On a scale of 1 to 10, how efficiently do you believe your company delivers software? Now, on that same scale, how efficiently do your customers think you deliver software?<\/p>\n
Waste elimination traces back to the mid-1900s, the birth of lean manufacturing and the Toyota Production System<\/a> (TPS), a strategy so successful that both Toyota\u2019s competitors and companies outside of the auto manufacturing industry have adopted it. The three pillars of TPS are to lighten overburden (muri), reduce inconsistency (mura) and eliminate waste (muda).<\/strong><\/p>\n You may wonder why I am talking about TPS in a software delivery blog and why now?<\/p>\n I played many different roles in the application development and delivery process (software developer, tester, product manager, scrum master, manager and architect) for nine years. Then I stepped into a business technology consulting role for the next seven. During my time in these roles, I have encountered numerous companies that struggle to deliver software efficiently.<\/p>\n I have found that inefficient software delivery processes<\/a> create considerable waste, regardless of the kind of company in which they operate. Whether companies are growing through innovation or acquisitions, undergoing cross-functional transformations or depending on custom-built legacy software, their \u201cwaste debt\u201d routinely hampers their ability to respond to their environment.<\/p>\n In this three-part series, we will discuss agile waste and strategies for software development.<\/p>\n We\u2019re living in a lean era.<\/p>\n On a personal level, \u201clean\u201d means getting in better physical shape. Accomplishing this goal requires a systematic plan \u2013 eat healthily, eat smaller portions and hit the gym at least three times a week. The improvement does not stop there, and for sustained results, I need to execute, maintain and tweak the plan. You may agree that it takes months before you see the change you desire.<\/p>\n Likewise, many companies employ initiatives to streamline operations, reduce technical debt and improve their IT and business processes. The buzzwords \u201clean,\u201d \u201cagile,\u201d and \u201cdigital\u201d characterize the continuous improvement mindset, integrating themselves into businesses that look for ways to deliver products cheaper, faster and better. Adopting an Agile framework lays the foundation for software delivery efficiency. However, there is even waste in agile, which can hinder your company\u2019s continuous improvement mission.<\/strong><\/p>\n By applying the innovative Lean Six Sigma<\/a> principles to software development and delivery, you can eliminate waste in agile and take enterprise dexterity to the next level.<\/p>\n Agility comes from optimizing application development<\/a> and delivery processes. To enhance software efficacy, we must first identify the root causes of delivery inefficiencies by looking at each type of agile waste :<\/p>\n Let\u2019s revisit our 1 to 10 scale. Is your efficiency level the same, or did you recognize some previously overlooked areas? Which areas are the top three in which your business struggles most?<\/p>\n Now that we have explored the causes and effects of agile waste, we will identify specific tools to eliminate waste in agile and show how our proven process techniques improve delivery efficiency in the next part of our series<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n An Agnostic of Agile<\/h2>\n
Types of Agile Waste in Software Delivery Processes<\/h2>\n
High wait times<\/h3>\n
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Rework<\/h3>\n
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Over-delivery of low-priority work<\/h3>\n
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Context switching<\/h3>\n
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Lack of automation<\/h3>\n
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Inflexible workforce<\/h3>\n
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Reevaluate Your Software Delivery Process<\/h2>\n