Kenneth S. Rubin - Essential Scrum: A Practical Guide to the Most Popular Agile Process

A Practical Guide to the Most Popular Agile Process

Kenneth S. Rubin

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Rubin, Kenneth S.
Essential Scrum : a practical guide to the most popular agile process / Kenneth S. Rubin.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-13-704329-3 (pbk. : alk. paper)ISBN 0-13-704329-5 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Scrum (Computer software development) 2. Agile software development. 3. Project
management. I. Title.
QA76.76.D47R824 2012
005.1dc23
2012010892

Copyright 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.

Agile visual icon language copyright Kenneth S. Rubin and used with permission.

All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. This publication is protected by copyright, and permission must be obtained from the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or likewise. To obtain permission to use material from this work, please submit a written request to Pearson Education, Inc., Permissions Department, One Lake Street, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458, or you may fax your request to (201) 236-3290.

ISBN-13: 978-0-13-704329-3
ISBN-10: 0-13-704329-5
Text printed in the United States on recycled paper at Edwards Brothers Malloy in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
First printing, July 2012

Agile coaches, youre gonna be happy with this book. Kenny Rubin has created an indispensable resource for us. Do you have a manager who just doesnt get it? Hand them this book and ask them to flip to for a complete explanation of how Scrum is less risky than plan-driven management. Its written just for themin management-speak. Want to help the team come to a common understanding of Scrum? The visual icon language used throughout this book will help you help them. These are just two ways this book can aid you to coach Scrum teams. Use it well.

Lyssa Adkins, Coach of Agile Coaches, Agile Coaching Institute; author, Coaching Agile Teams

One of the best, most comprehensive descriptions of the core Scrum framework out there! Essential Scrum is for anyonenew to or experienced with Scrumwhos interested in the most important aspects of the process. Kenny does an excellent job of distilling the key tenets of the Scrum framework into a simple format with compelling visuals. As a Scrum coach for many teams, I continually reference the material for new ways to help teams that are learning and practicing the framework. Ive seen Scrum continually misinterpreted and poorly implemented by big companies and tool vendors for more than ten years. Reading this book will help you get back to the basics and focus on whats important.

Joe Balistrieri, Process Development Manager, Rockwell Automation

Corporate IT leadership, which has been slow to embrace agile methods, would benefit immensely from giving a copy of this book to all of their project and delivery managers. Kenny Rubin has laid out in this book all the pragmatic business case and process materials needed for any corporate IT shop to successfully implement Scrum.

John F. Bauer III, veteran of technical solution delivery in large corporate IT shops

Kennys extensive experience as a consultant, trainer, and past managing director of the Scrum Alliance is evident in this book. Along with providing the basics and introduction to Scrum, this book addresses the questions of masseswhat happens to project managers? Essential Scrum helps us understand the big picture and guides how organization leaders can support and be involved with their Scrum teams for successful agile transformations.

Sameer S. Bendre, CSM, PMP, Senior Consultant, 3i Infotech Inc.

If youre new to agile development or to Scrum, this book will give you a flying start. The examples and descriptions are clear and vivid, and youll often find yourself asking a question just before the book addresses that very topic.

Johannes Brodwall, Principal Solution Architect, Steria Norway

Kennys well-structured explanations have a clarity to them that echoes the sensibilities of Smalltalkthe development environment with which he worked for years and from which both Scrum and Extreme Programming were born. This book pulls together a thorough set of agile management principles that really hit the mark and will no doubt guide you toward a more effective agile approach.

Rowan Bunning, Founder, Scrum WithStyle

There are lots of books on Scrum these days, but this book takes a new angle: a reality check for software practitioners. Kenny uses real-world examples and clear illustrations to show what makes a solid foundation for successful agile development. Readers will understand the value of building quality in, and the reality that we cant get everything right up front; we must work incrementally and learn as we go. It might have Scrum in the title, but the book leverages effective practices from the larger agile universe to help managers and their teams succeed.

Lisa Crispin, coauthor, Agile Testing

Kenny Rubin managed to write the book that I want everyone associated with Scrum development to read! He covers everything youll need to know about Scrum and more!

Martine Devos, European Scrum Pioneer and Certified Scrum Trainer

Ive reviewed a number of agile books in the past few years, so the question of Do we really need another one? always comes to my mind. In the case of Kennys book, I very much believe the answer is yes. Getting the benefit of different, experienced perspectives on commonly encountered and needed material is valuable. Kenny has one of those valuable perspectives. One unique aspect of the book is an interesting iconographya new icon language for Scrum and agile that Kenny has created. I believe youll find value-added material in this book to expand your ideas for how Scrum can be applied.

Scott Duncan, Agile/Scrum coach and trainer

Anyone who has had Scrum training or has been part of a Scrum team will find Essential Scrum to be a great follow-up read. It dives into the details of how to become more agile through implementing Scrum processes, and it explains exactly how to break down complex projects into manageable initiatives (or sprints). Kenny Rubin provides a wealth of relevant case studies on what workedor what didntin a variety of organizations. The simple layout and businesslike graphics make it easy to scan quickly and find specific topics. Any organization that is seeking to evolve from a traditional waterfall approach toward a more agile methodology will find