Agile Development Practices 2007

PRESENTATIONS

Influencing Strategies for Agile Developers

Cognitive scientists have identified several influence strategies that can be used to more effectively convince others to see things your way. Agile developers face a host of encounters with “disbelievers” and must find ways to work together. Often, the only tool at hand is a logical argument-bullets on a PowerPoint slide or a step-by-step explanation. Unfortunately, these are rarely successful because convincing others really means appealing to their subconscious motivators rather than speaking to their rational, analytic side.

Linda Rising, Independent Consultant

Introduction to Agile for Traditional PMI Project Managers

You are a classically trained Project Management Institute (PMI) project manager. But now you've been assigned to manage an agile project. What do you do? Stacia Broderick explains how to relate PMI best practices to their equivalents in the agile world. By relating the agile philosophy to things with which you are already familiar, you can quickly develop a shared lexicon and clear knowledge of agile principles.

Stacia Broderick, Agile Evolution, Inc
Introduction to User Stories

Agility is often described in terms of iterative development. In fact, it's more of an iterative analysis process with the code being written and tested immediately after the requirements are discovered. The heart of this process is the user Story, a collection of requirement descriptions, value statements, cost estimates, architecture designs, and test cases-all rolled into one. While at first glance user Stories seem simple, they play a key role in all agile methods. What makes a good one? How do you write it?

Alan Shalloway, Net Objectives
Leading Agile Projects: Finding Your Groove

There are many books about agile, but most fail as a guide for navigating the beginnings of an agile project. Whether you are preparing for your first agile project or taking the lead for the first time, David Hussman provides a guided tour of an agile project's start-up filled with practical advice and a pile of anecdotes. David begins by walking you through a collection of preparatory techniques which foster a strong start-assessments, project chartering, setting up a lab, iteration 0, and creating a product backlog.

David Hussman, DevJam

Leading Successful Projects in Changing Environments

There’s no doubt about it--agile has gone mainstream. Short delivery iterations give organizations the means to incorporate change safely, reach go/no-go decisions early, and discover realistic team velocities. Managers can better determine if market windows can be reached--thus placing successful products in customers' hands. What if the ground beneath the project team is changing rapidly even as it is trying to make progress?

Pollyanna Pixton, Accelinnova

Looking Toward the Future of Agile

Agile methodologies are enjoying increased adoption and relevance. Will they continue to do so as time goes on? We understand that business needs change over time-sometimes quite rapidly. However, change isn't limited to the business or the requirements. Markets will wax and wane. Developers and business owners will experience a change in their own views, become older, and slowly be replaced by the next generation of workers and thought leaders. In this future world, will agile continue to prosper, or will it flounder?

Andy Hunt, The Pragmatic Programmers

Maintaining Sustainable Agility

Once your agile project is rolling, there are still many bumps and roadblocks-any one of which can derail the train. Whether you are leading the project formally or informally, there are a variety of useful techniques to keep the project alive and innovative. David Hussman shares his coaching approach and techniques for growing and maintaining sustainable agile communities.

David Hussman, DevJam

Management Mindsets: What's So Different About Agile

You've probably heard of Theory X, Theory Y, and Theory Z management styles. Even though we've run out of letters at the end of the alphabet, it's time for a new management theory for self-organizing agile teams. Esther Derby examines what parts of a manager's job stay the same and what parts diminish as the team manages its own work.

Esther Derby, Esther Derby Associates Inc

Maximizing ROI with Agile Release Planning

You're agile ... great! Now what? What does this mean for the organization's bottom line profits? Actually, it means a lot. You can use your agility to dramatically increase the value of your project to its stakeholders. Join agilist James Shore for an in-depth discussion of when, why, and how to use agile release planning to improve the functional and economic success of your project. Learn how agile release planning can turn a losing project into a winner in mid-stream.

James Shore, Titanium IT LLC
Organizational Patterns: The Foundations of Agile

Organizational patterns describe the inner-workings of organizational structures. These patterns are the foundation for agile competence and take you far beyond basic out-of-the box methods to provide deeper insights into agile. Both Scrum and XP have their roots in these patterns, focusing on project management and developer practices respectively. Jim (Cope) Coplien explains the other 75% of the good stuff--the things that Scrum, XP, and other methodologies gloss over.

James Coplien, Nordija A/S

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