How to plan a Sprint?

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 Agile is the most sought-after delivery framework in today’s fast paced technology-oriented world. While people working in Agile environment become adept in the process while learning on the job, it is important for those who are new in this field to have some knowledge prior to taking up a project. 

Well, when we read or hear about ‘Ceremonies’, we may tend to look at the literal meaning. Ceremonies are formal activities conducted in some important occasions. In Agile too, 'Ceremonies' have the same meaning. Ceremonies in ‘Agile’, refer to the meetings/activities, which the team should follow for a project to be delivered well. 

Prior to focusing on ceremonies on Agile, it is important to know ‘Scrum’. So what is 'Scrum'? ‘Scrum’ is a time boxed, iterative approach to Agile. 

In today’s article let us talk more about one of the ceremonies of Agile, and that is known as ‘Sprint Planning'. 

So what is a 'Sprint' in Agile? 

In 'Sprint', the scrum team works to complete a decided amount of work in a specific time boxed period. Sprints are the spine of Scrum and Agile methodologies. If the team gets the 'Sprints' right, the product delivery is smooth with very few hurdles. 

Here are few steps to ensure a smooth sprint: 

1) Prepare product backlog: Preparing product backlog is the most important aspect of any sprint. It is a comprehensive list that talks about what is needed in the product and in what order. Since the product backlog is iterative in nature, it is always changing and is never complete. 

2) Back log refinement: Before a sprint begins—and prior to a sprint planning meeting—it is always ideal for the product owner to groom all existing product backlog. It is also known as backlog refinement. It is necessary to make continuous improvements to re-prioritize, add new details, remove certain items, and adjust estimates. The backlog is the essence of every sprint and hence it is mandatory for the scrum master to ensure the backlog is up to date so that every team member knows what is in queue and what is the capacity of the developers. 

3) The product owner should describe the goal of the sprint and what backlog items contribute to that goal. The scrum team then can decide what can be done in the coming sprint and what they will do during the sprint to make that happen. 

4) The development team should plan the work necessary to deliver the sprint goal. The developers and product owner can then finally decide on the sprint plan based on value and effort. Sprint planning is always a teamwork. 

Sources: https://www.atlassian.com/agile/scrum/sprint-planning