Agile Contracting
Many software development organizations work within the bounds of contractual agreements in both internal and external (consulting) projects. As Agile practitioners, we often hear that Agile Contracting is challenging and practitioners are looking for solutions. In this workshop we will offer a toolbox of strategies to help deal with different contracting scenarios and promote Agile practices, protect the development organization, and provide value and protection to the contracting organization. Then we will collaborate to elicit new contracting tools from the Agile community to be added to the toolbox.
Attendees should gain a deeper understanding of the problems associated with Agile Contracting as well as practical solutions for dealing with contracts in an Agile manner.
This interactive presentation will start with a review of three primary concepts of interest for individuals and organizations working with Agile methodologies in particular in contractual relationships. First we will review different situations in which Agile Contractors find themselves within the “Iron Triangle” of project limiters (fixed timeline, budget and scope). Then we will investigate the Failure Signs that can reveal missteps in implementing Agile practices in these situations. Finally, we will review a Toolbox of strategies and concepts that can help remedy the issues. Toolbox strategies include:
- Getting Agile in at the “ground floor” (from proposal through contract)
- Creating contracts that are “looser” in scope - value-based vs. scope based
- Determining the team velocity in advance and sizing the entire backlog to derive duration of project (given current backlog)
- Including a definition of Done for the project
- Creating an Agile Evangelist at the client
After walking through the three concept areas, we will break the group into teams and have them each work through a possible scenario composed of one Situation and one or more Failure Signs (either from our presentation or as suggested by the group), and ask each team to suggest remedies either from the Toolbox or from their own experience. We will then have each team debrief to the group.