The document discusses balancing business value and risk when developing software solutions. It recommends an iterative and incremental approach using user story mapping and mapping stories to address technical risks first, create a minimum viable product, and then add additional features. An example story map is provided showing how stories could address technical risks first, then create an end-to-end scenario with minimum functionality, and later add more features and functionality. The goal is to validate solutions and problems early while managing technical debt and time to market in a sustainable way.

1. Ten Tonne
Skeleton
John Shaw
Coventry Tech Meetup
12th Jan 2017

2. Ten Tonne Skeleton
Start here
Do the backbone next
Add some details
Finish it off
Title inspired by “Ten Tonne Skeleton” by Royal Blood

3. What the business actually wants
£

4. Exploring the Problem

5. Two domains
Business
Product Owner
Domain experts
Users
--
Problem focus
Value to business
Technical
Architect
Developers
Testers
--
Solution focus
Working software

6. Balance of value v risk
£
Validate the solution
Risk
Establish velocity
Technical debt
Validate the problem
Support the business
Time to market
User experience

7. Cross-domain problem
Business
Product Owner
Domain experts
Users
--
Problem focus
Value to business
Technical
Developers
Testers
--
Solution focus
Working software
BA
Tech Lead

8. Techniques

9. User Story Mapping
● Backlog management
● Epics, themes, stories
● Iterative and incremental
● Just good enough

10. Iterative and incremental
This year’s car - iterate
Next year’s car - increment

11. Story Map
Example story lifecycles:
1. Address tech risk
2. Walking skeleton
3. Flesh it out
4. Added value

12. Worked Example

13. 1. Address Technical Risk
System
A
System
B
US-01
Interface
GOAL
Mitigate technical
risk of interface
between systems

14. 2. Walking Skeleton
System
A
System
B
US-01
Interface
Input
file
db
US-03
Create
US-02
Create
User
GOAL
Testable end-to-end
scenario

15. 3. Flesh it Out
System
A
System
B
US-01
Interface
db
US-03
Create
US-04
Validate
US-05
Read UIUS-06
Validate
Input
file
US-02
Create
User
GOAL
Support minimum
business need

16. 4. Added Value
System
A
System
B
US-01
Interface
db
US-03
Create
US-04
Validate
US-05
Read UIUS-06
Validate
User
US-07
Create UI
US-08
Update UI
US-09
Delete UI
GOAL
Additional business
needs

17. Putting it Together

18. Balance of value v risk
£
● Business dependencies
● Time-based risks
● Experiments/feedback
● Value
● Technical dependencies
● Technical risks
● Avoid technical debt
● Sustainable pace
Ordered
backlog
BA
Tech Lead
Enablers

19. Close
Questions?
John Shaw is a Principal Software Engineer with First Utility.
Twitter: @johnfcshaw
Email: john.shaw@first-utility.com
Web: https://www.first-utility.com/
Agile in the City Birmingham
@agilecitybham https://twitter.com/agilecitybham
Programme Board Member