Test Your Knowledge

Choose the correct answers for the following questions. There may be more than one correct response.

1. Which of the following software development requirements are considered Agile?

a. The broad goal and “what,” “why” and “how” are known upfront. b. Tasks are preplanned to the end of the development period. c. Contract requirements are defined before the contract is awarded. d. Technical or system requirements are refined post-award at the beginning of each sprint.

2. What is a minimum viable product?

a. Software delivered at the end of a linear development phase. b. A prototype that developers test internally. c. A final software product that provides the most value to customers. d. Software delivered frequently with features that allow for deployment.

3. Which is not a tenet of the Agile Manifesto?

a. Individuals and interactions over processes and tools. b. Working software over comprehensive documentation. c. Customer collaboration over contract negotiation. d. Following a plan over responding to change. 4. Which of the following are best practices for creating a culture that supports Agile?

a. Encourage a culture of competitiveness. b. Stakeholders understand what Agile development entails. c. Senior leaders alone openly and explicitly support the use of Agile. d. Incentives focus on team success.

4. Who needs to “buy in” to Agile methodologies to support organizationwide use?

a. Senior leaders b. Supervisors and managers c. Team members d. All of the above

6. In the 14th Annual State of Agile Report, the majority of respondents saw this benefit in adopting Agile:

a. Business/IT alignment b. Project cost reduction c. Software maintainability d. Managing distributed teams

Answers are on the next page.

Answers: 1. a, c, d; 2. d; 3. d; 4. b, d; 5. d; 6. a

Thoughts to Consider

For the Agile skeptic …

Q: Is Agile software development feasible given agencies’ limited resources?

U.S. Digital Service: Agencies need to ensure adequate resources are applied to manage their contracts irrespective of the strategy used; Agile software development is no exception. While the process is highly interactive, the overall amount of work is not greater — just applied differently — to produce quicker results.

For the Agile fanatic ...

Q: Should agencies use Agile software development to address all IT needs?

USDS: No. Agile software development is intended for activities that require significant software design and development. Many IT needs can be met with commercially available off-the-shelf items and commoditized services, such as subscription services for software licenses, with little or no development work. In those cases when development is not needed, the government is best served by purchasing commercially available off-the-shelf items.

Better Retrospectives: The Plus/Delta Framework

Whether you’re working in Agile sprints or just trying to improve your workflow, reflecting is a critical part of moving forward.

But sometimes, fully unlocking the value of retrospectives can be tough when they only entail identifying a laundry list of problems and shortcomings.

To overcome this, approach retrospectives from a problem-solving standpoint at the outset.

“It’s a simple shift, changing ‘What did you like, and what did you hate?’ to ‘What should we do more of, and what should we change?’”

wrote Jacob Anderson, Community Engagement Specialist of Colorado Springs, Colorado. “It’s a simple reinforcement of the concept that we’re all working to make something better. And that, to me, is the essence of government.”

The Plus/Delta framework is a reflection tool that encourages continuous improvement through action-focused reflection. Use this framework the next time you review a project or process, and you’ll find retrospectives to be something you look forward to.

Plus (+)

• Identifies things that are working • Items that the team or individual wants to continue building

• Identifies opportunities for change • Items are action-oriented, specific, within the realm of possibility and should be reviewed and acted on

Delta (Δ)