This is the guest lecture I gave for MIT's Hacking IAP course for startups (modified to add some bullets with talking points).

1. Agile for Startups
MIT Entrepreneurship Center
15.S51 IAP Special Seminar in Management: Hacking IAP
Abby Fichtner
Developer Evangelist for Startups, Microsoft
@HackerChick
http://HackerChick.com

2. MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

3. Lean Principles
Eliminate Waste
Deliver Fast Optimize the Whole
Create Knowledge Defer Commitment
Respect People Build Quality In
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

4. Create Value
Don’t be Wasteful
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

5. Scrum
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

6. Scrum Helps Us Be Agile & Lean
by Helping Us To:
• Ensure we’re moving forward quickly
• Continuously turn out value to customer
• Stay on track
– Checkpoints & feedback loops
– Make course corrections along the way based on what
we’ve learned
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

7. OH at Lean Startup Circle Meetup
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

8. To Do In Progress Done
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

9. To Do In Progress Done
3 1
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

10. Kanban Provides Scheduling Alternative
• Not constrained by fixed length sprints
• Can deliver next MVP as soon as it is ready
• Still limits Work In Progress to ensure focus
• Can also limit backlog so not weighed down by 100s
of To Do/Wish list features
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

11. To Do In Progress Done
3 1
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

12. To Do In Progress Done
3 1
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

13. To Do In Progress Done
3 1
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

14. Kanban Lets Team Analyze Flow
• As team grows, can specify different workload capacities for different
capabilities
• Kanban board provides visual, real-time status of team’s workflow
• Can continuously optimize process
• As bottlenecks occur, resources are gradually moved to bottleneck
until it opens
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

15. To Do Dev Test Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

16. To Do Dev Test Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

17. To Do Dev Test Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

18. To Do Dev Test Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

19. Dev
To Do Test Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

20. Dev Test
To Do Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

21. Dev Test
To Do Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

22. Dev Test
To Do Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

23. Dev Test
To Do Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

24. Dev Test
To Do Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

25. To Do Dev Test
Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

26. To Do Dev Test Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

27. To Do Dev Test Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

28. To Do Dev Test Release Done
5 3 2 3
F D
FLOW
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

29. Or for Early-Stage Startups, Kanban…
• Let’s team focus on just the next Minimum Viable Product
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

30. To Do In Progress Done
3 1
D
Kanban
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

31. Solution: Unknown
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

32. Problem: Unknown Solution: Unknown
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

33. Problem: Unknown Solution: Unknown
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

34. Problem: Unknown Solution: Unknown
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

35. Problem: Unknown Solution: Unknown
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

36. Problem: Unknown Solution: Unknown
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

37. MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

38. To Do In Progress Done
3 1
D
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

39. To Do In Progress Validated Learning Done
3 1 1
D
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

40. If we're building something that nobody wants, why are
we so proud of being on time & on budget? @EricRies
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick

41. Learn More
• http://HackerChick.com
– Agile vs. Lean: Yeah Yeah, What’s the Difference?
– Kanban is the New Scrum
• Scrum: http://MountainGoatSoftware.com
(and/or any of Mike Cohn’s books)
• Lean:
– Lean Software: any books by the Poppendiecks
– Lean Manufacturing: The Toyota Way (book)
– http://NetObjectives.com (kanban resources too)
MIT Hacking IAP - @HackerChick