Course Outline
Day 1 - Managing Software Projects within a Waterfall Framework
1. Introduction to Waterfall Methodology
a. Historical Context
- Winston Royce's contributions
- Origins in manufacturing processes
b. Key Waterfall Phases
- Requirements gathering
- Design
- Implementation
- Verification
- Maintenance
c. Challenges of Waterfall
- Difficulty in handling change
- Gap between business knowledge and technical implementation
- Deferral of risk management to later stages
- Scope prioritization issues
d. Responses to the Waterfall Model
- Embrace – Adopting strict Waterfall approaches, such as SSADM
- Cope – Utilizing the V-Model
- Adapt – Moving to Incremental models
- Reject – Shifting to Agile
- Enhance – Incorporating Lean principles
2. V-Model Strategies for Enhancing Waterfall Delivery
a. Early Verification and Validation
- Cost implications of late-stage defect discovery
- Importance of reviews and inspections
- Use of static analysis
b. Test Stages in the V-Model
- Unit and Unit Integration testing
- System testing
- System Integration testing
- Acceptance testing
c. Benefits of the V-Model
- Greater end-user involvement in verification processes
- Early identification and mitigation of risks
3. Adapting Waterfall through Incremental Approaches
a. Types of Incremental Methodologies
- Pre-planned increments
- Parallel development and RAD (Rapid Application Development)
- Evolutionary development and RUP (Rational Unified Process)
b. Principles of Incremental Delivery
- Creating product increments
- Prototyping
- Timeboxing
c. Benefits of Incremental Delivery
- Enhanced user involvement in decision-making
- Earlier realization of return on investment
- Increased responsiveness to change
4. Shifting from Waterfall to Agile
a. Agile Fundamentals
- Understanding the Agile Manifesto
- Core Agile Principles
b. Introduction to Scrum: A Leading Agile Framework
- Iterative delivery cycles
- Collaborative teamwork
- Just-in-time documentation
- Adaptive planning
c. Advantages of Agile
- Sustained user engagement throughout the lifecycle
- Empowered development teams
- Faster return on investment
- Improved ability to adapt to changes
- Reduction of unnecessary (nugatory) development work
5. Enhancing Waterfall with Kanban Practices
a. Lean and Kanban Foundations
- History of Lean delivery
- Origins of Kanban
- Core principle of waste reduction
b. Getting Started with Kanban
- Utilizing the Kanban board
- Managing work-in-progress (WIP)
c. Benefits of Kanban
- Increased flexibility in responding to change
- Quicker realization of value and ROI
- Minimization of non-value-adding activities
Day 2 - Agile Project Management Techniques
1. Empirical Process Control
a. Inspect
- Demonstrations
- Retrospectives
b. Adapt
- Adaptive planning
- Continuous improvement
c. Transparency
- Active stakeholder involvement
- Flexible contract negotiation
- Just-in-time documentation
2. Managing Requirements
a. Understanding Backlogs
- Product Backlog
- Release Backlog
- Sprint Backlog
b. Composition of Backlog Items
- User Stories
- Defects
- Requirements specifications
c. Risk Management
- Adjusting the Backlog to address risks
- Risk burndown analysis
3. Estimation and Control
a. Timebox Planning
- Release planning
- Iteration planning
- Daily communication
b. Prioritization Techniques
- MoSCoW method
- Value-based prioritization
- Alternative techniques
c. Estimation Techniques
- User story grooming
- Planning Poker
4. Delivery Management
a. Iterative Delivery
- Monitoring team velocity
- Accelerating return on investment
b. Information Radiators
- Scrum wall
- Burn-down charts
5. Team Management
a. Associative Leadership
- Scrum Master as a facilitator
- The evolving role of the traditional project manager
b. End-User Involvement
- The Product Owner as the single decision-maker
- Effective communication with stakeholders (The 'Pigs and Chickens' concept)
c. Empowered Teams
- Fostering self-managing teams
- The role of specialists within the team
- Managing distributed or split teams
Testimonials (4)
workshops, practical cases
Joanna Nowak - LKQ Polska Sp. z o. o.
Course - Introduction to Agile Testing
Jim's real life experience was evident and the fact that he is still working with teams keeps him current with the problems encountered. The activities were interesting and we appreciated the frequency of breaks. Delivery of the course was confident and good humoured too.
Leanne - Welsh Revenue Authority
Course - Professional Scrum Master I | PSM I (accredited training course with Scrum.org exam and certification)
Friendly, plenty of breaks to think about what we have learnt and lovely guy.
Leanne - Welsh Revenue Authority
Course - Agile Business Analysis
I really enjoyed the mix of practical with theory. The trainer was also exteremly knowledgable and answered all our questions perfectly