Standard Agile Tools Can Be Risky
Why I dropped story points, estimations and burn-up charts
Hint: close to the end, section “Fast, Good, Cheap solution”, you get access to a tool that solves the described challenge. First among many to come. Enjoy!
Let’s talk about two common concerns in a project, especially in large complex ones:
- How are we doing?
- When will it be done?
Let’s commence by focusing on the second question, as it may translate into a problematic or challenging situation.
One standard answer is burn-up charts. A visualization of a team’s work process, displaying the scope of a project, and the completed work. Here is an example from Broadcom’s Rally Software:
Based on historical progress and assuming nothing will change, the chart extrapolates our growth’ trend until it meets the total scope’s line. The estimated projected date becomes Aug 21st.
Oops! Our target date is Aug 1st.
Risk 1 — Promises are like babies: easy to make, hard to deliver.
A stakeholder might not be immersed in the daily, weekly activities and context of a large project. So when this chart shows up on a project’s dashboard, the…
