5 Essential Rules for Effective Prioritization in Agile

Transcript

1. 5 Rules for 10x More Effective Prioritization in Agile
2. ASIA EDGE TECHNOLOGY. PTD. LTE What is Prioritization in Agile? Prioritization is an activity to determine the order in which tasks a development team should complete first based on several factors such as importance, time, and effort.
3. ASIA EDGE TECHNOLOGY. PTD. LTE Why is Prioritization Important? 1. It is because the Product Owner must maximize the product value with limited resources and time. Software development projects commonly lack sufficient resources and time. So, the Product Owner must think, "How can I maximize the product value with limited resources and time" through prioritization. 2. Prioritization enhances focus and commitment within the team, underlining the tasks that need to be completed within each Sprint for continuous and speedy delivery. 3. Prioritization leads to scope management and control of stakeholders’ expectations. The scope is a commitment the development team promises to deliver to stakeholders.
4. ASIA EDGE TECHNOLOGY. PTD. LTE Agile Triangle Key Points Prioritization is more important in the Agile than the waterfall model because the decision-making approach is different. Agile In Agile, resources and time are fixed, while the scope is flexible. So, Agile thinks, “What we can do with limited time and resources.” So, prioritization of scope is critical. Waterfall In the waterfall model, the scope is fixed, while resources and time are flexible. It means that the waterfall model thinks, “How much resources and time are needed to complete all scope.”
5. ASIA EDGE TECHNOLOGY. PTD. LTE 1st Rule: Prioritize by Order Classification is problematic because people tend to classify most tasks in high or middle, and the priority is unclear. Order is much clear for everyone. People can understand which task should be done first. Traditional Way Order
6. ASIA EDGE TECHNOLOGY. PTD. LTE 2nd Rule: Apply “Delayed Gratification” Important & Urgent (top-left) May projects are dragged into this section. Important & Not-Urgent (top-right) This section is important for the long term performance. Less important & Urgent (bottom-left) If Important & Not-Urgent tasks are neglected, such as bug fixes, this section increases. Less important & Not-Urgent (bottom-right) It must be avoided at all cost.
7. ASIA EDGE TECHNOLOGY. PTD. LTE Performance Curve • When you prioritize maintenance, such as refactoring, performance will improve in the long term. • When you prioritize new features too much, the performance declines in the long term. • The key point is that the performance curve is not linear.
8. ASIA EDGE TECHNOLOGY. PTD. LTE 3rd Rule: Recognize Important Users 1. Prioritize on existing users. Research shows that prioritizing existing users is much more effective. For example, The success rate of selling to a customer you already have is 60–70%, while the success rate of selling to a new customer is 5–20%. 2. Prioritize on loyal users. Existing users can be categorized into several segments. And, you should prioritize the loyal users such as most active users. Q1. Which users use your product the most? Q2. Which users pay the most?
9. ASIA EDGE TECHNOLOGY. PTD. LTE Rule 4: Right Inputs Requirements & Scope Requirements and scope are the first inputs because they are critical elements in decision-making and lead to better estimation. In order to define them, you must gather the business environment information and opinions from stakeholders. Estimation Estimation is critical because decision-making can vary significantly based on it. For example, the decision-making for a task that takes a week would be different from one that takes a year.
10. ASIA EDGE TECHNOLOGY. PTD. LTE Rule 5: Change Priority Over Time 1. The business environment and users' expectations evolve over time, so priorities also need to be adjusted accordingly. 2. Sprint Planning and Sprint Review serve as opportunities to adjust priorities. Sprint Planning is conducted at the beginning of each Sprint, while the Sprint Review is conducted at the end. 3. However, altering priorities during a Sprint should be avoided in order to foster team focus and commitment. Too frequent changes could be distracting and potentially undermine the team's performance.
11. ASIA EDGE TECHNOLOGY. PTD. LTE Thank you!