Formal roles for Agile Scope-Based deployment
The roles detailed below are instrumental for the efficient and correct execution of an Agile Scope-Based Project. At the start of the project, these therefore they need to be well defined and formally appointed to qualified individuals who fully understand their role and who are endorsed by everybody to fulfill it. All roles must be reviewed with everybody involved in the Agile Scope-Based Project, to ensure that everybody understands the relevance and purpose of each role. Only when all involved fully understand and grasp the mindset and principles of the methodology, and all involved effectively live this mindset every day within the context of their assigned role, can the merits of the approach come to fruition.
Project Squad Solution Owner (Skyline staff – optional)
Sets the direction for project development and progress.
Functions in the Project Squad as the sole representative of all involved stakeholders.
Understands the requirements of the project from an end-user perspective.
Works continuously to align with the stakeholders.
Collects and manages end-user feedback.
Determines next-best actions for the development of the solution, together with the Project Squad.
Note
If no dedicated Solution Owner is assigned to a project, which depends on the size, nature and complexity of the project, then the Project Squad Product Owner fulfills the role defined for the Solution Owner.
Project Squad Product Owner (Skyline staff – mandatory)
Ensures team cohesion, coordination, and operation in line with the methodology.
Facilitates all formal process activities (e.g. Sprint Planning, Retrospect, Solution Backlog Refinement and Balancing, etc.).
Performs continuous Solution Backlog refinement and balancing.
Accountable for all administrative duties (e.g. Solution Backlog updates).
Ensures clear and fully transparent communication between all Project Squad members.
Coaches Project Squad members to deliver results in line with what is planned.
Shields Project Squad members from external interference and distractions.
Manages external communications with the organizations involved (such as Skyline, the user organization, involved technology vendors, etc.).
Note
If no dedicated Project Squad Solution Owner is assigned to a project, which depends on the size, nature and complexity of the project, then the Project Squad Product Owner also fulfills the role defined for the Project Squad Solution Owner.
Agile Coach (Skyline staff or user staff if available – optional)
Transfers Agile knowledge and experience to the team.
Serves as a guide through these changes.
Ensures the Agile values and principles are understood and enacted.
Manages impediments, eliminates waste, manages the team's health, manages boundaries of self-organization, manages the culture.
Coaches with a focus on mindset and behavior.
Ensures continuous team improvements.
Accountabilities that the Agile Coach takes over from the Project Squad Product Owner:
Ensures team cohesion, coordination, and operation in line with the methodology.
Facilitates all formal process activities (e.g. Sprint Planning, Review, Retrospect, Solution Backlog Refinement and Balancing, etc.).
Ensures clear and fully transparent communication between all Project Squad members.
Coaches Project Squad members to deliver results in line with what is planned.
Shields Project Squad members from external interference and distractions.
…
Note
Several accountabilities currently assigned to the Project Squad Product Owner are preferably delegated to a dedicated Agile Coach if available, allowing the Project Squad Product Owner to fully focus on maximizing the value outcome of the Project Squad.
Development Members (Skyline staff – mandatory)
A variety of engineering members, covering the various skills and expertise required for software installation and deployment, system configuration and setup, development of interface connectors, development of workflows and processes, graphical UI design, quality assurance, technical writing, training, etc.
Not all Development Members are necessarily assigned to the Project Squad for the entire duration of the project, and some flexibility on the staffing is possible, provided that it can be planned for. Staffing of the Project Squad is the responsibility of and at the sole discretion of the Project Squad Product Owner. Any references to allocated human resources for the overall project in the Deployment Plan are in generic and average terms for the purpose of planning and tracking the deployment, and hence only indicate the overall average staffing level (i.e. the Deployment Plan does not reference individuals as such).
Stakeholders Representatives (user staff)
Strong stakeholder representation is key to success in the rollout of Agile projects. After all, the project has a finite timeline and capacity, while the leveraged ICT and software technology offers infinite options. The objective is to deliver as much value as possible, and continuous interaction with the stakeholders in that respect is instrumental in accomplishing this. Depending on the nature of the project, different types of Stakeholder Representatives can be defined, including but not necessarily limited to:
End-User Stakeholder Representative (user staff - mandatory): Mandatory and vital role assigned to a member of the organization that purchased the DataMiner Solution. Depending on the number of distinct groups of end users, one or more End-User Stakeholder Representatives could be considered, but a minimum of one is required in an Agile Scope-Based deployment. The End-User Stakeholder Representative must:
Ensure that all end-user expectations are clearly defined in a timely fashion for the Project Squad to be able to perform their development duties. This is a continuous process integrated with the continuous evaluation of the progress made by the Project Squad so far.
