Prioritizing and Sequencing Features: several techniques including “Minimal Marketable Features”
short form for 90 word session description:
Basic backlogs for a simple project are easy to prioritize and sequence. Backlogs for complex programs of many teams and many interdependent projects, (or complex product suites) are harder to measure value and prioritize. Deriving the optimal story sequence in the release plan in order to maximize project value requires a more scientific approach.
This session will introduce a set of heuristics and tools that will provide a solid introduction and practical tools. It will also describe the flaws of some commonly used financial model project selection techniques.
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Basic backlogs for a simple project are easy to prioritize and sequence, and we trust our Product Owners to prioritize the backlog and sequence stories into the release plan, after considering information on dependencies and risks provided by the team.
Backlogs for complex programs consisting of many teams and many interdependent projects, (or complex product suites) are much harder to measure and compare value and prioritize. Deriving the optimal story sequence in the release plan in order to maximize project value requires a more scientific approach.
This session will introduce a set of heuristics and tools that will provide a solid introduction and practical tools. It will also describe the flaws of some commonly used financial model project selection techniques.
Along with Kano and others, we will introduce “Incremental Funding Method” (Denne and Cleland-Huang) that can help you with roadmap and release planning. The Incremental Funding Method is a data driven financially informed (recognizes intangibles) approach to backlog prioritization and sequencing. IFM and the concept of the “Minimal Marketable Feature” fit harmoniously with incremental delivery of software per Agile, and can help define a path to dramatically accelerate ROI and reduce risk in projects.
- Features, epics, themes, stories, and backlog management
- Measuring value in features
- Quick review of standard financial measures (ROI, NPV, IRR, breakeven, etc); which are more or less useful in an Agile/Lean environment, and how do measures apply to agile
- Introduction to several feature prioritization techniques
- Kano analysis, theme screening, theme scoring, relative weighting, buy a feature and other games
- Incremental Funding Method
- Defining Minimal Marketable Features
- Explain the IFM Heuristic (guidance to approach optimal time adjusted NPV for ea possible sequence start date)
- How to make projects “self-funding” with IMF
- Sequencing features with complex dependency chains
- Prioritizing and sequencing features w intangeable benefits
- Incorporating measures of risk
- Difference between financially informed (IFM), and financially driven
- How do we talk to Finance and Line of Business to manage value better, and become more Agile together
What is the IFM heuristic? There is no algorithmic solution to maximizing the NPV of a software development project with multiple features. The problem is a category that mathematicians call NP-Complete. The only way to find the optimum sequence is to calculate the NPV of all feasible sequences and choose the best one. For all but the simplest projects, this is not computationally feasible in finite time. The IFM heuristic provides a way to quickly identify a near-optimal sequence without resorting to unfeasible computational overhead.