program selection system

Many meeting and training sessions rely on exercises in which the group generates data, which is then reviewed to create an understanding of the possible answers to a posed question. Variations on this theme can be found in reviews of business proposals and prioritizing requirements. Thiagi (full name Sivasailam Thiagarajan) has created so called ‘frame games’ that allow an adaption to the specific needs of a situation.

In this workshop I will provide an introduction of the frame-games to the participants. We then actually run a game, to become familiar with the concept and to select the framework which we will use in the workshop. Given a reference structure which I will provide (i.e. which kind of decision will the game which we design support) I will put the group to work (and participate) in creating the game. Once done we’ll run it, to learn if the game needs tuning.

While delivering the Agile Mastery and Agile Estimation and Planning courses as part of Valtech’s Agile training programs, Tim developed the “Scrum Accelerator”, a simulation activity game. This is a very fun and a ‘generatively’ competitive training tool that re-enforces the scrum process and agile best practices. By using a timer to simulate the days in a sprint, a dice is rolled moving stories and tasks forward (and sometimes backwards!) through the scrum task board. Students maintain iteration burn downs at the end of each period of play, and release burn down bar charts each round.

Are We Done Yet?

We will play a team game that will enforce that a User Story is not done until it meets the acceptance criteria. If the User Story is not done, you do not earn the points. Teams often want “partial credit” or to say the User Story is complete and carry the defects over. We will then have a retrospective of what we learned.

We had lots of fun at Agile 2007 and look forward to Agile 2008

—— begin 90 word abstract ——
This fun, energetic, and interactive session will explore techniques for accelerating the adoption and understanding of Agile principles through experiential learning . The audience will participate in games and exercises that will illustrate how to target unique learning Vectors (Physical, Emotional, and Impressional) to maximize understanding. This session is for anyone looking to learn new and powerful techniques to convey and reinforce the concepts and principles behind Agile. All participants will leave with a complete toolkit containing descriptions of all the games and exercises.
—— end 90 word abstract ——

Overview

playground |ˈplāˌground| noun
a place where a particular group of people choose to enjoy themselves :

• the mountains are a playground for hang gliders.
• this session is a playground for Agile teachers and learners.

This fun, energetic, and interactive session will explore the concept of experiential learning and how it accelerates the adoption and understanding of Agile principles. The audience will participate in games and exercises that will illustrate how to target unique learning Vectors (Physical, Emotional, and Impressional) to maximize understanding.

I am going to attend this session because;

• I want to have fun.
• I am an instructor and I want to learn new and powerful techniques to convey and reinforce the concepts and priniples behind Agile.
• I am a coach or Scrummaster and I need efficient and effective tools to help teams become confident and capable at applying Agile practices as quickly as possible.
• I am a lead on my team and I need a toolset to change the way my team works together
• I am new to Agile and I want to learn the principles behind Agile in a fun and interactive way.

All participants will leave with a complete set of all the games and exercises.