The Project Manager and Modern Agile Projects Alistair Cockburn Humans and Technology http://Alistair.Cockburn.us

Often things don’t go as planned Often things don’t go as planned. Sometimes the original plan is the WRONG one! How do you know which is right? How do you know where you are? What do you do at the moment of crisis? planned route to planned goal route to planned goal (1969 lunar landing) Moment of crisis! Another way of look at adaptation is by looking at your approach to the project. You can plan to go directly from point A to point B (the red dashed line). But this in reality never happens exactly as planned, so instead you use various project management mechanisms to ensure that you reach Point B (the green connected line). With an adaptive process, you might not end up at Point B and that’s a good thing. Your customer has, through the experience of the project and collaborating with developers, realized that Point C is actually a better place to be. Without adaptation, there is a tendency to force something on the customer, even if it is clear that they really need something else. route to better goal (“Titanic” movie) getting lost route to worse goal (ship Wasa)

The 2005 “Declaration of Inter-Dependence” for agile-adaptive project-product managment 10 project Critical Success Factors and the role of the PM in even rabidly agile projects How to find useful PM strategy ‘nuggets’ right under your nose Using agile strategies in everyday situations

AgileManifesto.org (2001) Individuals and interactions over Processes and Tools Working software over Comprehensive documentation Customer collaboration over Contract negotiation Responding to change over Following a plan “... while there is value in the items on the right, we value the items on the left more.”

pmDeclarationOfInterDependence.org (2005) We -- increase return on investment by making continuous flow of value our focus. deliver reliable results by engaging customers in frequent interactions and shared ownership. expect uncertainty and manage for it through iterations, anticipation and adaptation. unleash creativity and innovation by recognizing that individuals are the ultimate source of value, and creating an environment where they can make a difference. boost performance through group accountability for results and shared responsibility for team effectiveness. improve effectiveness and reliability through situationally specific strategies, processes and practices."

The 2005 “Declaration of Inter-Dependence” for agile-adaptive project-product managment 10 project Critical Success Factors and the role of the PM in even rabidly agile projects How to find useful PM strategy ‘nuggets’ right under your nose Using agile strategies in everyday situations

Historically, “agile” is low-ceremony, light process and people-communication-intensive “When you want your boat to go fast, it is easier to cut anchors than add horsepower.” -- Luke Hohmann Common Practices Delivery working product often Colocate team members Write schedule in bits of paper hung on the wall Lighten or dump the heavy requirements document, heavy project plan, long status mtgs Decentralized Control (Revenge of the laborers) “We don’t need no stinkin’ project managers tellin’ us what to do !” (in actuality, Reallocation of Control)

Always, the players in the game are PEOPLE - and People are stuffed full of personality Methodology Ecosystem Values Values Activities Milestones Jenny Jim Peter Annika Quality Process Teams Tester Designer Documenter Project manager Products Techniques Roles People Standards Tools Skills Personality

10 Critical Project Factors. Nourishment from Executive Sponsors (decisions, money) Community (communication, amicability) Focus (known priorities, focus time) Incremental development & Reflection People (abilities, motivation)

Amicability & Goal alignment Amicability : Willingness to listen with good will Low “amicability index” means people block the flow of information, intentionally or through not listening well. “Amicability index” indicates how easily information passes from one part of the organization to another. Goal alignment Normal team Aligned team

(communication, amicability) (known priorities, focus time) Role of the Project Manager on modern projects: Pull in support, motivate team, block interrupts. Sponsor(s) Interruptions Decisions $ Visibility X PM Community (communication, amicability) Focus (known priorities, focus time) Nourishment from Executive Sponsors (decisions, money) People (abilities, motivation) Incremental development & Reflection Communication Amicability Priorities Focus time Skills development Motivation Reflection developers

The Project Manager’s timeline Executing & Steering (& more Planning) Initiating Planning Closing Initiating Mission statement (1-2 pages) Project priorities chart Planning Project map (low-resolution PERT chart, no times) Blitz planning technique Allocation of people & times to project map (schedule) Executing & Steering Strategies to avoid & get out of trouble Strong-visibility status charts (information radiators) Pause, reflect, change (both process & plan!) Closing - (retrospectives)

The 2005 “Declaration of Inter-Dependence” for agile-adaptive project-product managment 10 project Critical Success Factors and the role of the PM in even rabidly agile projects How to find useful PM strategy ‘nuggets’ right under your nose Using agile strategies in everyday situations

Create your own ‘nuggets’ by introspection into “short war stories with happy endings” 1. Identify a time when things got ‘better’. 2. Examine the story in slow motion and identify the turning point. 3. Locate the principle. 4. Find 2 more projects with the same principle and same type of positive shift. 5. Truth-in-advertising: Name the side effects and overdose effect.

Project management requires Detecting and creatively (avoiding) (getting out of) messes. Osmotic Communication Expert in Earshot Cone of Silence Early Victory Early and Regular Delivery Walking Skeleton Incremental Rearchitecture Sacrifice One Person QA-Rotation SWAT-fix team Cross-specialized Team Function / Component Owners Pause, Reflect, Change Timeout/Regroup Part-Timers as Advisors Process Miniature Progress & Training Teams Rejoining Streams Short-horizon planning Spare Leader Capacity Spike Gold Rush Project 360° Safe Solutioning Session

Write your ‘nuggets’ as ‘prescriptive medication’: PRODUCTIVITY: Gold Rush You can’t wait for requirements to settle, so... Action: Start design and programming immediately; adjust requirements weekly. Requires: Good communications Side effect: Manage communications, plan for rework! Overdose: Rework holds up the project Example: Concurrent development (Winifred)

TEAM BUILDING: Walking Skeleton Action: Connect the architecture together with simple “hello, world” function as 1st running code. Build up both infrastructure & function from there. Benefits: Early Victory, executing architecture, Allows parallel development Side effect: Must manage rework of infrastructure during function development Overdose: Too simplistic: over-rework of infrastructure delays project Examples: NBO project

TEAM BUILDING: Early Victory Action: Ensure the team delivers something as early as possible, even if only a Walking Skeleton. Benefits: Team learns each other, process Sponsor sees team working together Side effect: Must manage expecations for early delivery Overdose: Too simple = Not enough process exercised, not real confidence built Examples: Walking Skeleton

The 2005 “Declaration of Inter-Dependence” for agile-adaptive project-product managment 10 project Critical Success Factors and the role of the PM in even rabidly agile projects How to find useful PM strategy ‘nuggets’ right under your nose Using agile strategies in everyday situations

Agile techniques on non-sw projects Kids’ Homework: Walking Skeleton, Increments, Continuous integration Book Publishing: Colocation, Concurrent development Building a basement under our house: Daily stand-up, Revise the plan, Plan/Don’t plan ahead Packing the House under Deadline: Incremental by room, Burn-down chart

(communication, amicability) (known priorities, focus time) Role of the Project Manager on modern projects: Pull in support, motivate team, block interrupts. Sponsor(s) Visibility Decisions $ Interruptions X PM developers Communication Amicability Priorities Focus time Skills development Motivation Reflection Community (communication, amicability) Focus (known priorities, focus time) Nourishment from Executive Sponsors (decisions, money) People (abilities, motivation) Incremental development & Reflection http://Alistair.Cockburn.us