Why use Scrum

Hello everyone! For a long time now, I have wanted to understand how project pricing works when there are rapidly changing requirements. The waterfall is easy. The Change Request practice handles the change in requirements, but with Scrum where stakeholders can make changes after the end of each sprint, how do the parties involved in the project handle the costs and payments? Thank you

I would like to make a few small clarifications and summaries on the topic. Scrum is "iterative", ie. repetitive. Simply put, the work of the teams is organized in time intervals called Sprints. Inspection and adaptation also take place iteratively within each Sprint. That is, after the end of each sprint we check everything.

The three "pillars" of Scrum are transparency, inspection, and adaptability. But why do we need to follow them? Without them, the product goal will not be achieved. These ideas are the main difference between this framework and popular project management methodologies and systems.

The main unit of Scrum is the Scrum Team. The team consists of only one Scrum Master, one Product Owner, and Developers. There are no sub-teams or hierarchies in the Scrum team. The team is a cohesive unit of specialists focused on one current goal - Product Goal.

Scrum teams are multifunctional. This means that team members have all the skills needed to create value in each Sprint. This means you don't have to wait for other people outside the team to do your job. You do everything yourself. This way you avoid addictions and delays.

The people in the team are self-governing. This means that they decide for themselves who does what, when they do it and how. They don't wait for someone else to give them orders. Teams are looking for more efficient ways to work. And then test these ideas in practice. However, to achieve such levels of cooperation between self-organizing cross-teams, we need real professionals.

Outsiders such as customers or senior management should not make decisions for the team.

Also, Scrum follows his ideas based on empiricism. Empiricism means that knowledge comes only from experience. Decision-making must be based only on what we already know. We do not make assumptions because we can make mistakes. We must avoid theories. We need data and evidence.

The Scrum Team is responsible for all product-related activities. These activities are, for example, collaboration with stakeholders, validation, implementation, experimentation, research, and everything else necessary. Team members are structured and have the authority to organize and manage their work. Working in sprints at a steady pace improves the focus and perseverance of the Scrum Team. The entire Scrum Team is responsible for creating a useful, usable Increment in each Sprint. We cannot blame Scrum Master or Product Owner for the problems. Or just a specific developer. Everyone is responsible.

Scrum improves team flexibility and productivity. With this framework, we can detect problems in the work process and eliminate them. When we see shortcomings, the team can quickly return to the previous stage and react as quickly as possible.

The approach helps to remove ambiguities in the development process. To find out what needs to be improved, the Scrum team needs to use the help of Scrum's three pillars:

• Transparency
• Inspection
• Adaptation

This Agile work model is suitable for organizing complex tasks in difficult projects. Also, clarity in distinguishing roles and planned events ensures that there are transparency and collective responsibility throughout the project cycle.

Scrum is not a good idea for projects with a fixed price, time, and precisely defined scope.

Scrum requires transparency. Sometimes managers are concerned about transparent processes where problems are exposed. Teams and managers often have problems with transparency.

Scrum is not intended for teams receiving instructions on when and what to do.

If the organization does not allow teams to determine how best they can do their job, then Scrum would be misapplied.

If team members cannot work together, there can be no self-organizing team.

Teams must be empowered to decide how to achieve their goal and be able to work closely together.

In my opinion, for an organization to include Scrum in its production processes, it must first develop a clear vision and concept of what exactly Scrum is and how it would be useful for the business. The flexibility of the framework allows work on certain processes to run more smoothly and to be measured in a better way. With an understanding of the concept of transparency, inspection, and adaptation, any manager would consider applying this Agile model.

If there are people with experience in the field, presenting the idea of ​​how the Scrum team strives for continuous improvement and improvement would be a big plus. Daily meetings to discuss issues or concerns that team members may have would also be a possible reason for implementing Scrum. This helps a lot in the work process and the team feels safe.

Every organization strives in one way or another for the work process to run quickly and smoothly, so that the end-user remains satisfied, or the quality of the final product is up to standard. Here we can mention that through Scrum this can be done.

Before an organization decides to introduce Scrum, it must first analyze how applicable the framework is to its products. In my opinion, the main reason for the introduction of Scrum is the type of product that is produced. If it is complex and does not involve a strict contractual relationship, is not mass production, or is subject to legal regulations, the use of Scrum may be introduced.

The main advantage of Scrum is that the product is delivered continuously, which allows the customer to begin to recoup the investment in a shorter time. The team can inspect what it has created throughout the process, and if any of its members find a potential problem, they can share it at the Daily Scrum meeting. In addition, the work of iterations allows the elimination of all problems that arose during the preliminary tests, as well as after there is feedback from real users. It also allows the elimination of functions that have proved unnecessary in the tests. Scrum allows you to change product requirements during the process.

Emphasis is placed on the use of experience (empirical method) and thus reduces the chance of errors due to lack of such or uncertain assumptions.

It is easier to plan tasks for shorter periods (sprints), and the retrospective at the end of each iteration gives clarity on how the project is moving.

The advantages for the people from the team are also many - the ability to focus on a few specific tasks for a certain period, the simplified process, the clear roles. These factors reduce stress and increase the quality of work performed. I think that the introduction of Scrum would be very useful for small start-ups that do not yet have a company culture and principles of operation.