Ensure that all end users, who very likely will have varying opinions, desires, habits and preferences, are all aligned and agree on a single well-defined unambiguous specification that is locked in firmly in a timely fashion.
Ensure that there is a clear and accurate understanding of the actual business value of all requirements (i.e. what is cosmetic and what is of true value and impactful towards the actual goal of the project), to ensure that the Project Squad will be able to focus on delivering maximum value continuously, and this taking into account the unavoidable reality that not all possible desires, ambitions and dreams of all users can be implemented in an unlimited fashion within the considered time frame and budget.
Ensure that all relevant end users at any point in time are continuously very closely involved in the planning, execution, and result reviews of the project (e.g. involving end users in refining the backlog, finding a consensus on the priorities among the end users, involving end users in recurring reviews organized by the Project Squad to get their feedback, having them interact with the developers directly, etc.).
Management Stakeholder Representative (Skyline and user staff - recommended): For any project it is also desirable to identify Management Stakeholder Representatives, both from a user and Skyline perspective, and plan for Executive Review Meetings ahead of anticipated critical milestones of the project, to ensure full alignment of the organizations and full backing of the involved leadership.
End Users (user staff)
While not all end users can always be involved in every single step of the project, it is important to acknowledge that they play a vital role in the execution of the project. Their involvement, directly and indirectly, must be fully acknowledged by both the Project Squad and the user organization.
Important
While the word "user" has the classic connotation of being a passive outsider or bystander who only approves the results of a project, in the context of an Agile project the user should really be considered an equal, valuable partner in the project. It is effectively somebody who is also very much a contributor to the success of the project, and this as much as any of the actual members of the Project Squad. Their role in the design of the solution is as crucial and essential as the role of the Development Members.
A key enabler for the overall project to be successful is the ability of the users to participate and be forward-looking, and their ability to translate functional requirements into solutions that generate maximum value. In other words, the most optimal design of a solution will result from a perfect symbiosis between the expertise of the Development Members and the knowledge and experience of the user, as well as their knowledge of and insight in their business.
In that respect, instead of Development Members doing demos of the work for the users, both review together where they are in the process and what the next steps will be (a demo implies that the Development Members have made their own decisions and then seek approval of the user, who then only has the option to further tweak that).
Therefore, for starters, those user groups need to be very clearly identified and described. Their role in the project must be explained to them, and it must be clear what will be expected from them, that this is endorsed by their respective leadership, and that they must ensure that they are properly prepared for this.
The end users’ involvement in the project applies both from an input perspective (to ensure that the most optimal solution is designed and deployed with the end user in mind, and that this is done as efficiently as possible), and from an output perspective (i.e. from a change management perspective, where the user base needs to be managed and prepared to embrace the change that inevitably comes with the introduction of new technology).
The following roles are essential to enable the Project Squad to efficiently interact with the user base:
End-User Stakeholder Representative: Manages the end users from a project input perspective, ensuring that all their needs, expectations and requirements are collected in an efficient manner, and consolidated in a timely fashion for the Project Squad to execute their work continuously and uninterruptedly. The End-User Stakeholder Representative also involves the end users in reviews of the work that is completed upon each cycle, to further empower them to provide the Project Squad with the best possible and most accurate input, enabling the Project Squad to build the best possible solutions for the end users in the most efficient manner.
Change Management Manager: Manages the end users from a project output perspective, ensuring that all end users are properly prepared to embrace the change and to leverage the new technology to the fullest extent. This is typically done with a comprehensive Change Management Program that is set up and executed by the Change Management Manager.
Change Management Manager (user staff)
A Change Management Manager is vital to the success of any Digital Transformation project. The introduction of new technology always comes with new paradigms, goals and objectives, as well as new workflows and ways of doing things. The impact of this typically touches upon all possible aspects of the organization, including but not limited to the role of individuals in the organization, the methods, the workflows, practical arrangements, habits that have to change, and much more. If all of these are not thoroughly considered and taken care of in a timely and proactive fashion, i.e. from the very inception of the project and throughout its execution, then this can represent a considerable liability and risk for the success of the entire project.
While Change Management is not part of the scope of the project deliverables, it is mandatory to have a formally appointed Change Management Manager in the user organization, who will run a formal and well-documented Change Management Program and who will interface with the Project Squad to ensure proper alignment from a Change Management perspective. This is necessary since, because of the nature of the project, success can be heavily compromised if there is no formal, structured, and continuous Change Management in place.
Note
Both the End-User Stakeholder Representative and the Change Management Manager are critical roles. They should therefore be appointed to people with the required expertise, authority, motivation and mindset, and the user organization must consider that these people need to have sufficient authority and time available to fulfill these critical roles.