The Daily Scrum
My company currently develops software using developers around the globe. This can be a challenge. One of our defenses against this is the use of Scrum, an agile method for project management.
Think of Scrum as a simple set of rules, that everyone plays by. The rules are so simple, that no one can forget them. The rules for the daily Scrum are to ask every person involved in the development 3 questions during a daily 15 minute meeting:
- What did you do yesterday?
- What are you going to do today?
- What is standing in your way?
These rules can benefit the development team in a number of ways. First, it will define clearly what each team member is responsible for. No one wants to seem like a slacker. If a developer feels he will let his team down, they will work harder. But, if the goals for success are not clearly defined, the developer will start to feel that they are hitting their head against the wall.
Keeping the meeting short will keep everyone focused. Nothing is more frustrating than listening to talk and talk, when a job has to be done. In fact, when the team losses sight of the true goals, team members will lose confidence and enthusiasm for the project.
Finally for today, the short meetings encourage collaboration. Having every group member explain his tasks and concerns to the group will spring new ideas. These ideas can then be shared outside of the meeting. This brings the solution to the problem, and keeps everyone on track.
Even in managing our own business meetings, a short, daily scrum, can help manage complexity. Simple is good.
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