The company that introduced Scrum will have greater clarity about the progress and status of its projects, more employee engagement, efficiency and focus, more free resources for innovation, better communication with its customers, and less time in the production of functions, which should not be used in the end.

The reason why the organization does not decide to introduce Scrum may be the nature of the product. If the company's product is mass-produced, has a strict contractual relationship, is subject to legal regulations, or cannot be delivered in stages, the Scrum framework is not appropriate.

For example, in the mass production of food with automatic machines, the actions of employees are specific and defined, the same. In this type of production, there is no creative part, the main processes are related to delivery, planning, and maintenance. Both these processes, as well as the production ones themselves, are clear and detailed. In this type of production, the focus would be on cost optimization.

Also, if the product cannot be delivered in stages and used without being in its entirety. For example, the production of clothing, fitness equipment, furniture, etc. For serial products, making changes during the production process is not cost-effective. And the consumer has purchased the product based on an exact specification or when it is already fully manufactured and put up for sale.

When to start producing the product, it must have passed the entire agreement with the customer, because during the production phase it is difficult not to make abrupt changes. For example, the product is a playground, to buy the material, paints, ropes, etc. for it, the manufacturer must know exactly what the customer wants in advance.

If we consider a construction company, Scrum is again not applicable, as the process and the product are regulated by local law. The company must comply with legal requirements and procedures.

To make a proper assessment of which method of work applies to a company, senior management must make or commission a study based on which to make a decision. As much as it purifies to have one method, if it does not fit the production processes for the reasons listed above, it can not bring benefits to the organization.

The reasons for introducing Scrum as a way of working are not the opposite of not introducing it, as good project management, process optimization, use of experience and quality work of employees are the aspirations of every good company. The nature of the product that is produced, in my opinion, is the decisive factor for such a choice.

The possible difficulties in implementing Scrum for the top management of an organization, in my opinion, can be listed below. The implementation of the three pillars of Scrum transparency, inspection, and adaptation.

If the company is not new, it has a history and established processes, and they need to be discontinued and replaced with a Scrum framework. For example - do not work on small teams of up to 10 people, with whom communication is through the Product owner. The establishment of periods (sprints), at the end of which there must be a ready functional part of the product for delivery, etc.

The way of communication and work with the small teams and the people in them, their distribution and the cooperation of the employees, so that they are not just a group of people in the same place.

Finding good professionals for the role of Scrum master.

Another difficulty would be the qualification of employees. To implement Scrum, they must be trained and learn to work and think according to the principles of flexible methodology. This would cost time, reduce efficiency. But over time, that investment will pay off.

To avoid chaos and confusion at the beginning of such an initiative, I think it should start in stages, with a test team working on a small project with the longest possible implementation time.

Here's what we need to know before moving on to a new model of work. What do we gain when we use Agile tools? Higher added value of manufactured products (better products); Better communication in the team also helps to solve problems faster, and hence faster product development; The responsibility for success, but also failure is entirely in the hands of each team - which is an indisputable motivator for achieving higher results; Development problems are discovered during the work itself, and not only in the testing phase by users What are the challenges when using Agile methodologies? Teams and management need to be aware (training) of working principles It may be necessary to change the organizational structure of the company; Some teams may have to maintain their strict way of working, which can lead to a clash between units and teams; Some of the teams must acquire additional qualifications and efforts in this direction; The implementation of the new methods takes time and requires additional efforts on the part of employees and managers.

In my opinion, Scrum has several advantages that would be very useful in production processes. The Scrum framework in the Agile methodology emphasizes adaptability, as well as collaboration, which are key factors in dealing with various obstacles in the production process itself. Shorter sprints of work in Scrum lead to a faster release of an already finished product. Filtering the work itself into small steps helps deliver valuable features or entire products at much shorter intervals. Also, due to the inherent adaptability and flexibility that Scrum strives for, an organization following such an approach would be much more effective, especially under dynamically changing requirements and market conditions. The daily Scrum/Retrospective and Review, as well as maintaining constant contact with the client and requesting feedback, facilitate adaptation to the changing needs of the client. Transparency in Scrum throughout the process enables each stakeholder to have a clear view of the progress made and the tasks remaining to be completed. As a key factor, I would consider the autonomy in the decision-making of the Scrum teams, which gives authority to everyone in the team and the understanding that things depend entirely on the people involved in the implementation of a given product. The awareness of the power to make things happen at one's discretion, but also the responsibility to make them happen as they should, definitely increases the motivation of the people in the team, which directly affects the quality of work and the final product. The Scrum framework is not suitable for projects that are too linear and rely solely on established processes, lacking the element of creativity. It is also not suitable for projects that have no planned changes or opportunities for adaptation. The Agile methodology emphasizes flexibility, and applying Scrum to strictly templated projects would render it ineffective and undermine its benefits. Additionally, Scrum may not be suitable for companies with rigid hierarchical decision-making structures. Scrum promotes decentralization, where every team member plays a significant role in making and implementing decisions, which contrasts with traditional hierarchical approaches.