Agile Class Week 8: See the Whole

We finished discussing about two agile methodologies which are Scrum and XP. Now, we are in chapter 8 of the book "Learning Agile" which talks about Lean methodology. If Scrum has project management practices, and if XP focuses on strong technical practices, lean is more of a mindset. It is a set of thinking tools rather than a distinct process that would help a team or a company to build a valuable product. There are seven Lean Principles:

- Eliminate waste (Remove what is not of value to the customer)

- Amplify Learning (Improve software development by improving the process through learning)

- Decide As Late As Possible (Delay decisions until assumptions become fact)

- Deliver As Fast As Possible (Quicker delivery of results with quicker feedback)

- Empower The Team (Allow the front-line workers to make the major decisions)

- Build Integrity In (Build for perceived(customer view) and conceptual(system view) integrity, flexibility and efficiency)

- See The Whole (View the system as a whole and not as a sum of its parts)

I have learned that looking at the big picture is the most crucial component of lean project management. To really understand whether a team is working efficiently and effectively, the project manager need to take a step back and understand the whole system to be able to see the whole objectively.

Lean teams take measurements, so that everyone can see the project the same way. Taking measurements and seeing the objective truth about the project and the team is just the first part of seeing the whole. The other part is to understand why the problem is happening or the root cause. After this, the team will have the same objective information which will make it easier to make decisions together.

Source(s):

Learning Agile: Understanding Scrum, XP, Lean, and Kanban

The Marriage of Lean, Scrum and Extreme Programming