ScrumTale – The Scrum Simulation...

ScrumTale – The Scrum Simulation Game by AgileBrains.pl

License ........................................................................................................................................................... 1

Game overview .............................................................................................................................................. 2

Goals of this game ......................................................................................................................................... 2

The Game Scenario ........................................................................................................................................ 5

Game Sprint 1 ................................................................................................................................................ 5

Game Sprint 2 ................................................................................................................................................ 6

Game Sprint 3 ................................................................................................................................................ 6

Debrief ........................................................................................................................................................... 7

Appendix: Timing chart ................................................................................................................................. 8

Appendix: Game Plots / User Stories cards ................................................................................................... 9

License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Version: 0.2

28th March 2018

http://agilebrains.pl/

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

ScrumTale – The Scrum Game by AgileBrains.pl

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Game overview ScrumTale is a Scrum simulation game. Teams will write a crime story simultaneously, using google docs

on their laptops. The goal is to write the greatest tale ever.

Collaborative story writing is very similar to software production: you can observe the same issues with

integration, bugs, tools and team interactions. This game is a perfect tool to practice various Scrum roles.

You can experience how difficult it is to be a PO or SM during stormy process of writing a story.

Game covers Scrum scaling elements as well. Multiple teams write one book (product) with different

plots (set of features) with the same main character (component).

This document describes game instructions for two teams. One facilitator is sufficient, however, second

one helps with the customer role.

Goals of this game Experience Scrum ceremonies.

Experience Scrum scaling issues.

Experience self-organization under time pressure.

Experience continuous improvement process.

Experience how different roles contribute to product development

Experience integration issues, defects in product increment, tool issues.

Experience emergent leadership.

Observe Team building process: Forming, Storming, Norming and Performing phases

Have fun writing and reading your story

Duration: ~4h without breaks

Recommended number of participants – Two teams (6-9 people per each team).

Stationery and preparation Preparation list:

1. Magnets (for backlogs).

2. Red post-its (for defects).

3. Yellow post-its (for ad-hoc story requests from the Customer/PO or defined by Team).

4. Flipchart with events timeboxes where you can mark current event.

5. Flipchart/Whiteboard with Product Backlog (Ranked list – the most important story at the top).

6. Flipchart/Whiteboard with Sprint backlogs (Todo, In Progress, Ready for Deploy, Done).

7. Printout of the User Stories.

8. Google Docs or similar environment.

9. Easy URL for the shared Doc (e.g. using bit.ly or other service).





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The Product, The Book, Tales and Plots Business goal is to write a book with multiple crime tales. Each tale must include a love plot and a

murder. The whole book must share the same main character (the Detective).

The Book (product) – consist of multiple Tales written by separate Development Teams.

The Tale (set of features) – single crime story from the book written by a single Development Team.

Each tale must share the Detective character.

The Plot – single User Story / requirement which needs to be implemented in the Tale.

The Detective (component) – the Detective character must be consistent in each Tale. It simulates

component of a software product.

Development Teams will write the tale in chunks called Plots. Each Plot is represented by User Story.

User Story description will contain new Tale element and estimated Business Value in ($, $$, $$$, $$$$).

Plots are defined in Appendix: Game Plots. Each team gets the same set of user stories (yes … you can

write your own user stories).

The Book and Tales must be “potentially shippable” after every Sprint.

Facilitation:

1. Prepare the product backlog and team scrum boards on the whiteboard. Prepare two copies of

story printouts. One copy will be attached to the flipchart/ whiteboard, second will be available

for the teams during the sprint.

2. You can try to introduce Story Point scale, but be careful not to overwhelm the participants with

new information.

Roles Game defines several roles:

1. One Customer (this role is played by the game facilitator).

2. One Chief Product Owner.

Chief PO is responsible for vision of the whole book. Chief PO works closely with Product Owners

and the Customer.

3. Two Product Owners (one per team).

Each Product Owner is responsible for one Tale vision, backlog scope and priorities. Product

Owner works closely with Chief Product Owner, another Product Owner and the Development

Team.

4. Two Scrum Masters (one per team).

5. Two Development Teams (3-4 people).

Each Development Team is responsible for delivery of one Tale (and together for the whole Book).

It is recommended that during the gameplay, participants play roles that are related to their professional

position.





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Plots (User Stories) Definition of Done 1. The Book must be consistent.

2. Each Tale must be consistent.

3. The Detective character must be consistent among all Tales.

4. Chronology must be kept along all Plots.

5. It must have beginning, content and closure.

6. No grammar and punctuation mistakes.

7. Font: Arial, 11pt, black color.

Sprints 1. There will be 3 Sprints in the game (1, 2, 3).

