Scrum - Master’s Final Project

Although your qualifications are not from Scrum.org, I will put a penny in the jar as may others, but you should also ask SA to help you due to all the money you have recently spent with them.  :-)

- User Stories = Not mentioned in the Scrum Guide.  Can be used by the Scrum team if they choose to do so along with any other related technique. 

- Product Backlog = This artifact is an emergent, ordered list of what is needed to improve the product. It is the single source of work undertaken by the Scrum Team.  The PO is accountable for effective Product Backlog management, including having refinement sessions with the Developers.  The Product Goal is its commitment. 

- Sprint Backlog = This artifact is composed of the Sprint Goal (why), the set of Product Backlog items selected for the Sprint (what), as well as an actionable plan for delivering the Increment (how).  The Sprint Goal is its commitment. 

- Sprint Quantity = Not mentioned in the Scrum Guide.  This is usually an indeterminate number as the product is always evolving; however, sprints will no longer be necessary if there is no longer a product, and will obviously stop when the money runs out.  :-)

- Sprint Duration = They are fixed length events of one month or less to create consistency. A new Sprint starts immediately after the conclusion of the previous Sprint.  All other events are encompassed within this event.

- Estimated Hours = Not mentioned in the Scrum Guide.  The Scrum Team can choose whichever method they want.  The Developers who will be doing the work are responsible for the sizing. The Product Owner may influence the Developers by helping them understand and select trade-offs.

Building a product is a collaborate effort of the entire Scrum Team. 

Developers are the people in the Scrum Team that are committed to creating any aspect of a usable Increment each Sprint.

Stakeholder management is key to product development and fast feedback loops from the products end users will allow the PO to determine if the value that each released increment contains is indeed the value that the end user was looking for. 

Hi Scott,

Thank you for the response. I understand the concepts of Scrum. And after I complete my Master’s Degree in Software Engineering this December I will obtain the PSM and PSPO from Scrum.org. To clarify what I need is suggestive content (examples) regarding the following in the development of an e-commerce website selling 10 products:

 Examples Please

- User Stories 

as a user I want....

- Product Backlog

Create a menu...

Create a product page...

Create a shopping cart...

- Sprint Backlog

Sprint I 

US-1, US-2, US-3 etc.

My final Master’s project requires that I apply the Scrum Framework in the development of an e-commerce website. Your expertise and assistance is greatly appreciated. If you have any reference material such as links and etc. with examples that would be great. I need to fill the Product Backlog and the Sprint Backlog for 4 Sprints.

Regards,

Jimmy Motta

Given that you work for KPMG (based on your photo) and that you have the base Scrum certifications from Scrum Alliance, I would think you could come up with these examples on your own.  Or possibly get some of it from other KPMG associates. 

Since you are asking for things that are not mentioned in the Scrum Guide (i.e. user stories, sprint quantity, estimated hours, etc) I find it hard to provide you anything you can use.  Especially since a bunch of that is usually provided by members of a Scrum Team. Since every website, product, Scrum Team is different it makes it even harder to do. 

You might be better off if you created the artifacts yourself, provided a link to us and let us comment on what you have created.  But again, it will only be our opinions so not sure how much it would help you.  You are the one that has to understand everything you are creating and including in your Masters Project.  

It would also be a great learning experience for you to create all of this on your own.  As a CSPO holder, you should be able to create a Product Backlog of items for a Product.  After all, that is what a Product Owner is respected to do by the Scrum Team.  Not having a complete Scrum Team might make some of it difficult but for a fictitious product you should be able to provide consistent info for an educational project. 

I also have the CSM and the CAL from Scrum Alliance.  Knowing the way that they operate, you might have some luck asking that community for help on this.  They might have some templates or examples that you could use. You paid them good money for your class and certification, I'd see if they can provide you more to help justify the cost. 

I suggest you start with setting the Product Goal for this fictional product.

It can be easy to fill a Product Backlog with work, whether fictional or otherwise.

But it can be hard to fill and order a Product Backlog with the right work in order to maximize value, unless it is clear what is valuable.

Once the Product Goal is clear, you might ask yourself about the least amount of work to provide the first units of value, and/or feedback opportunities in order to validate the most significant risks in the product. This should probably influence the Product Backlog you would start with.

I need to fill the Product Backlog and the Sprint Backlog for 4 Sprints.

Why? In Scrum, more will be learned throughout each sprint, and your Product Backlog will be emergent.

If Scrum is being taught well, I would hope a more acceptable option would be for you to to explain possible ways that the learnings from the earliest sprints might affect the Product Backlog in subsequent sprints, and perhaps even within the first sprint.

Otherwise, it seems like your project is just requiring you to plan a waterfall project and pay lip service to Scrum concepts, despite no provision being made for empirical learning to take place.