1. Successful Agile Teams at Scale
Julian Holmes, AgileMentors

2. Agenda
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Why Agile?
Defining ”Agile Teams at Scale”
Scaling Agile Frameworks
Large and Distributed team structures
Enterprise Agile Transformation
Supporting Practices and Techniques
Summary
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▪ Global Rational User Community

3. Everybody wants to be Agile
▪ Why? – Better Results
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Shorten Time-to-Market
Adapt to Changing Needs
Improved Quality
Maximize ROI
▪ How? - Requires Change
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Business
Organizational
Cultural
Commercial/Contractual
Ways of Working

4. What is “Agile”? – Some Truths
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A movement
Based on management theory
A collection of lightweight methods
Empirical and adaptive
Simplistic and pure
Idealistic

5. What Does it Mean to Scale Agile?
Selection Factors
Scaling Factors

6. Hybrid Method Frameworks
• Single methods don’t have all the
answers
• SDLC 3.0 first defined
a hybrid framework
• DAD and SAFe are
both instances.
• DAD is evolving into a
process decision framework

7. Greater Discipline
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Agile Foundation
DAD Extension
Risk Management
Delivery Assurance
Governance
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▪ All required to allow
for Scale

8. The roles of Disciplined Agile Delivery (DAD)

9. Moving from Traditional to Agile Roles
▪ Traditional roles are impacted
by modern practices
▪ Siloed roles need to embrace
cross-functional mindset
▪ There is a place for all roles in
the agile organization
▪ New skills and responsibilities
▪ Requires organization-wide
buy-in
* Scott W Ambler, 2011

10. Structuring a Growing Team
Medium Team
Effective from 10 up to 30
Vision
Small Team
Effective up to 7 ± 2
Large Team
Effective from 30 upwards

11. Evolving Team Structure
Governance Team
(sample roles)
Shared Vision
Product Team
Technical Support
Team (sample roles)
Product Owner
Deployment
Product
Analyst
Configuration
Management
PMO
Engagement
Manager
Solution Architect
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Technical Expert
Build Management
Scrum Master
Environment Support
Feature Owner
Feature Analyst
Developer
Feature Architect
Tester
Scrum Master
Test Management
Product
Architect
Enterprise Architect
(supports Product
Architect)
Feature Team(s)
* Capgemini UK plc, 2013
Independent Testing Team
(permanent / part time)

12. Distributed Agile Teams at Scale
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Start local and establish a common culture
Build a high-performing approach
Implement and prove your collaboration tools
Maintain constant cross-location transparency
Budget for travel
Don’t isolate “whole teams”
Keep all locations “equal”
Budget for some role duplication

13. Agile Transformation – Cultural Challenges
▪ Cargo cult change
▪ Matching practice to
culture
▪ Individuals vs. teams
▪ Fear of transparency
▪ Rewards and recognition
▪ Outsourcing vs. fostering
▪ Beware of PANDA!
* Cameron & Quinn’s Competing Value Framework, 2005

14. Agile Culture Change
▪ It has to start at an
individual level
▪ The team has to be
empowered
▪ The organisation must
want to learn
▪ Communities must be
fostered

15. Activity Coordination
▪ Collaboration is key
▪ A range of practice
options available
▪ Some enable Agile,
others less so
▪ Scales of maturity, or
recommended options

16. Enterprise Alignment
▪ Increasing organisationwide maturity
▪ Aligning across programs
of work
▪ Governing effectively
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disciplinedagiledelivery.com

17. Agile ALM Support with Jazz
▪ Jazz platform
supports the
practices of agile
teams at scale
▪ Enabling
collaboration,
transparency, and
integration
The Rational solution for Application
Lifecycle Management
Rational
Requirements
Composer
Rational
Team
Concert
Analyst
Rational
Quality
Manager
Developer
Quality
professional
Architect
Deployment
engineer

18. Beyond Cargo Cult Coaching
▪ More than just certified
“scam-masters”
▪ Reality over rhetoric
▪ Coaching supported with
empiricism
▪ Pragmatic application of
practices
▪ True “journeyman” change
agents

19. Successful Agile Teams at Scale – Summary
▪ Agile adoption will give the
potential for:
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Shortened time-to-value
Greater predictability
Ability to react to change
Improved business
relationship and trust
– Reduced waste
– “Better” solutions
▪ But it will require:
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An investment in people
Business engagement
A “one team” mentality
A process decision framework
Measures that support the
approach
– Collaboration tools
– Experienced support

20. The Global Rational User Community
A brief introduction
© 2013 IBM Corporation

21. GRUC – An Active, Growing and Participating Audience
▪ The Global Rational User Community
▪ A collection of over 100 local & virtual groups with 15k members!
– www.rational-ug.org
▪ Vision:
– To promote the effective use of Rational solutions through an active,
collaborative community of customers, partners, and IT professionals
▪ User Groups:
– A group of customers who actively work with Rational and are interested in
learning and sharing information and experiences about their solutions with
other customers to assist with Rational Product implementation
– Independently owned and run by users
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22. Resources: The website is key - www.rational-ug.org

23. Available Resources
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you as a member
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– Ask questions or start conversations
with other users
▪ Collaborate with IBM staff/executives
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▪ Local User Groups
– Connect with uses near you
▪ Virtual User Groups
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interest area to collaborate with
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– Keep sharp and continue to learn about
Rational with expert-led trainings and
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▪ Rational and Industry expert blogs
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our posts to stay ahead of the
competition
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24. Corporate User Groups
Enable efficient sharing of knowledge and experiences with
employees around the world:
▪ Employees leverage Communities to learn, train & gain
▪ Easily communicate with development groups
▪ Track training or content consumption
▪ Accelerate problem resolution
▪ Develop your own centralized content library
▪ Leverage IBM for expertise
▪ FREE service
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25. What can you do to get value from the RUC?
▪ Register on the web-site
– Make sure you allow us to send you our newsletters
▪ Join some Groups
– At least one local group, and perhaps a few of the virtual groups
▪ Review the Content Library
– There’s lots of value that we have already provided
▪ Contribute
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▪ Volunteer
– Present your experiences, provide venues, invite your peers

26. Next Steps
▪ Join the Swedish Rational User Group
– Register at rational-ug.org
– Perhaps volunteer to host or present at a meeting
▪ Consider your own private Corporate User Group:
– Find detailed information online: rational-ug.org/crugs
• Julie Jordan, Rational User Community Programs:
jordanju@us.ibm.com
• Rod Baptie, Baptie & Co., rbaptie@baptie.com
▪ Discuss either option with us here at RUC SE
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