What is a Planning Strategy and how can it be used to optimise delivery within a Scrum Project? Producing the Plan for a Project has always been one of the key activities carried out by the Project Manager. The complexities of what is to be Done by whom and when are itemised and organised in a Project Plan. Milestones are inserted at critical stages, like the sign-off of Requirements by the Customer, or the completion of system Testing. The Project budget is Estimated in great detail, hours and days of Effort are calculated, resources are allocated at Task level and dependencies are identified. A Project Plan is then agreed and signed off and the Project is initiated and run according to its contents. The Project Manager displays and Manages the Project Plan, Estimating percentage completion of Tasks and reporting on development regularly to interested Stakeholders.

This type of Planning Strategy Works well for Projects that are well-defined and predictable, like building construction, where you have to begin with building the foundation. When it comes to Projects with a high degree of unpredictability, like Software Development, they can fail, even though there is an established Value chain for any Software Project, the SDLC (Software Development life-cycle) or ALC (Asset Lifecycle). There are different kinds of failures, such as:-.

• The Project was Estimated to cost 1 million and came in at 3 million.
• The 1 year Project that took 5 years to finish, and.
• The Project that came in on time and under budget however provided something that no-one desired.

When it comes to Agile Planning, while a Project can fail, Project overrun on time or money can not take place, due to the fact that the Project is Time-Boxed and the resource costs are fixed. Most significantly, an Agile Project is focused on delivering the Product the Customer wants and needs, so there should be no failure in this regard.

Planning Strategy: Why Traditional Planning can Fail.

One of the biggest drawbacks in Traditional Planning is the lack of visibility. The Stakeholders are only involved at the start and towards the end of the Project; between these points they are ensured that the Project is “xx% complete” by the Project Manager. The problem is that the completion percentage does not indicate what is complete – are these the most critical Features or was all the straightforward Development Done first, leaving the difficult and complex Work till later? Another problem is linked to the Requirements; in a Traditional Project, the Requirements are generated and Documented in great detail in collaboration with the Stakeholders, who then sign them off. This is where Agile has a clear advantage; the Stakeholder is involved all the way, and the order of Development is most critical and complicated Feature first (the Feature with the highest Value).

Planning Strategy: Why Agile Planning has a High Success Rate.

Agile Planning factors in uncertainty; it is accepted that there will be Changes to the original specification. What is more, every single person included in the Project, from Stakeholders to the Development Team, plays an active part in Project Planning. This Planning ranges from Estimating the Complexity of Work to committing to doing the Work. As Agile Planning anticipates Change, the Planning is not precise, varying from the least accurate Plan at tactical level, through to daily Planning, which has the greatest precision, because the Scrum Team (Scrum Master, Product Owner – the Voice of the Customer, and the Development Team) is Working with a 24-hour forecast.

• Strategy.
• Product.
• Release.
• Sprint.
• Daily.

Another important element of Agile Planning is the prioritization of Work according to Risk and utility; the Riskiest and most uncertain Work is dealt with first, and the aim of each Work Iteration is to deliver a Working Product that the Stakeholders can see and inspect. Instead of determining Project completeness by the number of activities finished along a timeline, an Agile Project’s progress is based on Features delivered, beginning with the most crucial Features.

Rather of waiting till the end of the Project, the Stakeholders already have Working Software throughout the Project. What would usually occur is that, following Release 1, there would be requests for Changes by the Stakeholders, now that the Concept is beginning to take shape. So we might expect that the next Sprint would take the Changes into account and the Stakeholders can examine the results in Release 2.

It is clear that Agile Planning keeps the Product Development in alignment with Stakeholder expectations. In a worst-case scenario, the Stakeholders could choose at Release 1 to cancel the Project, based upon the output of Release 1. While there was expense and Effort involved, the loss is roughly half that of the Traditional Project.

Planning Strategy: The Benefits of Agile Planning.

Benefit 1:.

• Traditional.
  – The Plan is prepared at the start of the Project. Any variances and Changes are discouraged.
• Agile.
  – A rough Plan is created at the start of the Project. It is continuously Reviewed and revised during the Project, even daily during the Daily Stand-up meetings.
• Comments.
  – The Plan is a living thing in Agile.

Benefit 2:.

• Traditional.
  – The Project Manager owns and forms the Plan.
• Agile.
  – Everyone owns and shapes the Plan.
• Comments.
  – Everyone in the Scrum Team understands Project Planning.

We found these books great for finding out more information on Agile Scrum:

Benefit 3:.

• Traditional.
  – Planning reporting and Review is routine (e.g. weekly).
• Agile.
  – Planning is Reviewed continuously during the daily stand-up, Sprint Review and Sprint Retrospective meetings.
• Comments.
  – The daily Stand-Up Meeting ensures that the Agile Plan is upgraded every 24 hours.

Benefit 4:.

• Traditional.
  – Delivery only happens at the end.
• Agile.
  – Delivery takes place during the Scrum Project.
• Comments.
  – The Product starts forming early on in the Project, producing Stakeholder Confidence.

Benefit 5:.

• Traditional.
  – The Project is opaque.
• Agile.
  – The Project shows up via Burndown Charts and early Releases.
• Comments.
  – Stakeholders are continuously informed.

Benefit 6:.

• Traditional.
  – The Project delivers what was specified.
• Agile.
  – The Project provides the most important Features.
• Comments.
  – Agile is constrained by time-boxing and by a fixed small Team.

Benefit 7:.

• Traditional.
  – The Project can run past the initial timeline.
• Agile.
  – The Project is time-boxed. It completes on a defined date.
• Comments.
  – The focus is on what can be delivered in the time permitted.

Benefit 8:.

• Traditional.
  – More resources can be added if required.
• Agile.
  – The Team size is fixed and stable.
• Comments.
  – Scrum Teams Mature and coalesce throughout the Project.

We found these books great for finding out more information on Agile Scrum:

Conclusion.

There is a perception that Agile Projects have no Plan. This is totally untrue, it is just the nature of the Planning that is different. Only the short-term Work is definite, the Plan is only an Estimate for the long-term Work. Planning in an Agile Project is pervasive; everybody takes part in the Planning and has a say. Every Developer is involved in Estimating Work, not by Effort in hours, but by Complexity, and every day they explain to the rest of the Team what they accomplished in the last 24 hours and what they Plan to complete in the next 24 hours. This contributes to a Project where development is understood and is visible at any time. The Release of parts of the Product during the Project also develop Confidence and belief in the Project, both by Stakeholders and by the Team.