Overview
This week, I would like you to focus on the process of team building, focusing on the “three legs of the stool” that Sutherland identifies in Chapter 3.
I had forgotten the number of war stories (literally) that Sutherland uses to illustrate his points. Feel free to skim past them or talk to me about alternative readings if these bother you.
Reading
Sutherland Chapter 3 (and the Appendix if you haven’t read it yet)
Assignment
This week, you will have joined your project team and begun first in organizing the team and then in beginning to understand the team’s project. This journal should focus then on what you learned about creating successful Agile teams not only from the reading but also from your past experience with software development teams. It should also discuss how you use this knowledge to help coach your new team in taking its first steps together.
Remember, not all teams become transcendent and great!! I’ve had many experiences in which, no matter what I did, the team never really managed to pull together. Some projects never produced very good results. That’s OK. Be honest in describing both success and challenges.
Some questions to consider:
- Is the team becoming invested in the vision for the project? If not, why? It could be that at this early stage, they are still confused about many things or are still focused on school-related concerns such as grades. What could we do to help them buy into the mission of the software project?
- How much autonomy does the team possess? Do they feel empowered to make decisions with the community partner? If not, what could we do to enhance their feeling of ownership in the project?
- What skills do each of the team members bring to the project? Are they sharing expertise yet? What gaps do you see in their skill base and how should we encourage team members to address them?
- How is the team planning to assign the roles of Scrum Master and Product Owner?
What to Hand In (the “Deliverable”)
Please write at least two pages reflecting on the reading and planning for the beginning of the team project. This should be submitted in PioneerWeb by 10:30 pm Friday February 12th.
