Agile In Highly Regulated Environments

Agile in Highly Regulated Environments

Alastair Brown Head of Delivery

Agenda

RegulationWhat is it?The Need for.Methodology Choices

MethodologiesWaterfall featuresAgile Engineering The ManifestoThe Principals

BenefitsProjectProgrammeProgrammeBusiness

The Case StudyOverviewThe Agile Toolbox Integration with the waterfall governance processesConstraintsThe OutcomesRegulation requirements and the Agile outcomes.

Questions

Highly Regulated Environments

Serial process

Gated entry and exit

Documentation, review and signoff

Regulation

Documentation, review and signoff

Governance Hierarchy

Micro management and a plan way into the future

Highly resistant to change

The Need for Regulation

Why do we Regulate?

• Perception that regulation…

Demonstrates due diligence and best practiceDemonstrates due diligence and best practice

Deliver increased quality

Reliable outcomes

Show accountability

Choices

Constraints on choice of methodology

Customer mandate to satisfy process constraints

Software releases to support Legislation

Regulators or industry authority requirements

Adversity to risk

Scale of the problem

Criticality of the solution

Agenda





Questions

Waterfall Features

Wasted development

Exceeded cost / schedule

Under deliver features

Actual use of Requested features on Traditional Software Projects

Often / Always 20%

Sometimes 16%

Rarely 19%

Never 45%Often / Always

Sometimes

Rarely

Never

Source: Johnsen 2002

Lack of flexibilityRequirements Change by Project Size

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

0 10 100 1000 10000 100000 1000000

Project Size in Function Points

Requir

em

ents

Change %

Requirements Change %

Source: Jones97

Leading to…

Projects that Fail

Proportion of Projects Failing

40

50

60

Suceeded

Source: The CHAOS report -

Standish Group

0

10

20

30

1998 2000 2002 2004 2006

Year

%

Suceeded

Failed

Challenged

Agile Project Methodology

Agile software engineering methodologies have been proven to deliver to cost time and budget

A benchmark of 29 Agile development projects against a database of 7,500

primarily traditional development projects found the Agile projects were:-primarily traditional development projects found the Agile projects were:-

• 37 percent faster delivering their software to market

• 16 percent more productive

• Able to maintain normal defect counts despite significant schedule compression

Source: QSMA May 2008

Agile Principals

Focus only on delivery of software that adds business value

Welcome changing requirements – and know the impact of that change

Deliver working software frequently and regularly

Enable and ensure constant and consistent face-to-face interaction between Business people and Developers

Build performant motivated teams, provide the tools and remove impediments

Progress measured by working, delivered, accepted software Progress measured by working, delivered, accepted software

Ensure and enable sustainable development pace and quality

Provide consistent technical excellence and quality

Simplicity

Self organisation

Inspect, learn and adapt

Agenda





Questions

Project Benefits of Agile

Enables, encourages, and in fact demands, frequent and regular detailed planning rather than a plan derived when the Cone Of Uncertainty is wide” (Relies on planning, rather than following a plan)

Exposes impediments earlier

Increases discipline and rigour

Increases estimating accuracy

Regular and frequent demonstration of software to ensure a consistent Regular and frequent demonstration of software to ensure a consistent and evolutionary understanding between the delivery team and the business users ensuring “no surprises in UAT” (Zero defects).

A proven structure to apply meaningful metrics that meet the benefit/burden balance

Programme Benefits of Agile

Improved organised interaction of project teams with

each other and other stakeholders

Improved visibility of programme conflicts to the

project teams

Identifies an empowered customer representative to Identifies an empowered customer representative to

improve influence of stakeholders.

Addresses the failings in Time and Cost overruns and

Quality issues that are inherent within Waterfall

Business Benefits of Agile

Quicker / Increased ROI

Increased Net Cumulative Cash Flow

Predictable and measurable pace

Predictable deliverables and outcomes, aligned with Business needs and benefitswith Business needs and benefits

Established, consistent and continual quality

Visible quantifiable progress

Agenda





Questions

The Case Study

Large scale software release of three projects

Public sector, social security domain

Systems Integrator with CMMI Level 5 rating

History of budget and schedule overrun

Software to support change to legislation Software to support change to legislation

A track record of requirements ambiguity and poor

definition

Customer mandate to follow a waterfall QMS process

The Agile Toolbox

RolesProduct OwnerScrum MasterScrum Team

Artefacts

OtherImpedimentSprintVelocityUnit TestRetrospectives

Release burn down chartProduct backlogSprint backlog

RetrospectivesDemonstration

Integration with the Waterfall

Sprint and release burn down - RAG and morning prayers, schedule reviews, change board get improved visibility.

Daily Standups – Fed the risk review board

Unit Testing – became the “sign off” artefact for the Unit Testing – became the “sign off” artefact for the sprint.

Demonstration – Made UAT self fulfilling

Product Owner – fulfilled the communication plan

Burn Down

Automated Unit Test Coverage

What was constrained

Continuous Integration

UAT

Deployment

Documents to satisfy governance process

The Outcome

Risk of schedule overrun identified very early enabling mitigation

Highest quality, lowest defect rates, for many years

Simplest UAT testing seen for many years

Work continues on satisfying the formal process

Project delivered successfully, to budget and time, meeting Project delivered successfully, to budget and time, meeting the legislative date.

Subsequent release embracing agile methods, with less duplication

Team trained and coached became enthusiastic evangelists

Regulator aspirations / Agile Outcomes

Demonstrates due diligence and best practice ��

Deliver increased quality ��

��Reliable outcomes ��

Show accountability ��

Level 1 - Ad hoc (Chaotic) Typically undocumented process Unrepeatable often relying on heroics State of dynamic change in an uncontrolled and reactive manner

Level 2 – Managed RepeatableSome processes are repeatable, possibly with consistent resultsLimited rigour, although processes usually maintained during times of stress

Level 3 - DefinedDefined and documented standard processes establishedDelivering consistency across the organisation

and Agile Characteristics

Delivering consistency across the organisationSome degree of improvement

Level 4 – Quantitatively ManagedUse of process metrics allows for control of the processAbility to adjust and adapt the process to particular projects without measurable losses of quality or deviations from specifications

Level 5 - OptimisingFocus on continually improving process performance through both incremental and innovative technological changes and improvements

Where to start

Understand your current position and aspirations; plan and action your first next step, then Inspect and Adapt

Be as Agile as you are (currently) able; within your (any) current constraints

Be pragmatic; utilise any interventions to deliver Be pragmatic; utilise any interventions to deliver outcomes

Do not assume that your constraints prevent the implementation of Agile practices; do not prepare the Barrel for the Waterfall

Agile in Highly Regulated Environments

Questions?

Alastair Brown Head of Delivery

Waterfall financial profile

Waterfall financial profile

Max

Working

Capital

Break

Even

Point?

Agile financial profile


Max

Working

CapitalBreak

Even

Point


Max

Working

Capital

Break

Even

Point

Technology

Agile In Highly Regulated Environments