‘Information Radiators’

About the authorGlenn Crossley

IS Development Manager at Hermes

glenn.crossley@hermes-europe.co.uk

July 2014

Setting the Scene

One of the most common outputs I hear from stakeholders is the request for information…….

• What is the current status?

• Are we on track with the release?

• How many defects do we have?

• Do we have any blockers?

Mixed Messages

Information can be often misinterpreted and mixed messages commence

• Chinese whispers occur

• Confusion sets in

• Invites management involvement

But information is so important…….

• How do we broadcast information in real-time and convey what is really important to multiple parties?

Tools versus Physicaldepends on the situation

Tools• Can be backed up

• Supports remote teams

• History is preserved and audited

• Better for real time metrics

Physical• More visible to the team and

stakeholders

• Encourages conversation

• Cheap to maintain

• Easier to customise

• Lower maintenance

• Make it fun (use avatars of team members)

Information Radiators

Alistair Cockburn introduced the term “information radiator” in his 2001 book, Agile Software Development.

A good information radiator……

• Is large and easily visible to the casual, interested observer

• Is understood at a glance

• Changes periodically, so that it is worth visiting

• Is easily kept up to date

What we would expect to see …….

Information radiators can include most types of charts used in agile development. The most likely ones to see around the development space include:

• Epic or Planning board

• Release Plan

• Burn down Charts

• Task board

Epic Board

The Epic Board is an ordered list of Epics and User stories associated with the agile project.

Release Plan

The release plan is an visible chart that describes what will be delivered in upcoming releases.

Task Board

Make the sprint backlog visible by putting it on a Task Board.During the day or in the daily scrum, the cards are moved around the

board to represent progress.

Burn Down Charts

Burn Down Chart is a graphical representation of work left to do versus time remaining

• Share as much Information as possible

• Avoid multiple stakeholder updates and promote real time reporting

• Make it visible and appealing so that people will take notice

• Encourage conversation

• Make it fun

Summary