1. Get onboard with SCRUM…
Yann GENSOLLEN
GENERALI – Direction INTERNET
2. Why Generali chose Scrum for Project
Management ?
‘agile’ methodologies support Project Management
They are used in software development to :
Maximize customer’s involvement thus enabling a very good reactivity
to meet his requirement
Be more pragmatic than with traditional methodologies
Completely meet the customer’s requirements
3. Why Generali chose Scrum for Project
Management ?
The context in which Generali’s management chose Scrum :
Deliver a first release its on-line insurance web site ‘www.generali.fr’ 5 month
after kick-off
High benefit and stake project
Strong support from Managing staff
Very active sponsor
Very short deadlines
Adopt a new methodology that enable to :
Meet the short timeframes to have the first web site release operational
Be able to bring subsequent web site enhancements with very short development cycles
4. Well-identified roles within each project
Scrum team
Product Owner
Scrummaster
Maitrise d’œuvre Maitrise d’ouvrage
5. Well-identified roles within each project
Product Owner = ship owner
Define destination and content of each software release
May refine requirements for each new release
Scrummaster = captain
Like the ship’s captain, the scrummaster is the only master
on board
His role is to protect his team against project scope
between each release
He has to alert and take full responsibility to start a new
release if requirements defined by the Product Owner can
not be met
Project release = stopovers
After each release, ‘sprint reviews’ give the team the
opportunity to show work results to the Product Owner
Product owner may refine his requirements according to
what has been temporarily done, and eventually add new
items depending on external events.
6. Scrum methodology benefits
Advantages
Focus the whole team on real developments with short cycles, Scrum :
Improves team productivity, compared to previous ‘less flexible’ methodologies
Center processes on individuals and their creativity, improves team interactions where
previous V-cycle methodologies would have required more documentation and project
management efforts without necessarily showing the real project progress status
Brings the customer back in the core processes by enabling a product refinement after each
‘sprint’ release
Additionally, each ‘sprint cycle’ enables to measure team performance and efficiency (number of points collected
during each ‘sprint’ cycle) and calculate in a more accurate the real project status
7. Lessons learnt on Generali’s experience
Relationships within the team
Better communication and understanding within the team, improved transparency on individuals
difficulties, confidence and team involvement
Project management
Improves project prioritization and flexibility
Responsibilities and task sharing improvement,
Ease project reporting and decision making
Better project completion visibility through ‘sprint’ reviews
Cost efficiency control through functional adjustments
Developments and deadlines
Features optimization, developments accuracy, shorten life-cycles
Capitalization / Optimization of the product after each ‘sprint’
Project visibility
Good management and other actors reporting and visibility through ‘sprint’ reviews
Emphasize team individuals
8. Lessons learnt : recommendations
After 1,5 year of exposure of the Scrum methodology, main recommandations
are :
Methodology implementation requires full support from operational users and IT management
A very well prepared sprint 0 review (startup and preparation phase)
Requires to have a full product backlog for the first release
Implement a continuous integration and testing automation
Name a person in charge of the project follow-up
Start methodology implementation on project with limited impacts on others
Important not to forget the associated documentation (specifications update during the full life-
cycle, WIKI for technical aspects)