Sprints in SCRUM

Sprints in SCRUM, are time-boxes of short duration during which a “Done”, useable, and potentially releasable product Increment is created.

Sprint Characteristics

• Sprints in SCRUM have consistent durations throughout a development effort.
• No distractions from the goal are allowed in between a sprint
• Goals are set at the beginning of a Sprint.
• The size of a Sprint depends on factors like release cadence etc,

Video: Sprints in SCRUM

Sprint Duration

One of the most asked questions: What should be the size of the duration? While each sprint is planned separately, the number and length of sprints in your project should be determined at the beginning. Here are some factors that can be used to determine the duration of each sprint.

• Release Cadence
• Market viability
• Feedback appetite
• Degree of automation

Some things to consider

• Sprint duration has to be constant and should not vary between Sprints
• There must be no gap between Sprints. That is, th succeeding Sprint should start immediately after the current Sprint is completed

Sprint “0”

I many cases there is a Sprint “0” planned that comes in the beginning and precedes all the planned Sprints. So why do we need Sprint “0”. Usually, Sprint “0” is useful for a new team or project that is just about to start their work.

• Creating the project’s skeleton
• Execute spikes to remove any technical ambiguity
• Helps team to bond and come to a working agreement
• “Warm up” the team on the work
• Helps the initial backlog refinement more realistic