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If you need to run a project – you’ve already failed #noprojects
Evan Leybourn
Agilia 2016
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Come with an open mind
This is a controversial topic
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PART ONEUnderstanding projects
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What exactly is a project?
A temporary structure to govern and deliver a
complex change (such as a new product)
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Projects are expensive
The three O’s of project cost;
1. Overheads,
2. Overruns and
3. Opportunity costs
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Projects fail
The definition of insanity is to “do the same thing
and expect a different result”
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Projects focus on the wrong thing
What is measurable not what is valuable
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Projects are temporary (products aren’t)
Products don’t end when the project does – don’t
artificially constrain them & lose key skills
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PART TWOintroducing #noprojects
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Continuous change is the alternative!
The approach and structure to successfully deliver
continuous change without a project
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What is #noprojects?
The alignment of activities to outcomes
measured by value,
constrained by guiding principles and
supported by continuous delivery technologies
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The continuous culture
Continuous delivery,
deployment,
monitoring,
strategy,
planning,
design,
marketing,
feedback,
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PART THREEWhere to begin
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Outcomes over outputs
Outcomes are valuable, planned, slowly changing
and define a common direction for all work
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Working principles
Common, agreed, and prioritised constraints that
shape all activities
(e.g. quality, communication, staff engagement,
security, or branding)
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Understanding the value of work
Value degrades
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Understanding the value of work
High value activities may come later
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Understanding the value of work
Local Maxima
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Understanding the value of work
The “So What” Factor
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Value delivery teams
Dedicated cross-functional teams that contain the
required skills to deliver an outcome
(e.g. developers, testers, HR, accountants,
sales/marketing)
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PART FOURDelivering work
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The activity canvas
An activity is any discrete work that is undertaken
as part of a change
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The technology of #noprojects
Automated testing, continuous integration,
continuous delivery, and DevOps
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Funding #noprojects
Change the question – not “how much will this
cost?”, but rather “how much is it worth?”
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Evan LeybournIBM GBS
@eleybourn
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