How can you accurately estimate the time needed for each Scrum event? (2024)

Key takeaways from this article

• Set clear agendas:

  Start Scrum events with recommended durations, like 15 minutes for daily stand-ups. If meetings run long, use retrospectives to identify why and adjust accordingly. This keeps everyone focused and on track.

• Adjust proactively:

  "Pray for the best, prepare for the worst." Be ready to adapt your Scrum planning for unexpected changes such as team member absences or departures to maintain project momentum.

This summary is powered by AI and these experts

• Chandan Mishra Principal Engineer @ Oracle

• Chandan Mishra Principal Engineer @ Oracle

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  In my experience, for each of the scrum ceremonies start with standard suggested hours i.e. 15 min daily standup. If teams goes beyond the allocated time then lets analyze/educate everyone in one of the retrospection meeting and accordingly set the clear agenda for each of the meetings. Later, as a scrum master, bring the audience back on the agenda if meeting goes beyond the schedule time.

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  This could act as a baseline and as we go deeper, the variables flows in. That’s when the real challenge begins. Some core member might get sick or worst case even quit the project. Or, maybe some other event can occur that could hamper the project progress. These are just few issues.As a project manager what we can do is “Pray for the best, prepare for the worst” how much we can.Making meetings short, precise and to the point is one way and like I have mentioned earlier, different circ*mstances need different approaches.

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• Bhavani Vaidya Sr Product Manager | VMware by Broadcom

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  In my experience, the main lessons for me using scrum is prep and time bounded ceremonies. Also another important lesson is to consider all activities that will consume time. The more we quantify the more accurate the scrum will run.

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• Sriram chandra mouli Viswanathan Director, Software Engineering at Freshworks

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  Having well cooked stories, with clear prioritisation prior to the planning ceremony and continuous backlog grooming goes a long way in reducing the time required for planning.

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• Linda Burtch Senior Program Manager | Senior Technical Program Manager |Transforming Industries: Healthcare, Banking, Wireless, Travel

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  One thing I've found helpful when estimating the time needed for a particular ceremony is understanding how many teams/features are involved. Higher complexity or dependencies will mean a longer time to review or plan. For demos or sprint reviews, I will often ask how much time each developer needs and then time box them to their commitment. I have also used "roman voting" with the whole team to determine if they want to go over the time box.

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• Fatima Alchinbaeva Product Manager

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  Teams can choose their own estimation method. In my teams, we use story points (Fibonacci sequence) to estimate tasks, gauging the collective effort needed for delivery. With experience, it becomes a routine, straightforward task. I use the data to show sprint review progress, comparing planned vs. completed story points. If there's a significant gap, we adjust in the next planning session. We consider both the team's average velocity and the number of team members assigned to tasks. Understanding team size and identifying potential risks is vital, especially for achieving our typical 40 story points per sprint.

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• Ravindra Nagpurkar CTO | Digital Transformations | Problem Solver | Automation First Approach | Data Science | AI/ML | Outcome over Optics | Voted Tech Visionary

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  See Also

  Bucket System test - Agile Estimation - Agile Project Management questionsScrum Planning Poker: Best Estimation Method for Agile TeamsWhat are the 4 types of estimating? — KreoTop 6 Important Agile Planning and Estimation Techniques
  Historical data or even a rough estimation is key. It’s okay to be wrong in absence of historical data but without data and some assumptions you will be walking blind. Story points is a great way to build some discipline and being uniformity of though to the squad.

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• Nilesh Pabuwal AWS l Technical Program Manager | Delivery Leader - BFSI I Fintech I AWS Solution Architect | Salesforce - Domestic, APAC, EMEA Region.

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  As this is Optional and in todays world its all depends upon which Platform and Technology we are dealing with.One thing is important in all is BIOLERPLATE and L&D Role in Training on Productivity Tools and Certifications.Historical Data are available but frankly speaking this has to be conditioned a lot before we can consume it for informed decision. ( Removing Bias + Process driven data).

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  Some details on techniques- Story points: Story points are a unit of measurement that is used to estimate the size and complexity of a task or user story. Story points are typically assigned by the team using a consensus-based approach.T-shirt sizes: T-shirt sizes are another way to estimate the size and complexity of a task or user story. T-shirt sizes are typically assigned using a simple scale, such as XS, S, M, L, and XL.Fibonacci numbers: Fibonacci numbers are a sequence of numbers where each number is the sum of the two previous numbers. Fibonacci numbers are often used in relative estimation because they allow for more granular estimates than story points or t-shirt sizes.

