Friday 11 April 2014

The Origin And Key Principles Of Scrum

Origin of scrum
The terminology "Scrum" was initially introduced by Takeuchi and Nonaka in 1986, in a study paper published in the Harvard Business Review. The paper explained that projects should ideally use small, cross functional teams having complete autonomy in whatever they do, and the teams were supposed to deliver a completely finished and shippable product at the end of the development cycle. In case the product cannot be completed at the end of the development cycle, it could be further extended in the form of another “sprint”. Each development cycle is known as a “sprint”, and typically lasts for two weeks to four weeks. This particular development methodology leads to highly reduced turnaround times, and increased productivity. 

The main advantage of the methodology is that it delivers a completely shippable product at the end of the development cycle, and the development activity takes very little time. This can lead to increased ROI and reduced overheads since redundant requirements or development activities can be curtailed well in time, and replaced by newer and far more important ones in their place. The word “Scrum” is actually derived from the scrum used in rugby football in which the game is restarted again with new or fresh objectives after it undergoes a minor infraction. The game is “reset” to run again with more effective and meaningful objectives after it experiences a setback. That is exactly what happens while using Scrum methodology. Development is carried out in short sprints, at the end of which the results are evaluated, and if required the sprint is extended with the same or newer aims and objectives.  

About scrum 
Even though the concept of scrum is relatively new, it is not the greatest developmental method, or even the most popular framework used in product development cycles. However, the methodology has many positive things to offer in terms of rapid development, higher productivity, and reduced overheads. The main reason why the scrum methodology is so popular is because it is relatively simple to follow and implement, produces quicker results, and is highly scalable – all the factors which can lead to a successful and profitable product development cycle. 

The scrum methodology also empowers the team to dynamically proceed with the development activities, but with added autonomy comes added responsibilities. Each team member is responsible for his or her work, and has to put in the best efforts to provide a completed and shippable product at the end of the product development cycle. It challenges the tradition hierarchical or “waterfall” methods in which the entire development occurs in stages, and it is almost impossible to reverse the stages. One is forced to start from the beginning. Scrum strives to remove this impediment which is so often experienced by development teams. Scrum is dynamic and constantly evolving. It changes rapidly to accept the changes occurring in the product cycle. Even when the objectives or requirements are changed, scrum can adapt to the changes instantly and go ahead with the newer objectives. Very little time is wasted. 

One of the biggest advantages of scrum is that it increases the product owner’s involvement during the development phase. The client, who can also be the product owner, remains apprised to the current project status, and has the option to curtail certain activities which may not be so productive or fruitful in the end. This can lead to reduced overheads. The main issue with scrum methodology is that it needs to be implemented in a proper manner to be successful. 
 
Key principles of scrum 
A key principle supported by scrum is that it takes into consideration the fact that during the implementation of a particular project, customers can change their mindsets about what they really want or require (known as “requirements churn” in scrum methodology). Traditional developmental methodologies cannot support such unprecedented changes pertaining to the product requirements, but scrum can incorporate the changes within its working, and still deliver positive results at the end of the product cycle. You don’t have to start afresh with scrum. Moreover, scrum methodology employs an empirical approach. It accepts that certain problems cannot be properly understood, nor can they be properly defined, but still need to be catered to. It concentrates upon maximizing the team’s capability in delivering a quick solution for a particular development related requirement, and the ability of the team members to respond quickly and efficiently to the changing development requirements and client requests.
 
Working concepts used in scrum:
Ziv's law  
Specifications cannot be fully or totally understood
 
Humphrey's law  
The user does not know what is required or exactly needed until after a system initiates its production activity. The person may be unable to correctly identify the primary objective even in the subsequent development phases.
 
Wegner's lemma   
An interactive or a dynamic system cannot be fully specified, neither can it be fully tested for its correctness.
 
Langdon's lemma 
The software development activity accelerates, and starts evolving more rapidly as it approaches the chaotic regions.
 
Find out more, and download our free QuickScrum tool which can help you in implementing scrum in an effective and profitable way!

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