Next up in the 4th session, what assumptions are we making when we decide to skip estimation? This produced some interesting results and likewise we realized that some assumptions are the same between the two, though there were some subtle differences in how they get worded. Like before we explored the first set then discussed those we felt had significant difference.
- That we know enoughto do the right thing
- The team gets more value from starting work sooner
- That our work is emergent in nature
- We can commit to a high level objective versus a detailed plan
- We know the value of what we’re building or have a testable/measurable hypothesis of value
- That what we are doing is actually not some form of estimating
- Underestimating that is just another easy one, but not
- Heroics are a given (to get the work done)
- The estimates are wrong or don’t provide value
- We can deliver working software frequently
- Estimates are wrong so why bother
- We have a collective sharing of the risk (with the business or person hiring us)
- We can properly measure progress or ROI
- That dependent items can identified just in time (timed w/our release)
- We don’t need to help someone else understand why they should spend their $|£|¥|€|rubles
- There are our limits to our knowledge (and we don’t always know those limits)
- That we don’t need them
- We’ve defined the system into a predictable state of behavior
- We need to discover what we need to do
- The team understands what the highest priority work is and can make a plan without estimation
The 3rd session began our exploration of assumptions underneath making estimations. We explored the first 12 in detail, and then hit ones that significantly differed from these 12 in the list below the line. (People voted on their individual top assumption by placing it above the line.)
Agile Dialogues 