Vision Development: Balancing software innovation and business models.

Abstract

Under udviklingen af prototypen i Cloud Apps del 2, havde teamet svært ved at sikre sig, at det, som de udviklede, faktisk også var det, som kunden ønskede. Denne rapport præsenterer en ny udviklingsprocess kaldet Vision Development, og præsenterer et case study hvor Vision Development bliver anvendt. Ved at bruge Vision Development havde teamet, SCRUM Master, Product Owner og kunden en metodologi, som hjalp dem med at styre projektet gennem en fælles produktvision som mål at styre efter. Formålet er at sikre, at teamet laver den software, som kunden ønsker, men samtidig også, at den software som kunden tror, at han ønsker, faktisk også er den, som han skal bruge. Vision Development bygger på SCRUM og Essence som fundament ved at tilføje forskellige metoder og værktøjer til den kendte udviklingsprocess. Det anvender også Business Model Canvas af Osterwalder og Pigneur for at give forståelse for, hvordan produktet passer ind i kundens forretning. Derudover anvendes Business Patterns af Gassmann, Frankenberg & Csik, for at give forståelse for, hvordan kundens forretning passer ind i markedet, samt hvilke centrale processer den består af. Med denne viden er kunden og product owner i stand til at lave en produktvision som projektet kan styre efter. Denne rapport beskriver hvordan den første produktvision laves, og hvad man gør, når det er nødvendigt at revidere denne for at inkludere ændringer, nye features eller krav. Et behov for ændringer i produktvisionen kan opstå både internt fra teamet og externt fra kunden. Ved også at basere metodologien på Essence er software innovation en naturlig integreret del af udviklingsprocessen, som faciliterer et miljø, hvor der opmuntres til, at nye ideer undersøges og testes. Rapporten beskriver to måder at evaluere nye ideer for at sikre, at disse er ønskværdige og kan betale sig, før end de implementeres. Ændringer til produktvisionen kan ligeledes opstå eksternt, eksempelvis hvis kunden ønsker at produktet skal inkludere nye features eller på anden vis modificeres. I begge tilfælde tjener Vision Development formålet at evaluere hvorvidt en ændring i visionen ønskes gennemført eller ej, ved at holde ændringen op imod forretningsmodellen (business model canvas) og forretningsmønstrerne (business patterns), således den fulde konsekvens af en implementering af ændringern forståes. Hvis ændringen ønskes, er det beskrevet, hvorledes produktvisionen kan blive tilpasset og ændringerne tilføjet til projektet. Resultatet er en produktvision der revideres efter hvert Sprint, for at sikre, at den til enhver vi tid beskriver de aktuelle ønsker og behov. Produktvisionen er fælles blandt alle parter involveret i projektet, så alle kan bruge produktvisionen som et fælles mål at styre efter. Dette skal resultere i levering af bedre produkter, som leverer præcis hvad kunden skal bruge.

During the development of the Cloud Apps prototype in the second report on the topic, the development team found it difficult to ensure, that what they were doing was actually what the customer wanted. This report contributes with a new development process, named Vision Development. By using vision development, the Team, SCRUM Master, Product Owner and Customer had a methodology that helped them steer the project, using a common product vision as guideline. The purpose is to ensure, that the Team is creating the software, that the customer wants, and to ensure that the software the customer think he wants, is what he actually needs. This report describes the Vision Development methodology and presents a case study in which the methodology was applied. Vision Development builds on top of SCRUM and Essence by adding different tools and methods to the known development process. It implements the Business Model Canvas by Osterwalder and Pigneur to understand how the product fits into the customer’s business, and it implements Business Patterns by Gassmann, Frankenberger & Csik to understand how the business fits into the market and what central elements and processes it consists of. By knowing that, the customer and product owners are able to create a product vision that guides the project. It is described how to create a product vision and what to do, when it needs to be revised to include changes, new features or new requirements. Changes to the vision can emerge both internally in the team and externally from the customer. By also building the methodology on Essence, software innovation is an integrated part of the development process, facilitating an environment where investigation and testing of new ideas are encouraged. Two ways of evaluating the ideas are presented with the purpose of making sure, that new ideas are desirable and feasible before implemented. Changes to the vision can also emerge externally, e.g. if the customer wants the product to include new features or otherwise be modified. In both cases, Vision Development serves the purpose of evaluating if a diversion from the existing vision is desirable or not, by holding it against the Business Model and Business Pattern, so that the full impact of any change is understood. If the changes are desirable, it is described how the product vision can be modified and the changes can be added to the project. The artifact that this report presents, is a product vision that is revised after every sprint to ensure it describes the current wishes and requirements. The product vision is shared among all parties involved in the project to ensure that everybody is working towards the same goal. A goal that is always aligned with the customer’s wishes and needs, and one where the products impact on the customers business is understood. This should result in better products that delivers exactly what the customers needs.

A master thesis from Aalborg University

Vision Development: Balancing software innovation and business models.