1. Implementing the Lean Concepts
of
Continuous Improvement and Flow
on
an Agile Software Development Project - An Industrial Case Study
Balachander S & Karuna Jain
Feb 17, 2012

2. Agenda
Background
Results
Process
Lessons

3. Project Overview
 Agile software development project executed at
ThoughtWorks
 Web-based application development project
 Distributed across India and UK (Customer location)
 Team Size: 9-12 members
 Duration: 25 weeks
 Team experience on agile methods: 21 person-years
 Iteration length – 1 week
 Technology – Ruby-on-Rails, MySQL
Background

4. Value to the Customer
 Releasing often in small increments
 Good user experience
Attractive User Interface
Quick response time
Defect-free experience
 Continuous improvement to be displayed
within the project
Background

5. Continuous Improvement
 Story Rate: Story points closed/Dev. days worked
Results

6. Cumulative Flow Diagram
Results

7. Regression Results
Defined R2 = 0.97 Slope = 34.53
In
R2 = 0.99 Slope = 35.22
Development
Development
R2 = 0.99 Slope = 35.09
Complete
Test R2 = 0.99 Slope = 35.09
Complete
Approved &
Closed R2 = 0.99 Slope = 34.91
Results

8. Development Process
Process

9. Lessons Learned
Understanding
Value to the
customer
Close collaboration
Lessons

10. Lessons Learned
Standard Unit of Estimation
Infrastructure Setup
Lessons

11. Lessons Learned
Coding Standards
&
Engineering Practices
Continuous Prioritization
Lessons

12. Lessons Learned
Right Metrics
No Silos
Lessons

13. Lessons Learned
Mindset towards Defects
Culture of Trust
Lessons

14. Thank You
Balachander Swaminathan, bala@thoughtworks.com