Bob asked, “Is the project on schedule?” Will said, “We do Agile. We don’t follow a schedule.”Bob was left wondering how he might report this to the governance teams. Cathy asked, “What scope will be delivered in the next 2 months?” Joe answered, “We are agile. We do not estimate all work upfront. All I […]
A Practical Step-By-Step Guide: Implementing Monte Carlo Simulation for Beginners
Monte Carlo Simulation is a powerful statistical method for predicting the probability of various outcomes. This guide walks beginners through the steps to implement it for forecasting project delivery dates, using Python for practical examples and offering insights into interpreting results to improve project management.
Decoding Agility: Transforming Agile Teams into a Culture of Continuous Improvement
Achieving a culture of continuous improvement is a critical objective for agile teams. With a comprehensive understanding of cycle times, your teams can embark on a journey of incremental enhancements that drive significant business value while also changing your culture into that of continuous improvement. By embracing the journey towards continuous improvement you will see a notable reduction on your times and overall workflow efficiency, transforming into high performing teams and of course increasing margins.
Decoding Agility: The Critical Role of Cycle Time in Efficient Workflows
It’s widely recognized that just strict adherence to agile methodologies such as Sprint huddles, Backlog grooming, Sprint planning, and Sprint retrospectives doesn’t automatically ensure agility. The first step involves conducting a simple statistical analysis of your Cycle Time data. Once obtained, basic statistical calculations can help establish a baseline.
The agile mindset – what does it mean?
“Developing a product takes time. The only way to do it is to experiment. Build a prototype or a sample and show it around. Let people kick the tires, touch it, feel it. Let them get a taste of the product. Get their feedback and incorporate it into the next prototype you build. Do it fast.” Sounds like something a Lean Startup practitioner would advocate, doesn’t it? But, you see, I got this from someone who worked in manufacturing all his life and never heard the term “Lean Startup”. He went on to say, “You’ve got to listen to the people doing the work. They do this day in and day out. If you want improvement ideas, listen to them. Solve their pain points and see productivity increase.” Sounds like agile thinking, right? With the right attitude, one can adapt the learnings across industries.
Journey to becoming a lean & agile family
Having been a student of Lean and Agile for a number of years now, we started adopting it in bits and pieces within our family. Here’s some examples of lean and agile in action in our personal lives.