This document discusses three project management methods - Kanban, Scrum, and Triage. Kanban uses a task board and daily stand-ups to continuously load balance work. Scrum uses fixed sprint cycles and stand-ups to solve problems. Triage uses a dashboard with countdowns and daily meetings to prioritize bugs and hit dates. The document provides overviews and "how-tos" for each, along with their strengths, weaknesses, and best uses. It also shows examples of tools used in each method and measures for success.

1. Managing Projects
A Tried and True Triple Tool Set
To Answer the 2 Critical Questions:
What is Left? What is Next?

2. The Goals of this session
• Explain 3 effective, complimentary PM methods
• Get beyond how’s to the why’s and when’s of application
• Prepare you to build a custom PM machine, to your needs

3. A quick bit of glossary
Time
• Calendar day – a day (24hrs)
• Work day – a day we come to
work, not a holiday/weekend
• Dev day – one person’s work day
• Task day – 5 hours, on task
• Lead day – 4 hours, on task
• Team day – all of us for one day
• Sprint – 3 working weeks
• Publish – 3 sprints
Things
• Milestone – slice, alpha, beta
• Repository – in version control
• Version – a build of game, exe
• Candidate – to test for milestone
• Task / subtask /
• Work product – doc, code, asset
• Backlog – future work
• User story, epic, master task –
• Dependency – related task order

4. A quick bit of glossary
Measures
• Burn Down – remaining tasks/time
• Velocity – task consumption rate
• Utilization – % team capacity used
• FvF rate – found vs fixed (bugs)
• Bug count –
• Task level – task days vs work days
• Capacity – devs x work days
• Scope – sum of work for milestone
Roles
• Product Owner – author, priority
• Scrum master – leads meetings
• Lead – manager of a specialty
• Producer – Business unit manager
• PM – time and effort accountant
• Developer – makes assets, code
• Tester – tests WIP games
• Test Lead – sets testing strategy

5. Only 3 Variables
Capacity (head count)
Scope (feature set)
Duration (calendar time)

6. Only 3 Methods
Kanban (velocity)
Scrum (solving)
Triage (dates)

7. 1 - KANBAN
AKA Continuous Loading, Big List

8. 1 - KANBAN
• Defining features
• Task board w/ cards in columns for
To Do, Doing and Done.
• Daily check in meetings (short) to
move cards
• Manager moves tasks from
backlog to board as needed
• What is left? What is next?
• Work is work
AKA Continuous Loading, Big List

9. 1 - KANBAN
• Defining features
• Task board w/ cards in columns for
To Do, Doing and Done.
• Daily check in meetings (short) to
move cards
• Manager moves tasks from
backlog to board as needed
• What is left? What is next?
• Work is work
AKA Continuous Loading, Big List
Strengths:
Velocity, reprioritization, flexibility, handles
tasks and bugs, day-by-day capacity
management, low waste, overhead
Weaknesses:
Developer empowerment, fatigue, planning,
quality control
Why, When to use it:
Velocity is key, work is mostly known but
plan is not, fickle client/executive

10. Kanban board ideal

11. Personal board

12. Digital Version (Jira)

13. Essential Kanban How-To
• Build a backlog, including tasks for all team members w/ priority
• Put a board up and get started – stickies, cards or digital
• Meeting every morning for 15 minutes to move cards
• Ask team members for their capacity today, fill ~80%
• Keep the “to do” column topped up
• Pro tip – Brother label printers are cheap, print Excel lists on card-
sized stickers, can use push pins on cork or magnets on white board

14. Kanban Success Measures
• Velocity – tasks days completed per calendar day= near 1 or higher
• 5 hours per day on task
• Choices of tasks every morning
• All devs nicely filled, every day
• Changes handled in stride

15. 2 - SCRUM
AKA Extreme Agile, Sprinting

16. 2 - SCRUM
• Defining features
• Task board but w fixed time boxes
3 week sprints x 3 = publish
• Daily stand up meetings (short) to
move cards – 3 questions
• Planning day and review day each
sprint
• Separate intent, priority from
implementation, scope
• Commitment per sprint, no slip
AKA Extreme Agile, Sprinting

