Project Management: The discipline of initiating, planning, executing, controlling, and closing the work of a team to achieve specific goals and meet specific success criteria.
Waterfall: A traditional, linear project management methodology where each phase of a project must be completed before the next one begins.
Agile: An iterative approach to project management and software development that helps teams deliver value to their customers faster. It emphasizes flexibility, collaboration, and responding to change.
Scrum: A popular framework for implementing Agile. It uses fixed-length iterations, called Sprints, to deliver increments of a product.
Kanban: Another framework for implementing Agile that focuses on visualizing work, limiting work in progress (WIP), and maximizing flow.
🧮 Key Agile Metrics
Velocity: The average amount of work a team can complete during a Sprint. It is typically measured in story points. Formula: Total Story Points Completed / Number of Sprints. Used for future planning, not for performance evaluation.
Story Points: A relative unit of measure for estimating the overall effort required to complete a user story. It accounts for complexity, risk, and effort. (Commonly uses a Fibonacci-like sequence: 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13...).
Cycle Time: The time it takes for a task to move from "In Progress" to "Done."
Lead Time: The total time from when a task is created (added to the backlog) until it is "Done."
🛠️ Core Scrum & Agile Terms
Scrum Roles
Role
Description
Product Owner
The voice of the customer. Responsible for defining the features of the product and prioritizing the Product Backlog to maximize value.
Scrum Master
A servant-leader for the team. Responsible for promoting and supporting Scrum, removing impediments, and facilitating events.
Development Team
A self-organizing, cross-functional group of professionals (e.g., engineers, designers, QA) who do the work of delivering a potentially releasable Increment of "Done" product at the end of each Sprint.
Scrum Events (Meetings)
Event
Purpose
When it Happens
Sprint
A fixed-length period (usually 1-4 weeks) during which a "Done," usable, and potentially releasable product Increment is created.
Continuous cycle.
Sprint Planning
The team plans the work to be performed in the upcoming Sprint.
Beginning of a Sprint.
Daily Scrum
A short (15-minute) daily meeting for the Development Team to synchronize activities and create a plan for the next 24 hours.
Every day.
Sprint Review
The team demonstrates what they accomplished during the Sprint to stakeholders. The goal is to get feedback.
End of a Sprint.
Sprint Retrospective
The team reflects on the past Sprint to identify what went well and what could be improved for the next one.
After the Review, before the next Planning.
Scrum Artifacts (Things)
Product Backlog: A single, prioritized list of everything that is known to be needed in the product. Managed by the Product Owner.
Sprint Backlog: The set of Product Backlog items selected for the Sprint, plus a plan for delivering them. Managed by the Development Team.
Increment: The sum of all the Product Backlog items completed during a Sprint and all previous Sprints. It must be in a usable condition.
This entire loop repeats for the next Sprint, creating a continuous cycle of planning, executing, reviewing, and improving.
⌨️ Productivity & Best Practices
Write Good User Stories: Use the "As a [user], I want [action], so that [benefit]" format to keep the focus on user value.
DEEP Backlog: Keep your Product Backlog DEEP: Detailed appropriately, Estimated, Emergent, and Prioritized.
Timebox Everything: All Scrum events have a maximum duration. Stick to it to maintain focus and avoid wasting time.
Make Work Visible: Use a physical or digital board (Scrum or Kanban board) to make the Sprint Backlog visible to everyone.
Definition of "Done": Have a clear, shared understanding of what it means for a task to be complete. This ensures quality and avoids ambiguity.
📊 Agile vs. Waterfall
Aspect
Waterfall
Agile
Approach
Linear, sequential phases.
Iterative and incremental cycles.
Planning
Planned extensively upfront.
Planned in short cycles; adaptable.
Requirements
Fixed and defined at the start.
Evolve and change throughout the project.
Customer Involvement
Low; primarily at the start and end.
High; continuous collaboration and feedback.
Best For
Projects with stable, well-understood requirements.
Complex projects with changing requirements.
🧪 Example: A User Story
A user story is a requirement from a user's perspective. It should also have acceptance criteria.
User Story:
As a shopper on an e-commerce site, I want to save items to a wishlist, so that I can easily find and purchase them later.
Acceptance Criteria (a simple example):
Given I am on a product page, when I click the "Add to Wishlist" button, the item is added to my wishlist.
Given an item is on my wishlist, I can navigate to my wishlist page and see the item listed.
Given an item is on my wishlist, I can click a "Remove" button to take it off the list.
🧹 Troubleshooting Common Agile Anti-Patterns
Problem: "The Daily Scrum feels like a status report to a manager."
Fix: The Daily Scrum is for the Development Team to plan their day, not for reporting status. The Scrum Master should coach the team to talk to each other, not to a single person.
Problem: "Work is added to the Sprint after it has already started (Scope Creep)."
Fix: The Sprint Backlog should be locked during the Sprint to allow the team to focus. The Product Owner should be coached to add new items to the Product Backlog for prioritization in a future Sprint. Only in rare, critical cases should the scope change.
Problem: "The Sprint Review is just a demo, with no feedback."
Fix: The purpose of the Review is to collaborate with stakeholders and gather feedback to adapt the Product Backlog. The Product Owner and Scrum Master should actively solicit input and discussion, not just present.
Problem: "Velocity is being used to compare teams or pressure them to go faster."
Fix: Velocity is a planning tool, not a performance metric. It's unique to each team. Leadership should be educated that trying to "increase velocity" often leads to lower quality and burnout.