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• Nareshkumar Hegde Business Analysis | Product Owner | CSPO® | CSM® | Visual Storytelling | MBA | B.E

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  Agile has always been known for it's flexibility in driving projects. Each of the scrum events serve different purposes, hence demand different duration to conduct them and vary in their flexibility. For example, Daily Stand-ups and Sprint Planning sessions should be ideally time-bound, whereas Backlog Grooming and Sprint Retrospectives could be more elaborate in nature as they have to deal with more discussion and gathering feedback/brainstorming. Scrum team shall exercise full freedom to decide how much time they want to spend on each of the events for the good of the project.

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• Harsh*t Agrawal Full-Stack Developer | Leading Engineering Teams, Product Vision

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  Collaborate with your Scrum team. Involve all relevant stakeholders in the estimation process. Each member should have a say in how much time they need to accomplish their tasks during the event. This collective wisdom often leads to more accurate estimates.Regularly review and adjust your estimates based on the team's actual performance. As you gain experience with Scrum, your estimation accuracy will improve.Include the time spent on retrospectives in your estimations. These are essential for process improvement and should not be rushed.Be open to adjusting your estimates as you go along. If you consistently find that certain events take longer or shorter than expected, adapt your estimations accordingly.Be Agile!

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• Santanu Tripathy Assistant Vice President at Barclays Investment Bank

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  Collaborate with each team member and let each team member contribute in the estimation. Planning poker is a very good site for this purpose.

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• Ganesan Muthaiya CTO @ American College of Cardiology | Agile, Digital Transformation, Enterprise Architecture

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  The cornerstone of success in any agile or organizational endeavor lies in involving the entire team. Making sure everyone is on board, clearly communicating expectations, and understanding and addressing their concerns are fundamental principles. Each team member plays a crucial role, and tailoring solutions to the team's unique dynamics and needs fosters collaboration, trust, and a shared commitment to achieving agile goals. It's equally vital to secure support from the organization and senior leadership. Creating an environment where every voice is valued, and perspectives are respected is the driving force propelling the team toward success.

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• Nilesh Pabuwal AWS l Technical Program Manager | Delivery Leader - BFSI I Fintech I AWS Solution Architect | Salesforce - Domestic, APAC, EMEA Region.

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  Looking this point with Adoption in Mind, As a matter of practice each phases under product and Services required different sets of Roles, so its important to understand Type of business , Scope and Future Vision of Business Before establishing the communication Plan between1. Business - CBO, CEO, CFO 2. People - with focus on culture, organizational structure, leadership, CIO, CTO, and workforce. 3. Governance - CDO, CRO, CBO.4. Platform - Common stakeholders include CTO, technology leaders, architects, and engineers.5. Security -CISO, CCO6. Operations - Common stakeholders include infrastructure and operations leaders, site reliability engineers, and IT service managers.

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• Ravindra Nagpurkar CTO | Digital Transformations | Problem Solver | Automation First Approach | Data Science | AI/ML | Outcome over Optics | Voted Tech Visionary

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  Identify stakeholders (everyone impacted and everyone without whose input a sprint cannot be planned) and instil joint ownership and joint mission objectives. Collaboration and more importantly the sense of belonging to the mission is key.

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• Amit Tyagi Vice President - Artificial Intelligence

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  Monitoring is an extremely important step to ensure the performance is optimized over each scrum event. To begin with, simple historical comparison, Delphi techniques, and defining a benchmark will set a standard for various events.The team can compare individual estimates with standards and will know what they are overestimating and under, this way you develop a true sense of your team estimates.Another important factor is risk identification and judgment, the better we can forecast risks the better outcomes can be achieved without re-work. Monitoring reports should consider highlighting risks and important events impacted so the risks can also be refined as we progress on the timeline. This would help avoid the risks.

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• Bharathi M. Digital Transformation

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  The choice of estimation method changes depending on the project phase. During the initial sprint, methods like T-Shirt sizing and Fibonacci may be suitable. However, as the product development process matures, it's advisable to transition to relative estimation, incorporating input from team members.

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• Travis Rigas

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  Trial and error. Know your team and their personalities. Understand how long they need in order to meet the meeting goals. Leave plenty of time in capacity in order to go over if needed.

