Relevant Artifacts and User Involvement in Scrum
Translated title
Relevante artefakter og brugerinddragelse i Scrum
Author
Jørgensen, Nicklas Holm
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2017
Submitted on
2017-06-07
Pages
41
Abstract
This thesis addresses two related questions in Scrum: how developers can choose relevant upfront analysis and design artifacts, and how direct user involvement during Sprints affects design decisions, the design process, and development contingencies. The work was carried out in close collaboration with the Department of Clinical Biochemistry at Aalborg University Hospital, where an Android smartphone application was developed to consolidate multiple devices used by biomedical laboratory scientists. Methodologically, the thesis uses a mixed-method case study with a survey of 13 agile practitioners from seven companies on the perceived usefulness of selected artifacts and a development diary kept over a three‑month period to document the practical use of artifacts and the effects of direct user involvement in Sprints. Findings show both differences and overlaps between perceived and actual relevance: artifacts that primarily model the system were rated less relevant in the survey but proved useful in practice, while prototypes, work modeling, and a clear vision of the intended system had both perceived and practical relevance. Direct user involvement was relevant to several aspects of design decisions, including shaping satisficing behavior, aligning aspiration levels with user needs, and transferring tacit knowledge, as well as supporting requirements generation and validation. Uncertainty and complexity emerged as key contingency factors: user involvement helped reduce uncertainty through prototype evaluation and social interaction but also introduced complexity that requires appropriate responses. Based on these results, the thesis recommends choosing artifacts systematically, valuing simplicity, covering both system- and user-focused considerations, and involving users selectively where it adds the most value.
Dette speciale undersøger to centrale spørgsmål i Scrum: hvordan udviklere kan vælge relevante upfront analyse- og designartefakter, og hvordan direkte brugerinddragelse i Sprints påvirker designbeslutninger, designprocessen og udviklingsprocessens kontingenser. Arbejdet er gennemført i tæt samarbejde med Klinisk Biokemi på Aalborg Universitetshospital, hvor der blev udviklet en Android-smartphoneapplikation til at samle flere arbejdsredskaber for bioanalytikere. Metodisk bygger specialet på et casestudie med både en survey blandt 13 agile praktikere fra syv virksomheder om den oplevede nytte af udvalgte artefakter og en udviklingsdagbog ført gennem tre måneders udvikling for at dokumentere den praktiske brug af artefakter og effekten af direkte brugerinddragelse i Sprints. Resultaterne viser både forskelle og ligheder mellem oplevet og faktisk relevans: artefakter, der primært modellerer systemet, blev vurderet som mindre relevante i surveyen, men viste sig nyttige i praksis, mens prototyper, arbejdsgangsmodellering og en klar vision for det tilsigtede system havde både oplevet og praktisk relevans. Direkte brugerinddragelse var relevant for flere aspekter af designbeslutninger, herunder at definere tilfredsstillende løsninger, justere ambitionsniveauet i forhold til brugernes behov og facilitere overførsel af tavs viden, samt for kravgenerering og -validering. Usikkerhed og kompleksitet blev identificeret som væsentlige kontingensfaktorer: brugerinddragelse reducerede usikkerhed gennem prototypeevaluering og social interaktion, men introducerede også kompleksitet, der kræver passende håndtering. På den baggrund anbefales det at vælge artefakter systematisk, værdsætte enkelhed og dække både system- og brugerperspektiver samt inddrage brugere målrettet, hvor det skaber størst værdi.
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