Getting started with #Noestimates

www.axon.vnfb.com/AxonActiveVietNam
#NOEstimates

Who we are?

https://about.me/mr.dk
Who we are: “Kepler”
● SM of Kepler
● Handsome and Funny
● Single but NOT available
Mr. DK

Who we are: “Kepler”
● Java developer
● UI Addictive
● Love to have British Accent
Toàn Lư

Agenda
1. Estimation
2. Agile Estimation & Problems
3. What is #NoEstimate
4. How to #NoEstimates
5. Case Study
6. Q&A

Estimation
• Expert estimation
based on judgmental processed
• Formal estimation model
based on mechanical processes
• Combination-based estimation
based on judgemental and mechanical combination
3 top level categories of estimation approach

Estimation
We’re here to talk about Scrum & #NoEstimates?
BUT, BUT, BUT . . .

Estimation
Estimation approach Category Examples of support of
implementation of estimation
approach
Size-based estimation model Formal estimation model Functional Point Analysis, Use
Case Analysis, SSU (Software
Size Unit), Story points-based
estimation in Agile Software
Development
Group estimation Expert estimation Planning poker, Wideband
Delphi
Our ceremonies are categorized as

• Team share understanding/feeling of the requirement
• Relative unit (Point versus Time)
• Flexible with complexity
• Enable conversation and transparency
• Ability to forecast product release base on team velocity
Benefits of Agile Estimation

Benefits of Agile Estimation
• To make decisions
• To know the time frame
• To give a price

Agile Estimation - Problems

Estimate Time Rather Than Complexity
1 days
2 days
and a half
4 days

A lot of unknowns
Work best with similar work that has
few unknowns
Estimation takes a lot of time and
effort

Velocity
Velocity can be misused
Velocity can be gamed

Gaming with velocity
Reduced
quality
Maintain
velocity
High
quality
Building up
technical debt Technical Debt

Estimation Blockers
• Business pressures
• Lack of process or understanding
• Lack of alignment to standards

The ugly truth
We, people, are never good at estimation
We need to improve our estimation skill !
Then yes, it becomes our impediment
and we want to improve it

The Cycle of No-Improvement
The Cycle of No-
Improvement

?
With that much problems
HOW CAN WE ESTIMATE

Why don’t we find an alternative?
BETTER
ways to make DECISIONS
= ALTERNATIVE
ways to make DECISIONS

What is #NoEstimates

As it shouldn’t exist
Dr. Jeff Sutherland and Ken Schwaber
Kent Beck

Extreme reactions
Source: #NoEstimates Twitter Page

The advocates

What #NoEstimates is not
Any method, tool or process

What #NoEstimate is
#NoEstimates is a hashtag for the topic of
exploring alternatives to estimates [of time,
effort, cost] for making decisions in software
development.
That is, ways to make decisions with “No
Estimates”.
~ Zuill

An approach to Agile Manifesto

#NoEstimates
ESTIMATES ARE NOT BAD
JUST NOT ALWAYS NEEDED

How to #NoEstimates
HOW TO APPLY #NOESTIMATES
?

How to #NoEstimates
1-Choose 3-Develop
2-Break
4-Refactor

How to #NoEstimates
HOW MANY
USER STORIES OR POINTS
CAN BE DELIVERED PER SPRINT ?

How to #NoEstimates
Is this team’s velocity
STABLE?

How to #NoEstimates
No. USER STORIES OR POINTS
?

Experiment
#NoEstimates Whitepaper by Vasco Duarte

Experiment
#NoEstimates Whitepaper by Vasco Duarte
No. USER STORIES
http://bit.ly/NoEstimatesProjectsDB

Splitting User Story
Have you ever got any DIFFICULTIES
in SPLITTING task or story
?

8 User Story
ways to split a

1. WORKFLOW
Create stories for steps in
that workflow

1. WORKFLOW
AS ...
I WANT to checkout a
customer
SO THAT ...
calculate
total
credit card
details
payment
method

2. DATA DETAILS
Write stories for related elements

2. DATA DETAILS
AS a Student,
I WANT to view my result for
this semester’s courses,
SO THAT...
view my
score
view my
class
average
view my
letter (A+,
A, B..)

