This is the sixth article of the Makuake Advent Calendar 2022!
Overview
Recently, I have been frequently contemplating process improvements for Scrum teams and thought I might find some hints for Kaizen by reading Agile Metrics.
The original work is probably Agile Metrics in Action, a book published a few years ago.
What are Agile Metrics?
Agile metrics are metrics used to measure the performance of agile teams.
Metrics collect data related to the definition of performance for the team from the team's processes. Specifically, this involves gathering data from tools used in the team's activities, such as project management, source code management, build systems, and monitoring.
Agile metrics aim to improve performance, and practices such as Weponaize (using metrics to blame teams or individuals) and Gaming (focusing solely on improving metrics) are not recommended.
It is important to observe the team's situation and the changes occurring from the metrics, and to engage in a cycle of learning that leads to improvement.
What is Discussed in This Book
In Agile Metrics, hints are provided in response to the following questions:
- How do you measure performance in an agile team?
- Where do you collect data for metrics?
- Trends and insights about the data that can be obtained from tools such as project management, source code management, build systems, and monitoring
- How to create usable metrics?
- How to measure team performance based on agile principles
Impressions
To measure team performance, it is essential to consider what aspects of performance to measure and what constitutes good performance for the team. I believe this is the first thing to tackle.
To define metrics that lead to action, it seems necessary to have some predictions about what insights can be gained from the data. This is the part I find most challenging about agile metrics, as opposed to system monitoring. Should we learn from experience? I would like to know more about examples related to this.
Even from a single data point, various insights can be revealed depending on the analysis method, but when it comes to collecting data from multiple sources, I often thought that preparing that foundation is quite cumbersome... It seems there are convenient services available, but...