17. 3 - SCRUM
• Defining features
• Task board but w fixed time boxes
3 week sprints x 3 = publish
• Daily stand up meetings (short) to
move cards – 3 questions
• Planning day and review day each
sprint
• Separate intent, priority from
implementation, scope
• Commitment per sprint, no slip
AKA Extreme Agile, Sprinting
Strengths:
Efficiency, developer empowerment, solving,
scoping, morale, synchronization, low waste,
focus on intent, flexibility
Weaknesses:
Bugs, process cost, executive confidence,
hitting dates
Why, When to use it:
Solving for new features, finding fun, team
driven iteration, owner driven intent

18. Essential Scrum how-to
• Schedule 3 week sprints, 9 week publishes
• Appoint product owner – writes ‘stories’ for backlog w/priority
• Epic stories span sprints, user stories fit in sprints, must be finished
• On planning day:
• Review where you are
• Get story priority and intent (not tasks) from PO
• Estimate whole stories as a group (poker)
• Calculate team capacity
• Commit to stories to fill 85% of capacity for sprint
• Then devs make small tasks with close estimates

19. Essential Scrum how-to
• During Sprint
• Use scrum teams of 3-9, by dependency, feature, not specialization
• Meet daily for 15, standing, to move cards, 3 questions only
• Check burndown chart* for current progress
• Do not let things get off the rails – address issues daily
• Do not add tasks (stretch goals are allowed)
• During Review
• Demonstrate completed work to PO, before next planning
• Celebrate good progress
• Stick to cycle: Plan (1), work (13), review (1) = 15 days / 3 weeks

20. Typical Burn Down Chart

21. Poker Planning Cards, use vs Task cards

22. Scrum Success Measures
• Tackling most important, most risky work first
• Giving PO information for next planning
• Solving unknowns, finding fun, iteration on design
• Utilization above 90%
• Almost no overtime
• Happy review days

23. 3 - TRIAGE
AKA Countdown waterfall, Load balancing

24. 3 - TRIAGE
• Defining features
• Dashboard w/ countdown to
milestone, task days per developer
plus FvF Rate
• Daily triage meeting to prioritize
new bugs, load balance, scope
• Operates on release candidates
• Guided by “found versus fixed”
ratio
• Gets to “sign off”
AKA Countdown waterfall, Load balancing

25. 3 - TRIAGE
• Defining features
• Dashboard w/ countdown to
milestone, task days per developer
plus FvF Rate
• Daily triage meeting to prioritize
new bugs, load balance, scope
• Operates on release candidates
• Guided by “found versus fixed”
ratio
• Gets to “sign off”
AKA Countdown waterfall, Load balancing
Strengths:
Hits dates, support marketing, lessens
burnout, scoping, quality control
Weaknesses:
Transparency, team engagement, fatigue
Why, When to use it:
Ad spends at risk, TRC versioning, event
dates, clean releases, patches, updates

26. Essential Triage how-to
• Record all known tasks, assign them and get estimates from devs
• Set dates for milestone(s) alpha/lock/beta/release etc.
• Make dashboard with countdown in work days, daily found versus
fixed line graph and list of devs w/ task days remaining.
• Conduct initial scope so devs are at 70% of capacity for period
• Steering group meets daily to
• Review, prioritize, assign, estimate new bugs
• Load balance devs if over/under tasked
• Reduce scope, if you must, to keep on track
• Predict completion by FvF ratio

27. Typical Triage Dashboard

28. Triage Success Measures
• Hitting dates spot on the money
• Dev team in sync with ads, demos, trade shows, events, etc
• No dev overloaded with tasks for more than a day
• Building high quality versions, w/ low bug rate
• Bringing it in for a landing, smoothly; calm execs
• Tight coupling with QA
• Fast reactions to emerging issues
• Clean releases with happy users

29. Found the fun? No, not really Some of it We got this
Time frame? Not set in stone, yet Fast as possible E3 won’t wait for us
Asset Pipelines? Figuring it out now Similar to past work Fixed and documented
Best method
if +2 in column
Scrum Kanban Triage
Selecting a methodology
What is your project score?

30. Typical 2 Phase Dev Cycle
• From start to “vertical slice” or Alpha, use agile methods to manage
features
• Once you have a playable version, hit alpha or start promoting, switch
to triage / countdown waterfall to manage dates