My understanding of Agile v Scrum is that Scrum is a subset or a flavor of Agile. The umbrella term “Agile” refers to an iterative development process where small, working prototypes are created at first and tested with customers in order to create learnings that are then imbued in the following iteration. The product is developed through constant, small, growth cycles – each cycle acting like a check to make sure it’s growing in the “right” (or customer-centric) direction. Agile also requires teams to be cross-functional (team members have multiple, overlapping roles) and self-organizing (they determine when and how the work gets done).

Scrum on the other hand is a subset of Agile and has specific rules on how teams should work. It sets the roles of a Product Owner, who works with stakeholders within and outside of the organization to determine what work needs to get done (and puts this ordered information in the Product backlog), the Scrum Master, who acts as an advocate, coach and shepherd for the team (making sure no more work gets added than agreed), and a small cross-functional, self-organizing team of up to seven individuals who do the work. Scrum also utilizes “Sprints” which are periods of time (30 days or less) in which the team has to create a product iterations. During the Sprint the team has daily standup meetings, 15 minutes or less in time, when they express and roadblocks to their work (which the Scrum Master can help lower) and what they plan to do that day. At the beginning of the Spring they all agree which items from the product backlog they will take on. Importantly, at the end of the Sprint they also reflect on the work done, what could have been done better and the iteration is shown to various stakeholders in order to inform the order of the Product Backlog and what needs to be taken on during the next Sprint.

Using Agile for the product development of my Weightless Chair, instead of version that has all the features I would like (heater, removable neck piece), I could instead create a bare-bones working product. For example, I could use a couch instead of a chair, fill a malleable plastic material with the water/saline solution, drape it over the seat and back of the couch and test it with my user. This way I would have a simple, preliminary iteration that would test the core question: will my user get long-lasting neck relief from sitting on a water/saline solution that decompresses their spine. And I wouldn’t have spent more time and money creating features or a full-chair, without first answering my most important question.

Published by PATRICK SCERRI

747 thoughts on “Agile v Scrum”

  1. The last paragraph is exactly what you should do especially from a lean perspective. The key issue is – will thingx help relieve pain. Nothing else matters right now.

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