2. Each sprint has 3 days1.

3. Each day starts with daily stand-up followed by implementation (writing the story).

4. Make stand-up meetings a standing meeting

5. Each sprint (except Sprint 1) starts with RRP (Review, Retrospective, Planning) session.

Facilitation:

1. Prepare metrics board using flipchart. In each sprint note how many Stories each team

committed for the Sprint and how many Stories have been delivered. Explain the SM’s that it will

be their responsibility to track metrics.

Game preparation 1. Prepare Google Docs document

2. Share the shortened URL with the participants

3. Prepare whiteboard and product backlog.

4. Explain game rules.

5. Split the group into two teams

6. Assign roles and explain responsibilities

7. Check if everybody has Google Docs access.

1 You can experiment with different time boxes. It’s possible to have just one time box for sprint without separate days.





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The Game Scenario The game starts here

Meeting with the customer The game starts with the customer kick-off meeting: The customer explains the business need and

business value of the product.

Product Backlog refinement PO leads Product Backlog refinement. He/she needs to explain stories and priorities.

Game Sprint 1

Planning 1. Teams pick new stories from Product Backlog and add them to the Sprint Backlog.

2. Teams make Sprint commitment.

Work Each team writes the Tale Plots planned for this Sprint. Sprint work is divided into three days (see section

“Sprints”).

Facilitation:

1. Make sure PO is working with Teams and the Customer.

2. Make sure SMs actively support Teams and identify impediments.

3. Inform about time left to the end of each day.

4. Mark completed events on timetable flipchart.

5. Give plots marked “Set 2” to Product Owners.

RRP2 - Demo Teams meet at a common Demo session. Customer or PO reads loudly each Tale. Each team must link

the Plot elements with a User Story. PO accepts user stories (or not) based on acceptance criteria.

Facilitation:

1. Make sure, teams listen to Customer/PO comments

2. Hand out yellow post-its to write down new stories which Customer/PO requests during the demo

2 RRP stands for Review (aka Demo), Retrospective, Planning. It’s a one meeting block, which contains those Scrum ceremonies.





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3. Hand out red post-its to write down defects which come up during the demo session

RRP - Retrospective 1. Scrum Masters facilitate separate Retrospectives in each team.

2. After team Retrospectives are over, Scrum Masters facilitate project Retrospective (everyone

attends)

Facilitation:

1. Make sure there will be tangible output from Retrospective.

RRP – Planning Review and prioritize plots marked „Set 2” in the Product Backlog.

1. PO should add new stories to the Product Backlog as a result of Customer feedback on a demo.

PO decides on Business Value.

2. If there is need for clarification Teams can ask questions.

3. Teams will take new stories from Product Backlog into the Sprint Backlog

4. Teams makes Sprint commitment.

Game Sprint 2 Each Team must extend The Tale with Plots planned for this Sprint. In this Sprint teams still need to

deliver consistent Tale.

Defects must be fixed with the highest priority.

Facilitation:

1. Make sure SM actively support Teams’ collaboration.

2. Make sure PO explains updated priorities in Product Backlog.

3. Observe how teams and SM deal with cross-team collaboration.

4. Give out the PO plots marked “Set 3” during Day 3

Game Sprint 3 Review and prioritize plots marked „Set 3” in Product Backlog.

Each Team must extend The Tale with Plots planned for this Sprint. After this Sprint teams need to

deliver final Tale. Customer checks consistence of the product and give final feedback.





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Debrief Suggestions for discussion topics to summarize the game:

1. Discuss participants’ observation regarding working on single product and delivering „potentially

shippable” product in every Sprint?

2. How does organizational structure impact product and communication? How does it refer to

popular Scrum scaling frameworks?

3. Can you figure out team structure only by looking at the product?

4. How does each of the Scrum Roles contribute to delivering product increment?

5. What about quality?

6. What about customer requirements?

7. How does Scrum influence communication and collaboration?

8. How do iterations and demo help to deliver final product?

9. How does the prioritization work in Scrum?

10. How does Teams’ Sprint commitments work?

11. Discuss observations regarding motivation and energy in Teams.

12. Have you observed emergent leaders?

13. Discuss role of Retrospectives in the game outcome.





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Appendix: Timing chart Write similar table on a flipchart. Use it to show current phase of the game.

