DSDM Practice - Timeboxing

Question 1

What is a timebox?

Answer 1

Timebox as a fixed period of time, at the end of which an objective has been met. The Timebox objective is usually completion of one or more deliverables.

Question 2

What is the optimum timebox lenght?

Answer 2

2-4 weeks as it keeps the SDT focused

Question 3

What do timeboxes support?

Answer 3

Creation of products in an iterative but controlled fashion.

Timeboxes include review points to ensure quality remains high

Question 4

What are the two types of timeboxes?

Answer 4

both begin with a kick off and end with a close out.

1. DSDM Structured TImebox
2. A free format timebox

Question 5

Detail a DSDM Structured Timebox

Answer 5

allow forward planning of the times when the Business Ambassador will attend specific planning, feedback and review sessions.
By projecting this structure forward to future Timeboxes, it becomes possible to schedule the various Timebox control points (kick-off, the three reviews, close-out) for all the Timeboxes in the Project Increment.

Question 6

What are the three DSDM Structured Timebox steps?

Answer 6

Investigation: 10-20%. timebox deliverables, timebox acceptance criteria and measures of success for the box
Refinement: 60-80% development, addressing requirements and testing the timebox products. Priorities should be driven by MoSCoW. Refinement ends with a review which informs Consolidation.
Consolidation: 10-20% ties up any loose ends in Evolutionary Development and ensures that all products meet their previously agreed acceptance criteria. It ends with a review which informs Close-out

Question 7

What occurs at the beginning and end of the Structured Timebox

Answer 7

Kickoff: review timebox deliverables as outlined in the Delivery Plan. Ensure it is still feasible to deliver what was agreed in the timebox. Agree acceptance criteria. Review resourcing and commit and highlight any dependencies. STD, PM, Business Ambassador, Business Visionary and Tech Coordinator to attend

Close-out: 1-3 hours. Formal acceptance of the timebox deliverables by the Business Visionary and Technical Coordinator. Incompleted timebox tasks are then considered for the next time box, scheduled for some point later in the Project Increment or project, or dropped from the project

Question 8

Define a free format timebox

Answer 8

Using in other Agile styles: The free format Timebox also starts with a Kick-off and finishes with a Close-out. However in between, there may be any number of formal or informal review points. Typically the Solution Development Team will pick up one or more products or requirements/User Stories and evolve these iteratively until completed. Completion means a product of requirement/User Story meets the previously agreed acceptance criteria.

Question 9

What technique supports successful timebox planning

Answer 9

The Stand-up:

Has the following active participants :
All members of the Solution Development Team including Business Ambassador(s)
Any Business Advisors actively involved in this Timebox
Any Technical Advisors actively involved in this Timebox.
It shares information across the team.
Has a short and fixed duration – normally no longer than 15 minutes
2 minutes per participant + 2 minutes is a good guide

Question 10

What changes within a timebox need to be dealt with?

Answer 10

the following scenarios always mean a change of scope and therefore need more formal management (outside the empowerment of the Solution Development Team):

Changing the breadth of the solution (i.e. adding to the high-level requirements or removing Must Have requirements)
Increasing the percentage of Must Have effort, either by introduction of new Must Have requirements, or by upgrading Won’t Have, Could Have or Should Have priorities to Must Haves