What is Agile?
While traditional project management is still widely used, the benefits of an Agile approach to running a project are becoming more and more recognized. Where Agile has a distinct advantage over classic project management is the development of new products. There is always uncertainty when taking an idea from concept through to a delivered reality. This is especially true when it is something as intangible as a piece of software. The one certainty is that there will be changes required along the journey, and this is what Agile recognizes. A classic project has detailed planning before the project is started, and the successful project will reach completion with the minimum of change in scope and direction.
An Agile project is started with the minimum of planning. The project will accept changes, as long as they are critical to delivering a viable product. The project must also be judged as successful by the level of customer satisfaction. And all this is achieved without a project manager.
Does this mean that Agile Projects have no Project Management?
On the contrary, Agile projects are very tightly managed. Firstly the project and its components and activities are all time-boxed. This enables the team to focus on what has to be done, as the end date is fixed and immutable. The size and capacity of the team are also fixed; the only variable is changed to the product definition. The management of the project and the responsibility for successful delivery is a team effort, where each team member accepts the part they play in project success, thus removing the need for a project manager.
Work is not allocated; a team member selects their next work item by taking it from the sprint backlog or the Kanban board, depending on the Agile framework that is being used. While the project manager plays no part in an Agile project, there are 2 core roles in Scrum that are essential: the Product Owner, who is responsible for the product and all communications external to the project with stakeholders and other parties; and the Scrum Master, who is concerned with the internal communications and project processes.
Recommended Further Reading
The following materials may assist you in order to get the most out of this course:
Course Contents
Section 1: Agile Project Management
Section 2: Using the Agile Manifesto to Deliver Change
Section 3: The 12 Agile Principles
Section 4: The Agile Fundamentals
Section 5: The Declaration of Interdependence
Section 6: Agile Development Frameworks
Section 7: Introduction to Scrum
Section 8: Scrum Projects
Section 9: Scrum Project Roles
Section 10: Meet the Scrum Team
Section 11: Building the Scrum Team
Section 12: Scrum in Projects, Programs & Portfolios
Section 13: How to Manage an Agile Project
Section 14: Leadership Styles
Section 15: The Agile Project Life-cycle
Section 16: Business Justification with Agile
Section 17: Calculating the Benefits With Agile
Section 18: Quality in Agile
Section 19: Acceptance Criteria and the Prioritised Product Backlog
Section 20: Quality Management in Scrum
Section 21: Change in Scrum
Section 22: Integrating Change in Scrum
Section 23: Managing Change in Scrum
Section 24: Risk in Scrum
Section 25: Risk Assessment Techniques
Section 26: Initiating an Agile Project
Section 27: Forming the Scrum Team
Section 28: Epics and Personas
Section 29: Creating the Prioritised Product Backlog
Section 30: Conduct Release Planning
Section 31: The Project Business Case
Section 32: Planning in Scrum
Section 33: Scrum Boards
Section 34: Sprint Planning
Section 35: User Stories
Section 36: User Stories and Tasks
Section 37: The Sprint Backlog
Section 38: Implementation of Scrum
Section 39: The Daily Scrum
Section 40: The Product Backlog
Section 41: Scrum Charts
Section 42: Review and Retrospective
Section 43: Scrum of Scrums
Section 44: Validating a Sprint
Section 45: Retrospective Sprint
Section 46: Releasing the Product
Section 47: Project Retrospective
Section 48: The Communication Plan
Section 49: Formal Business Sign-off
Section 50: Scaling Scrum
Section 51: Stakeholders
Section 52: Programs and Portfolios