The blog post of David Harvey entitled “The Scrum Picture is Wrong” is a gem; I would recommend everyone to read it. It’s about how the typical picture we use of Scrum is ‘dangerously’ incomplete. Many versions exist, but the one of Mike Cohn is one of the most well known, see: http://www.mountaingoatsoftware.com/scrum-figures.
It is probably used all over the world to explain the Scrum process, me included. But, isn’t the first value of the agile manifesto ‘Individuals and interactions over processes and tools ’?
David Harvey piece ends with a different picture, more in line with this first value:
It’s very easy to explain about Scrum and agile in general (An XP process-only description is not an exception) using the original process pictures. But not so easy to explain why they work and why they would make a difference. If we include people and teams as an output of an iteration/sprint, it’s much easier. Of course this is only one of why’s, but a very important one.
A picture is worth a thousand words. If, from now on, we would use images like the one of David Harvey, chances of agile success might be higher. So, let’s bring sustainable business value by putting team capability as a top priority outcome of the work we do. A project delivered on time, budget and scope is not necessarily a success. Many other features are equally important, of which increased team capability for a next sprint, release or project, is certainly one.
By Peter Notenbaert, .Net Solution Architect