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Sprint reviews and retrospectives in a hybrid work setting

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Summary

This article discusses how agile teams can adjust scrum ceremonies to support the shift to hybrid work, where some employees are in the office and some are working remotely. It outlines the four primary scrum ceremonies and provides tips for optimizing sprint reviews for hybrid work, such as turning cameras on, taking writing pads out, and time-boxing each demo. It also suggests that teams use sprint retrospectives to discuss improvements and to consider the human cost of productivity when evaluating sprint success. Finally, it provides advice for agile leaders seeking hybrid work as the model for their organizations.

Q&As

What is the most common agile methodology?
The most common agile methodology is scrum.

What steps do agile teams take before beginning a sprint?
Before beginning a sprint, agile teams review a backlog of prioritized user stories, commit to the work they can confidently complete during the sprint, and aim to achieve the “definition of done” documented in the user stories.

How should agile teams adjust their scrum ceremonies to account for hybrid work?
Agile teams should realign scrum ceremonies to support a permanent shift to hybrid work, account for flexible work times, and focus on feedback from stakeholders to adjust priorities.

What tips are recommended for optimizing sprint reviews for hybrid work teams?
Tips for optimizing sprint reviews for hybrid work teams include documenting user stories from a customer’s or user’s perspective, assigning user stories to team members, scheduling a rehearsal, deciding on an approach for capturing feedback, and ending sprint reviews on time.

What should agile teams discuss during sprint retrospectives?
During sprint retrospectives, teams should discuss improvements to the sprint review, project health, technical achievements, and the human cost of productivity. They should also consider the team's satisfaction and discuss work-life balance issues.

AI Comments

👍 This article offers great tips for optimizing sprint reviews and retrospectives for hybrid work settings. It provides thoughtful insights and actionable recommendations on how agile teams can make sure all participants find value in joining sprint reviews.

👎 This article offers no suggestions on how to accommodate different time zones in a hybrid work setting. It also doesn't mention how to ensure that all stakeholders are fully engaged in the sprint review process.

AI Discussion

Me: It's about sprint reviews and retrospectives in a hybrid work setting. It talks about the importance of agile ceremonies, how to adjust them to support hybrid work, and tips on how to make sprint reviews successful in a hybrid setting.

Friend: That's interesting. What are the implications of this article?

Me: Well, it suggests that it's important for companies to adapt their agile ceremonies to support hybrid work, as many teams are now permanently working remotely or in a hybrid work setting. It also suggests that companies should consider including additional topics in their sprint retrospectives, such as discussing burnout and context switching, to ensure that their teams are healthy and satisfied. Finally, it provides tips on how to optimize sprint reviews for hybrid teams, such as recording the meeting, assigning user stories to team members, and using tools to capture feedback.

Action items

Research and evaluate different low-code development platforms to determine which one best fits the organization's needs.
Create a plan for how to implement hybrid work sprint reviews, including documenting user stories, assigning user stories to team members, scheduling rehearsals, and determining an approach for capturing feedback.
Use sprint retrospectives to discuss improvements to hybrid work practices, increase teammate happiness, and discuss work-life balance issues.

Technical terms

Sprint Reviews: A meeting at the end of a sprint (usually one to four weeks in duration) where teams share and demo their accomplishments to the product owner, delivery managers, and stakeholders.
Retrospectives: A meeting at the end of a sprint where the team reviews what went well during the sprint and where they can make improvements.
Product Owner: The person responsible for managing the product backlog and ensuring that the team is working on the most important items.
Tech Lead: The person responsible for leading the technical aspects of the project, such as architecture, design, and development.
Scrum Master: The person responsible for facilitating the scrum process and ensuring that the team is following the scrum methodology.
User Stories: A description of a feature from the perspective of the user.
Definition of Done: A set of criteria that must be met for a user story to be considered complete.
Low-Code Development Platform: A platform that allows developers to quickly create applications without writing code.