Workshop step Duration (min)

Done

Game intro and role assignment 10 Meeting with customer and backlog refinement 10

Planning 10

[Sprint 1] Day 1 2+73



[RRP] Demo No timebox

[RRP] Team Retrospective 5

[RRP] Project Retrospective 5

[RRP] Planning 10





[RRP] Team Retrospective 5

[RRP] Project Retrospective 5

[RRP] Planning 10





Debrief 10

3 2 minutes for daily standup, 7 minutes for work





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Appendix: Game Plots / User Stories cards In square brackets is fixed location of the Plot. Some Plots have no fixed location, so Team can decide

about location for those Plots.

Set1: Initial Backlog 1. Introduce the detective character.

2. Describe a phone call with a new case for the detective.

3. Introduce the killer character. The character gets a letter that makes him sad.

4. Railway station. Introduce new character. The character looks suspicious for the policeman.

5. Situation gets worse.

6. Detective solves the mystery

7. Introduce the character of the victim. She is a beautiful woman. Describe her character. /

Introduce the character of the victim. He is a handsome man. Describe his character.

8. Describe location. It must be strange and hostile.

9. Introduce new character. She is scared. Her life is in danger.

Set 2: Sprint 2 additional stories 1. Somebody gets mysterious SMS.

2. The weather is getting worse. The storm is causing the situation to change dramatically.

3. Add two dialogues to already written situations.

Set 3: Sprint 3 additional stories 1. Introduce phone call between killer and victim.

2. Killer and victim meets.

3. Describe murder through the eyes of a killer.





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Stories Cards

ID A-0

Title Detective

Description Introduce the detective character.

Acceptance criteria There must be at least 2 details about his looks.

There must be at least 2 details about his personality.

It must be interesting.

Business value $$$$

Set 1

ID A-1

Title Phone call

Description Describe a phone call with a new case for the detective.

Acceptance criteria It must a description of a mysterious murder.

Business value $$$$

Set 1





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ID A-2

Title Killer Description Introduce the killer character. The character gets

a letter that makes him sad.

Acceptance criteria There must be at least 2 details about how he looks like.

There must be at least 2 details about his personality.

It must be interesting.

Business value $$$$

Set 1

ID A-3

Title Stranger

Description Railway station. Introduce a new character. The character looks suspicious for the policeman.

Acceptance criteria It must be early in the morning.

He must have strange clothes.

Business value $

Set 1

ID A-4

Title Situation gets worse

Description Situation gets worse Acceptance criteria It must be well written, good story.

Business value $$

Set 1





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ID A-5

Title Solving the mystery Description Detective solves the mystery

Acceptance criteria It must be surprising.

Describe an object from a murder scene that helped the detective to find the killer.

Business value $$$$

Set 1

ID A-6 (option A)

Title Victim

Description Introduce the character of the victim. She is a beautiful woman. Describe her character.

Acceptance criteria There must be at least two character attributes.

Write this part from observer (third party) perspective.

Business value $$$$

Set 1

ID A-6 (option B)

Title Victim

Description Introduce the character of the victim. He is a handsome man. Describe his character.

Acceptance criteria There must be at least two character attributes.

Write this part from observer (third party) perspective.

Business value $$$$

Set 1





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ID A-7

Title The murder scene

Description Describe the location. It must be strange and hostile.

Acceptance criteria There must be at least 4 named details which builds climate of the place.

Business value $$

Set 1

ID A-8

Title Panic

Description Introduce a new character. She is scared. Her life is in danger

Acceptance criteria There must be clear information about danger.

It must be serious danger.

Business value $

Set 1





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ID B-1

Title SMS Description Somebody gets mysterious SMS

Acceptance criteria It must be SMS from one of the other characters.

Business value $$

Set 2

ID B-2

Title Storm Description The weather is getting worse. The storm is

causing the situation to change dramatically.

Acceptance criteria Two characters must be involved. They must meet outside.

Business value $$

Set 2

Id B-3

Title Dialogues

Description Add two dialogues to already written situations.

Acceptance criteria The dialogues need to be interesting

Must be related to the story plot

Business value $$$$

Set 2





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Id C-1

Title Phone call Description Introduce a phone call between killer and victim.

Acceptance criteria One of the characters is calling being drunk.

Business value $$$

Set 3

Id C-2

Title Late night meeting

Description Killer and victim meets.

Acceptance criteria They must meet in shopping center.

They must wear unusual clothes.

Business value $$$$

Set 3

Id C-3

Title Murder

Description Describe murder through the eyes of a killer.

Acceptance criteria Impress me.

Business value $$$$

Set 3



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