Scenario 1: Intergenerational Issues

You are a consultant and you have been contacted by a small app development company that is proud of its innovation and speed to market. However there are some conflicts in the office between people of different generations. There are six main people in the teamand the team currently works on projects together.

1. The two head developers are in their late fifties. They take time to set a time table to complete projects, and they want to stick to it. They prefer to focus mainly on one project at a time, because they believe it produces better results. The head developers are the only people who interact with customers.

2. The graphic designer and lead programmer are in their mid to late thirties. They like to follow a set schedule, however they often become frustrated with the head developers because they feel they could be working on multiple projects. Also, they are more willing to change project plans to meet changing circumstances.

3. The two junior developers are in their early twenties. They find it difficult to focus on one project for long periods, and they find if they are working on several projects at the same time, they tend to be more creative and motivated. The look at project schedules as 'fluid' and subject to change almost on a daily basis.

4. At the moment, the company only has one monthly meeting between the six members. The meeting is rarely productive and most of the time the members leave the meeting dissatisfied. The team feels that this lack of communication and progress is beginning to impact customers.

As a consultant, you have been asked to solve this issue using Agile Methodology. In particular, you should consider:

Dividing projects

Kanban Boards (https://www.atlassian.com/agile/kanban)

Scrum Meetings

Sprints

Delivering early to customers and incorporating feedback

Evaluating the process

PROCESS (Please perform the process together as a team)

1. Clearly identify the current problems, and outline the negative effects.

2. Make a plan about how you would solve or improve this issue. Aim for around 5 or 6 specific actions or changes you would make.

3. Now examine your solutions and make sure you adapt them to follow Agile values. In particular, make sure they follow the four principles below.

a) valuing individuals and face to face interactions

b) producing working results quickly

c) collaborating early and often with customers

d) fast evaluation of success and responding quickly to change

4. What risks are there in your approach? Identify TWO possible risks, and how you would minimize them