BBI of Chicago
June 2021
Using Scrum to Increase Productivity
The market dynamics create environments that are susceptible to change and can cause instability for organizations. Internal factors such as the change in processes and methodologies can also be a cause of instability. For unprepared organizations that tend to avoid such changes, that can be a competitive disadvantage. Among the possible solutions to this kind of problem, are the agile management processes. Commonly referred to as agile methods, these approaches suggest ways of applying different tools and methodologies that focus on speed and quality delivery by fractioning the work into smaller deliverable pieces.
For valuing factors such as the increase of productivity, collaboration, and continuous feedback, Scrum is one of the most adopted agile methodologies [1]. It can be understood as a work structure (framework) where the practitioners are capable of dealing with complex problems in an adaptative manner and deliver high-value results creatively and productively at the same time [2]. The ample use of this framework by different areas shows that Scrum has high plasticity and adaptability, optimizing work processes in the most diverse fields. Beyond the areas in the IT industry, such as software development, where Agile methodologies were first implemented, Scrum has gained prominence in planning, sales, team performance, client interface, quality assurance of products and processes, communication, education, and research [3,4,5,6,7,8].
Traditionally, Scrum is made of a team with three personas (Product Owner, Scrum Master, and Development team), in bigger or interdisciplinary projects, finding and managing a wider variety of specialists to act in the project becomes a challenge and it can be difficult to maintain only one team per project, being necessary an adaptation to a multifunctional team [9,10]. This way, even with a few restrictions, Scrum’s capability to adapt creates a strong competitive advantage to its practitioners, whether in business, education or academy.
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