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• Travis Rigas

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  This is Agility at its core - if you find you consistently need more time for a Sprint Review to achieve the full benefit, you give yourself and your team more time. Conversely, if you consistently use half the allotted time for your retrospective, either cut the time of the standing meeting in half or give your team a break and schedule some game time or a fun brainstorming session.

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• Nilesh Pabuwal AWS l Technical Program Manager | Delivery Leader - BFSI I Fintech I AWS Solution Architect | Salesforce - Domestic, APAC, EMEA Region.

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  Looking this Point as Cost Optimization and Future Road Map side and this is Important to keep our Business as on going concern. Suggesting to have quarterly Review of Enterprise Architecture blueprint with Cost as Parameter against each Services used.Would be having clear idea on overall Cost implications and as outcome of Analysis on what need to be Automated, what need to be Upgraded and How to reduce TAT for E2E Processing. ( Involve - Enterprise architecture, Business SPOC, and SME ).Adoption strategy could be Hiring CTO/CIO from Technology Company like Google, AWS, Azure & Build Digital Transformation Program, another example is Robotic in Surgery and Automobile Industry where systems are Optimized for Operational Efficiency.

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  I would always follow Scrum Agile principles initally - Timeboxing Scrum EventUse Historical DataUse Buffer Time in accordance with the aboveAdaptability - be flexible and adapt based on the teams evolving understanding of their capacity and the complexity of workTask Decomposition - breaking down User Stories into smaller tasks.Use Retrospectives to adjust and adapt as you go on.

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  value-based prioritization is a core principle of Scrum. It is important to prioritize work based on the value it will deliver to the customer because this ensures that the team is working on the most important things first.Involve all stakeholders in the prioritization process to ensure that everyone is on the same page and that the priorities of the team are aligned with the needs of the business.Scrum teams value and respect all individuals. This includes team members, stakeholders, and customers.

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  Some of the other principles which can be followed are Value-based prioritization: The team should prioritize their work based on the value that it will deliver to the Product Owner and stakeholders. This helps to ensure that the team is working on the most important things first, and that the product is meeting the needs of its users.Time-boxing: All Scrum events have a fixed time limit. This helps to ensure that the team is focused and efficient, and that they are not spending too much time on any one task.Iterative development: The team delivers the product in increments, or small batches. This helps to get feedback from the Product Owner and stakeholders early and often, and to make adjustments to the product as needed.

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• Anand Nair Director Product Management @ Electronic Arts (EA) | Trust and Safety | Identity Access Management | E-Commerce and Payments | Developer Experience

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  One value from the Agile Manifesto that deeply resonates with me is "individuals and interactions over processes and tools." I've seen teams focus too much on strict processes in the past, leading to burnout and a mistaken belief that Agile is ineffective. Prioritizing the team and collaboration is fundamental, as it lays the groundwork for principles such as continuous development, frequent delivery, adaptability to change, and ensuring customer satisfaction.

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• James H.

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  I find the whole question of estimating time for scrum events a bit strange. Scrum is pretty clear that the events should not be estimated but rather timeboxed.If this were a question about estimation for stories then sure that is an interesting discussion, but estimating the time we need for a daily stand up?

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  1.Break downs Tasks: Break down user stories or tasks into smaller, more manageable pieces. This allows for more accurate estimation and reduces the chance of underestimating.2. Consider dependencies: Take into account any dependencies between tasks or user stories. If one task relies on another, it may affect the estimated time needed for both.3. Risk assessment: Identify potential risks or uncertainties that may impact the time needed for an event. Factor in extra time for mitigating risks or handling unforeseen challenges.

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• Bharathi M. Digital Transformation

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  Relative estimation or relooking Tshirt size during late sprint releases might be another way to lookEstimate helps us to plan release and it can be one key point to discuss during retrospective

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  It's ok not to get it right the first time. Keep adjusting and work through feedback from the team by checking in at standup and do regular retrospectives even if the team is quiet at first. It takes patience and practice to improve as a team.

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  Other factors that I have also keep in mind:1. Include the time spent on retrospectives in your estimations: Retrospectives are an important part of the Scrum process, and the time spent on them should be factored into your estimations.2. Regularly review and adjust your estimates based on the team's actual performance: As you gain experience with Scrum, your estimation accuracy will improve.3. Break tasks into smaller ones with a labor intensity of 2-3 hours: Low granularity decomposition can help achieve more accurate estimates.

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