3. Special Case
Write a story with zero
input, size one input,
and multiple input.

3. Special Case
AS a user
I WANT to delete items from
the shopping cart,
SO THAT ...
remove
single item
remove
multiple
items

4. HAPPY PATH
Create a story to complete the
happy path first, then create
stories for another case

4. HAPPY PATH
AS a Dispatcher,
I WANT to view information
about a train,
SO THAT ...
on-time
train
cancel
train
delayed
train

5. CORE + ENHANCE
Create a story for the core - main
feature, then create stories for all
the work.

5. CORE + ENHANCE
AS user,
I WANT to create revenue,
profit, and growth reports,
SO THAT ...
revenue
report for
February
2013
revenue,
profit, and
growth
reports for
all months

6. OPTIONS
Create a story for each type of
option.

6. OPTIONS
AS a customer,
I WANT to view the time in
multiple format,
SO THAT ....
American
format
Decimal
format
Vietnamese
format

7. UNKNOWN
Create an investigative story to
analyze or research, and another to
implement it.

7. UNKNOWN
AS … customer,
I WANT to view products
related to the product I am
currently viewing,
SO THAT ...
Research
the optimal
logic
display products
related to the
product I am
currently viewing

8. ACCEPTANCE TEST
Make each acceptance test
(or group them) into one user
story

8. ACCEPTANCE TEST
AS manager
I WANT to assign tasks to employees,
SO THAT he can work on tasks
ACCEPTANCE TEST:
● WHEN employee is already
assigned,THEN he cannot be
assigned to another task;
● WHEN employee is not yet
assigned, THEN he can be
assigned to a task;
employee
is already
assigned
employee is not
yet assigned

8
3. SPECIAL CASE
2. DATA DETAILS
4. HAPPY PATH
1. WORKFLOW
7. UNKNOWN
6. OPTIONS
8. ACCEPTANCE TEST
5. CORE-ENHANCE

Requirement:
Building Park

= base unit
- Split park to valuable parts
- Estimation bases on base
unit
Estimated teams
- Find the base unit, of the whole park;
= = 2 base units
Building Park

= base unit
Estimated teams
= = 2 base units
M
L =
M=
S=
=
Building Park

- Find the base unit, of the whole park;
- Split park to components which its
size equal to base unit;
Non-estimated teams
= base unit
== = =
Building Park

Front
Behind
Right
Left
Building Park

Building Park

HOW DO WE APPLY?
Our situations:
- 3 months ago
- New potential idea
- No customer
- Unclear business
- Technical debts
=> Target: get the first
Customer

HOW DO WE APPLY?
Our situations:
- Meeting with some
potential-customer
- Get new requirement and
promise
=> Change backlog, change
priority of US in Sprint

HOW DO WE APPLY?
Our situations:
- Unclear business
- Requirement changing frequently
- Technical debts
=> #NOEstimates?

HOW DO WE APPLY?
What did we do:
- PO decide the important feature we have to finish and put
to backlog (just epic)
- We alway ready for receive new request
- Team will discuss and split the big US (or epic) into a lot
of smaller US
- Sometime we refactor the old implementation to adapt
with new request
- WE don’t have velocity

HOW DO WE APPLY?
Result until now (3 months):
- Get the first Customer
- One more team joined with our product
- We understand more
“You are the great team, you are the fastest team I have ever
seen before, thank you so much” - Patrick Brazzale (Our PM)

HOW DO WE APPLY?
Our team not yet
STABLE
:(
But we trust
each other

Q&A

References
1. http://neilkillick.com/
2. http://noestimates.org/blog/2014/07/vasco-duarte/
3. http://softwaredevelopmenttoday.blogspot.com/
4. http://www.agileforall.com/splitting-user-stories/
5. http://softwaredevelopmenttoday.com/

Getting started with #Noestimates

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