Enterprise release planning is my favorite (business!) activity. Put all the right people in a room for a day or two, fuel them with caffeine and sugar. Present the strategy. Convert the strategy to vision and a set of the next-release objectives. Understand the impact of architectural refactors. Acknowledge deadlines that exist prior to even entering the session. Factor that against the teams actual velocity for new development. Look at the technical debt pile. Discuss and debate. Heat…smoke…then hopefully …light!
Wow, that can be fun. Fresh off her most recent release planning session, Jennifer Fawcett (agileproductowner.com) muses on her recent experiences on her blog at Agile Release Planning Musings. I don’t know for sure how it went, but I’m told that her boss took her out for many drinks afterward. Could have been to celebrate. Could have been simple encouragement to come back into work the next day. Check it out; might even be a few chuckles in it for you.
