Project Manager's Role in Agile

projects?

27th November, 2018

Presented by Laban Mwansa, PMP, PhD

Accredited PRINCE2 Agile Trainer

• Introduction

• What is the role of a Project Manager?

• What is Agile?

• Agile frameworks and flavors

• Different Concepts Regarding Project Manager’s role and Agile

• PM and the Agile Team?

• Mapping and Integrating Project Manager’s role with Agile delivery teams

• Agile Scrum events

• Conclusion

Agenda

The Project Manager is a person assigned by the

performing organization to lead the team that is

responsible for achieving the projects objectives.

Definition of a Project Manager

PMBOK Guide 6th Edition page 52

Project Manager’Role

The project manager is accountable to the project steering

committee/Project board and ultimately to the sponsor and

has authority to run the project on a day-to-day basis within

the constraints laid down by them.

The project manager’s prime responsibility is to ensure that

the project produces the required products within the

specified tolerances of time, cost, quality, benefits, scope

and risks.

The project manager is also responsible for the project

producing a result capable of achieving the benefits defined

in the business case

PRINCE2 Managing Successful Projects official manual

Introduction

AGILEThe Agile Manifesto

www.agilemanifesto.org

Beyond a basic view• Vision, Roadmap and Releases

• Non-IT situations

• Project work

• Flow-based working

• A wider mind-set.

A more comprehensive view would include:

Copyright © AXELOS Limited 2015. Reproduced under licence from AXELOS. All rights reserved. (Guidance reference: Section 2.2)

6

Agile Frameworks

• Many frameworks are recognised as being agile

• Some are more common than others

• Some are only applicable to IT.

PRINCE2® Agile, Scrum

Kanban

Lean Lean Startup

XP SAFe DAD

DSDM/AgilePM

DevOps

FDD Crystal ASD

Copyright © AXELOS Limited 2015. Reproduced under licence from AXELOS. All rights reserved. (Guidance reference: Section 2.2.1, Table 2.1)

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Agile behaviours, concepts and techniques

Along with the agile frameworks there are a variety of

behaviours, concepts and techniques that are seen as

being part of the agile way of working

Copyright © AXELOS Limited 2015. Reproduced under licence from AXELOS. All rights reserved. (Guidance reference: Section 2.2.2, Table 2.2)

8

Beware of prejudice!

Control and governance allows agile to be used in complex environments.

Delivery Approaches

Waterfall Versus Agile

Agile is seen as a family of behaviours, concepts, frameworks, and techniques.

Where does Agile fit in Project Management

Agile delivery teams prefer to be led and

coached as opposed to managed.

Common Agile guidance refer to a single product

owner

Common Agile guidance does not have a project

manager role

Different Concepts Regarding Project Manager’s

role and Agile

Integrating team manager role in an agile team

Integrating team manager role in an agile team

Team Manager: Areas of

responsibility

Covered by the

Scrum Master

Covered by the product

owner

Covered by the

delivery team

Planning No. But may facilitate

and support

Yes, (prioritizing) Yes (Sprint planning)

Monitoring and managing

progress

Yes, (By way of

coaching the team to

self-organize)

Supports this through

self-organization and by

making the product

backlog transparent

Support this through

self-organization and

by making the sprint

backlog transparent

Liaising with the project

manager and other

stakeholders

Most likely to but

necessary

No No

Managing issues and

risks

Yes No, But will identify

them

No, But will identify

them

Final acceptance and

handover of products

No Yes No. (But the team is

responsible for

delivering them)

Options:Integrating project manager role in an agile

team

Options Considerations

1. Leave the delivery team roles as they are

Ensure that everyone is aware of who is responsible for each of

the five areas

Role names remain the same (e.g product owner, Scrum master)

No one is referred to as team manager

The project manager will liaise with more than one person in the

team

2. A single point of contact for the project manager

The single point of contact could be anyone from the team but is

most likely to be the Scrum master and maybe the product owner

Role names remain the same (e.g product owner, Scrum master)

The project manager will liaise with one person in the team, who

will be able to provide the project manager with the information

they need.

The single point of contact may or may not be referred to as the

team manager

3. Create a team manager role in the delivery team

This role would cover all of the FIVE areas of responsibility

This is best achieved if the team manager is highly collaborative

and facilitates the self-organization of the team-The team manager

remains ultimately accountable for the outputs in these areas but

not necessarily for creating outputs.

The project manager will liaise with the team manager

Different Planning Levels

Copyright © AXELOS Limited 2015. Reproduced under licence from AXELOS. All rights reserved. (Guidance reference: Section 24.1, Section 24.2, Section 24.3)

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Planning & Requirements Definition

in Agile

Copyright © AXELOS Limited 2015. Reproduced under licence from AXELOS. All rights reserved. (Guidance reference: Section 24.1, Section 24.2, Section 24.3)

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• The 5 Scrum events

• The Sprint

• Sprint Planning Meeting

• Daily Scrum Meeting

• Sprint Review

• Sprint Retrospective.

Copyright © AXELOS Limited 2015. Reproduced under licence from AXELOS. All rights reserved. (Guidance reference: Appendix H) 1

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If a piece of work is difficult enough

to be classed as a project then it

requires someone to carry out the

role of managing it.

Therefore, Project Manager’s role is

mandatory on the basis of the

above

Inconclusion…

However project manager needs to

be conversant with the Agile way of

working and how to manage a

project using Agile.

Further more the project manager is

responsible for ensuring that the

use of agile is happening in the

right way

Inconclusion…

And that the project management team is

receiving the appropriate support and

coaching.

The project manager needs to be seen as a

friend of the agile team and not a figure of

authority.

This role does not naturally correspond to a

Scrum master.

Inconclusion…

Questions are welcome!

Thank you for your time and

participation