The Art of Scrummaging

Eweek has an article up about Microsoft lauding the ‘Scrum’ Method for software development. It’s a pretty cool read, especially with the rugby imagery. Heh, think of it. It’s introducing a hard-man sporting analogy into a world that’s typically being not-so-hard-man. Not that I’m saying anything here … but it’s cool.

The actual workings of the method are good. 15 minute meetings each day, and self-organisation being the real power behind it. Just like a scrum. If the tight five (5-10) aren’t pulling their weight, then the scrum loses power and direction. It’s a great analogy, and a great looking system. I guess we’ll see how it works out.

It’s also good to think about new ways of approaching development. Team structure is so very important. If we are ad-hoc about the structure, and just have a meeting to go through the motions, then we’re missing some vital strengths that can be gotten from proper team structure. If, for example, you took on the Scrum method, then it would be a simple thing to maintain short-term purpose. You have a period (thirty-days) for the next step in the project. That is what the focus is on.

The other side is that you might lose sight of the larger picture. But that’s fixed simply by having a "brains-trust" meeting at the end of every segment. To look again at the larger picture.

I guess for most managers, it’s wishful thinking to have the time to think these things through, but it’d be worth it. If not for your own understanding, for the sake of the project you are currently working on.