Clarity & Capacity

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System of Delivery
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Governance
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Clarity & Capacity

Validate the WHAT, drive down uncertainty of WHEN, and learn fast

Balancing capacity and demand while responsibly managing WIP improves efficiency and flow through the organization and optimizes time to value.

Do we have capacity available to work on it and can the value be realized?

Release Targeting

Purpose

Ensures that there is a plan to orchestrate and manage dependencies and balance capacity with demand effectively.
- Ensure credible release planning
- Identify & plan for dependencies
- Balance capacity & demand

Inputs

Stacked-rank opportunities by portfolio
Funding allocation
Capability assessments
Hypothesis outcomes
Hypothesis solutions

Activities

Identify candidate features for planning and potential release
Identify and capture candidate features for the next release based on priority and dependency
Determine capacity
Plan risks & dependencies
Collaborate with the Product Team(s) to ensure a credible Release Plan
Create, communicate, and align on release objectives with stakeholders

Definition of Done

Epics scheduled for completion
Backlog for the defined planning horizon
Portfolio Roadmap sequenced and updated
Product Backlog updated
Portfolio Planning Sheet
Updated Roadmaps
Updated Risk Assessment
Release Planning Signoff – Initiative/Epic
Validated Epic Definition of Ready

RACI

R – Product Category Team, Product Line Team
A – Product Category Team
C – Product Management
I – Delivery Team

Release Planning

Purpose

Develop and agree to an achievable 12-week plan while
Develop a shared understanding of priorities, risks, impediments, dependencies, and assumptions
Explore the “steel thread,” MVP, and other release options
Understand more about their feasibility as refinement conversations happen

Input

Story Writing (stubbing)
Story Mapping with the Delivery Team
Estimate features and stories
Plan risks & dependencies
Define test plans
Ongoing Feature refinement

Activities

Elaborate stories from features
Identify and plan risks & dependencies into the release schedule
User stories are prioritized and mapped into sprints
Teams aligned on acceptance criteria

Definition of Done

Story stubs assigned to the Delivery Team for refinement
Visible Feature Map
Initial Release Plan
Updated risk and dependency lists
Spikes identified
Stories Named
System Test Plan
Integration Test Plan
Regression Test Plan
Solution Design Package

RACI

R – Product Line Team, Delivery Team
A – Product Line Team
C- Delivery Team
I – Product Category Team

Feature Ready

Purpose

Features are ready for development
Credible plan exists
Feature intent identified

Inputs

Validate feature intent for Epic
Make release commitment
Refine estimates and adjust the roadmap

Activities

Features are ready for development
Credible plan exists
Feature intent identified

Definition of Done

Feature backlog
Features prioritized
Spikes planned
Release Defined
UAT Plan Defined
Feature Definition of Ready Validated

RACI

R –Product Line Team, Delivery Team
A – Product Line Team
C – Delivery Team
I – Product Category Team

Make Ready

Purpose

Ready the backlog

Input

Story Mapping with the Product Team
Create stories in the defined format
Create acceptance criteria in the defined format
Provide additional documentation as needed

Activities

Prepare the backlog

Definition of Done

User Story is defined with scenarios
Acceptance Criteria is complete
Architecture Artifacts
UX Design, Wireframe Artifacts
Story Point Estimate
Story Definition of Ready Validated

RACI

R – Delivery Team, Product Line Team
A – Delivery Team
C – Product Line Team
I – Product Category Team

Story Ready

Purpose

Stories ready for delivery teams

Inputs

User Story is defined with scenarios
Acceptance Criteria is complete
Architecture artifacts
UX Design, Wireframe artifacts
Story Point Estimate
Story Definition of Ready validated

Activities

Tie acceptance criteria to feature acceptance
Revise Level of Value

Definition of Done

A clearly defined user and goal
Stories meet INVEST criteria
Clear Acceptance Criteria
Tasks defined
Task Hours estimated
Sprint planning
Story can be developed and unit tested in 1-4 days

RACI

R – Delivery Team, Product Line Team
A – Delivery Team
C – Product Line Team
I – Product Category Team