Implementing Agile Processes Within Human Factors Research
Co-author: Claire Hughes
Emerging technologies such as augmented (AR), virtual (VR), and mixed (MR) realities, collectively known as XR, are seeing rapid adoption in industry and military contexts across the globe. The ability to train virtually and/or remotely, cost reduction, and training performance and retention rate gains are just a few examples of the ways XR technologies benefit organizations. And since these technologies are so unique and innovative, they bring with them a significant opportunity and need for human factors and user-centered research. By incorporating Agile software development processes into our research, we can enhance the traditional research process and meet the needs of this burgeoning industry.
A Unique Proposition
It may seem to some that software development and research are significantly different. Where software developers are traditionally thought to create tangible products from well-defined requirements in a relatively structured manner, a researcher’s workflow tends to be more freeform (and potentially unstructured) as they are often thrown into the unknown and frequently explore abstract concepts for the first time. As such, we could most likely agree that applying software development principles to research just would not work, right?
This could not be further from the truth. Traditionally, social-science research still tends to follow a linear process which only allows progression after the previous stage is complete. If we shake off this old practice and embrace a more iterative approach, the dichotomy between research and development begins to diminish. By doing so, many agile methodology tools and practices, which have proven to be indispensable in product and software development, can be implemented to make research more efficient and effective.
What is Agile & How Can It Be Used In Human Factors Research?
Agile development methodology is an iterative and incremental strategy involving teams which self-organize and work collaboratively (Al-Ratrout, 2019). In a typical “waterfall” approach, work is split into stages (i.e., research then development then testing), effectively isolating the respective groups in these processes. Agile aims to break work down into smaller chunks and allows all members (researchers, developers, project managers, quality analysts, etc.) to be involved in all stages by self-assembling into a scrum team.
Much like a rugby team, from which its name is derived, “scrum encourages teams to learn through experiences, self-organize while working on a problem, and reflect on their wins and losses to continuously improve” (Drumond, 2021).
Assembling in this way means that requirements, plans, and results are continuously evaluated allowing teams to respond more quickly and easily to changes. The agile approach uses a handful of common tools and “ceremonies.”
Below are some examples we have implemented in our human factors research teams. If some aspects don’t seem to apply to your organization, or even to your specific research project, fear not. Agile is not an all-or-nothing approach (Fiore et al., 2019) - you can apply ideas that are most valuable to you.
Sprints/Sprint Planning
Sprints are at the very heart of scrum and agile methodologies (Drumond, 2021), containing a set amount of agreed upon work for the scrum team to complete within a timeboxed period. The agreed upon work within a sprint is carefully determined during sprint planning, in which the entire team reviews the product owner’s prioritized backlog, or master list of outstanding tasks.
The team collectively estimates efforts involved for each task and agree which items they will work on during the next sprint, considering both priority and effort required (Drumond, 2021).
Applying a sprint cycle to your research project may seem counter-intuitive, since research is often nebulous or abstract, but by breaking the research up into manageable chunks or “user-stories”, the effect of timeboxing can be very helpful. It allows you to track progress and ensure your team is not lost in the weeds.
Stand-Up
A standup is a daily meeting intended to ensure everyone on the team is up to speed on all aspects of the project. It isn’t meant to be incredibly detailed, rather, each member quickly informs the team about:
- What they accomplished yesterday
- What they’re working on today
- Any items that may be blocking them with their work.
Agile traditionally views the strength of stand-ups to be the inherent accountability in reporting on the status of one’s work to a group (Drumond, 2021), however the true value of stand-ups, especially to a research team, are the dialogues that may be produced that otherwise might be lost.
Stand-ups foster invaluable conversations that may not happen organically, and often lead to important decisions or pivots.
Putting Agile Into Action
In order to implement an agile approach for your research team, follow these three guidelines:
1. Focus on the “why”: When implementing a change, it can be important to pay particular attention to the “why” as opposed to the “what” or “how” of incorporating a new approach (Fiore et al., 2019). Understanding of the goals will help drive decisions on which approach or model is appropriate. Applying the agile approach may bring your research several benefits such as, increased productivity, reduced cost, increased ability to adapt to feedback, improvements to decision-making, etc. (Fiore et al., 2019). When the “why” is clearly identified and conveyed, the team will be better equipped to adapt to the change.
2. Establish cross-functional teams: Teams are an essential part of your success with agile in research. Sometimes the agile approach to team organization can be hard to implement in research or science driven organizations (Fiore et al., 2019), but by clustering teams around a particular project (or set of projects) you can balance priorities and interdependencies across your organization. This ensures efficiency and speeds up the R&D process.
3. Be flexible: Agile is not all or nothing. Some of the ceremonies and tools will be valuable to your team whereas others may not. Choose the best tools to reflect your organizations context and needs (Fiore et al., 2019). Don’t expect your research team to look exactly like a software development team. If a daily stand up is too much for your team, try a weekly or bi-weekly stand up. Don’t be afraid to tailor your agile solution to your business.
Conclusion
The idea of using agile in human factors and user-centered research is new and exciting. Unfortunately, some research communities and organizations will resist changing their approach. But, as these organizations report back on their positive results and experiences, the demand for agile research will increase. After all, growth, education, and the end-user are what human factors research is all about.
References
Al-Ratrout, S. (2019). Practical Implementation of Agile Approaches in Teaching process. International Journal of Engineering and Advanced Technology (IJEAT), 8(4), 278–284.
Drumond, C. (2021). Scrum — what it is, how it works, and why it’s awesome. Retrieved January 07, 2021, from https://www.atlassian.com/agile/scrum
Fiore, D. A., West, K., & Segnalini, A. (2019). Why Science-Driven Companies Should Use Agile. Harvard Business Review.
