SIMVaC Project Retrospective Summary (Retrospective held on 16 Sept 2005) Mary Lynn Manns With special thanks to Heather Nelson, NEMAC research student

What is SIMVaC?  (Feb’04) A proposal to the University of North Carolina in Response to the Initiative for Computational Science, Computer Science, High Performance Computing and Information Systems  Scientific Innovations in Numerical Modeling, Digital Visualization, and High-speed Connectivity in Western North Carolina  Partnering institutions: UNC-Asheville, UNC- Charlotte, A-B Tech  $600,000 (over 2 years)  11 different projects

What is a Project Retrospective? A retrospective is an opportunity for the participants to learn how to improve. The focus is on learning—not fault-finding. Norm Kerth

Why retrospectives? Learning and development do not necessarily occur as a result of the experience itself but as a result of reflection explicitly designed to foster learning and development. B. Jacoby For many of the team members, this will be the first time they consciously think about the processes they use. N. Kerth … wisdom comes from our ability to understand the relationship between an individual’s work and that of the entire team. … I have seen whole-team reflection explain, discover, and teach so much. I believe that there is no better way to improve a team’s performance and quality. N. Kerth

Reflect and find a better way Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin. It is, as far as he knows, the only way of coming downstairs, but sometimes he feels that there is another way, if only he could stop bumping for a moment and think of it. A. A. Milne Winnie the Pooh

The purpose of a retrospective is learning, which allows a team to… … correct (sometimes recurring) mistakes … gather data for overall assessment … create more accurate & complete reports … prepare for future projects … identify and document “lessons learned” … build a better sense of community

During the SIMVaC retrospective… Information was gathered with techniques: Set the stage  Prime Directive  Ground rules Look at the big picture  Define Success  Artifacts Contest Look at the details  Create timeline and “mine” it Plan for the future

Timeline What did it show us? We had a slow start but the work is accelerating There are many different things going on We are missing part of the story We are learning as we go Collaboration is happening

Define Success I wish we could do that over again the very same way. Why couldn’t you respond ‘yes’?... Summary of Issues:  Money, Budget  Management  Cohesiveness of Project  Group Interaction  Content of Project  Resources (time, experience, etc.)  The Future

Major Errors & Costs We seem to be addressing most of these: slow start-up involvement of students communication & missed opportunities delay & lack of experience inclusion of a minority institution

“Big Picture” Impressions The individual projects are doing good things but the overall goals are not clear: What are the research goals? How can we improve this in future projects? There are strong collaborations but not a general cohesiveness in the complete team. We need a better understanding of the work UNC-C is doing. We should start considering how we can leverage SIMVaC into future projects.

Other Impressions?

Thanks to everyone who participated in the SIMVaC retrospective! For more information: Mary Lynn Manns