What is SCRUM? Development of SCRUM and its working

 Introduction to SCRUM:

Scrum is a widely used framework involving the agile development strategy for products. Scrum ensures efficient teamwork by incorporating various values, team roles, and rituals to produce iterative work products. Scrum was initiated in the field of software industry but afterward, its use has been expanded to various fields including universities, military, automobile industry, and so on.

Development of SCRUM:

A rugby-style approach for project development was introduced by Two professors Hirotaka Takeuchi and Ikujiro Nonaka in 1986. The term SCRUM was coined by them. In rugby, a forward motion of the team includes passing of ball back and forth by them.

Ken Schwaber and Jeff Sutherland, two software developers applied Takeuchi/Nonaka-inspired development strategies in their companies. Their SCRUM version was defined and presented by them together in 1995.

Working of SCRUM:

Basic framework of SCRUM includes three basic categories:

   1.      SCRUM roles

   2.      SCRUM events

   3.      SCRUM artifacts

 1.      SCRUM roles:

 Three basic roles are included in SCRUM frameworks.

  a)       The development team

 b)      The SCRUM master

 c)       The product owner

 a)              The development team

In the development team, people work together to develop and deliver the products. Development teams are free in organizing themselves and managing their tasks to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of teamwork.

 

b)             The SCRUM master

SCRUM master is the facilitator of the SCRUM team and a part of it. It ensures that the team is working properly according to the rules of SCRUM. They also ensure that team is equipped with the resources required to complete its work and eliminate the hurdles in the progress of work. But they are not managers.

c)              The product owner

Product owner has the responsibility of the work which is to be completed by his team. They may either do the work themselves or assign it to team members. Product Owner is always a single individual not a committee. the final decisions regarding a project are always made by project owner.

1.      SCRUM events

A basic framework of SCRUM includes five events:

  a)       Sprint

 b)      Sprint Planning

 c)       Daily Scrum

 d)      Sprint Review

 e)       Sprint Retrospective

a)              Sprint

The time period during which a SCRUM team develops a product (a big project, a series of reports etc.) is called as sprint.

 b)             Sprint Planning

A meeting in which planning of work to be done during sprint is carried out is called as sprint. During sprint planning, objectives are defined and works are assigned to team members to achieve the goals.

 

c)              Daily Scrum

Daily SCRUM is a daily meeting of about fifteen minutes in which team gets an opportunity to be on same page and work up on their strategy for upcoming 24 hours. Work progress of previous day is analyzed and updates for upcoming work is shared among the team members. 

 d)             Sprint Review

Sprint review is done when the sprint is ended. In the review process, product owner reports the progress of work whether the work was completed properly or not. Then complete work is presented by team and discuss upon what went well and how problem solving was carried out. 

a)              Sprint Retrospective

After sprint, sprint retrospective takes place. Retro is basically a forum where team analyze their progress of previous sprint and works upon adaptations which are required. 

1.      SCRUM artefacts

The physical record providing details of project are included in SCRUM artefacts. The SCRUM artefacts include:

  a)       Product Backlog

  b)      Sprint Backlog

  c)       Product Increments

  a)              Product Backlog

A well-defined ordered list including requirements of product is the product backlog. Product backlog is a reference for the required changes in product. Product backlog is overseen by the owner. Product owner manages how it is provided to team, its content and its order. 

b)             Sprint Backlog

List of all items of product backlog which are to be worked upon during the course of sprint. The items of product backlog are prioritized until team reaches its capacity. In sprint backlog, tasks are signed up by team members based upon their skills and priorities. 

 c)              Product Increments

The compilation of whole work completed by team during a sprint combining all the works which are finished during previous sprints is product increment.

Merits of SCRUM

ü  Team members enjoy freedom while working in SCRUM team. it boosts the team morale.

ü  Even though the project is still on its way, product produced at the end of each sprint can be delivered to market.

ü  SCRUM project ensures a higher ROI.

ü  Review of each sprint before moving on to next one ensures testing throughout the development process.

ü  Alteration in product goals can be done whenever business goals evolve.

Demerits of SCRUM:

ü  Best working of SCRUM is when working with small teams but this can lead to time mismanagement. The team is required to work quickly.

ü  In case of project micromanagement by SCRUM master, SCRUM team does not work well.

ü  If any team member leaves, it can harm the project progress.

References:

1.      https://www.visual-paradigm.com/scrum/how-scrum-team-works/

2.      https://www.microtool.de/en/knowledge-base/how-does-scrum-work/

3.      https://dzone.com/articles/what-is-scrum-software-development-how-it-works-be

4.      https://www.atlassian.com/agile/scrum