknown risks (Unanticipated risks) Sustaining Engineering (Product Maintenance)

Opportunities in challenges It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change. ~Darwin Highly distributed and virtual team Close to 16 hours of work time in a day Attritions Stirred scope negotiations Loaned QA resources Improved product quality Immovable deadlines Helped in scope negotiation with Product Owner :-) Unknown-Unknown risks (Unanticipated risks) Gained experience and learned lessons :-) Why is scope reduction good? Pareto / 80-20 rule, Unless you are Airline security or Boeing etc, better focus on the 20% which will gain 80% benefit

How did we do it? - Agile Best Practices Pick what works best for your team and for your business Need to figure out what works for you Start from nothing add what you need We still needed Tracking Planning Estimates Stand Ups Constant Communication with steak holders Ownership and Partnership Trade offs Can do everything, just not all at once Constant Reevaluation Constant renegotiation Focus

How did we do it? - Ownership Create and contribute vs. just taking directions Motivate: A pat on the back, an arm around the shoulder Congratulate on a job well done, analyze what wasn’t Readiness Low Ability Low Motivation High Motivation High Ability Style Directing Specific Direction Close Monitoring Guiding Work Direction Personal Support Supporting Collaborate Encourage Support Delegating Freedom and responsibility to employee Not sitting next to you, does not mean they do not exist Not heard their voice, does not mean they are not on call Ownership Critical for a remote team Won’t it be great when… Not an academic exercise - Goal is to make money and keep your job Create and contribute Designs, Schedules, Estimates, Decisions… Motivation Money vs. Recognition vs. Satisfaction (site a study) For Remote - Same as the person next door Get the most by adapting yourself:

How did we do it? - Communication Communication is Key! Communicate and communicate right Understand and be understood Encourage to talk and fight isolation Have Fun (Virtual Water Cooler) Virtual war room in case of crisis Communication: use tools to your benefit Communication Tools for Remote Teams Email Telephone Instant Message Mikogo (www.mikogo.com) Google Docs Virtual War Room Face to Face (Don’t forget about it) Need Real Time Communication Schedules Overlap hours (both ends) Product Owner involvement – how many times do you talk to your product manager / owner if things are going well? Goals of Communication Exchange Information Collaboration To be understood AND to understand Foster Informality (No Bull) Don’t wait for a meeting Don’t let communication be a bottleneck Key for Remote Members Establish Trust – Both ways Fight Isolation with remote members Decision Making Right person for the job (remote or local) Ownership Have Fun (Virtual Water Cooler)

Communication is Key Make it a priority Can’t be everyone’s 3rd goal on annual performance reviews Constant Learning and Improvement The Most Effective Managers

Role of PM Oil in the machine Make things happen for those who make things happen Remove Roadblocks Simplify Flexible processes Transparency Build accountability Be sensitive to politics; don’t get sucked in Be sensitive to politics; don’t get sucked in (No Bull – Dave Po-Chedley)

Expectations for virtual team You will be accessible You will treat everyone as if they were next door You will not use location as an excuse You will proactively communicate You will make informed decisions when needed You will fight isolation

Success Stories PMI – MN Project of the Year 2010 Delivered on time Turned the customer to a referenceable customer Avoided penalties and virus :-) Improved product quality Improved resource coordination One step closer to predictable processes PMI – MN Project of the Year 2010 Resource coordination – now two separate development teams are working together as one scrum team Predictable process – new platform support timelines, team efficiency percent

Lessons Learned Reduce cost of poor quality We do not have time to do things twice. Do it right the first time. Shared leadership Every challenge has a hidden opportunity Continuous learning is the only way to survive COPQ – time spent on rework – defect fix, retest etc

Questions & Feedback Steven H. Henry (steven.henry@pb.com) Steven Henry is Development Director for Pitney Bowes Business Insight. He has 23 years of experience delivering successful software development projects and products. Strong collaborative management and successful projects are some of the accomplishments that set Steve apart from other managers in the industry Srilekha Akula (srilekha.akula@pb.com) Srilekha Akula is Project Manager working for Pitney Bowes Business Insight. She has 10 years of experience managing and delivering successful projects end to end through all phases of Software Development Life Cycle. Srilekha is a certified Project Management Professional and a Certified SCRUM Master