Scrum

Scrum is an iterative and incremental framework for project management mainly deployed in agile software development. The scrum methodology emphasizes functional software, the flexibility to change along with emerging business realities, communication and collaboration.

The three fundamental roles in scrum methodology are product owner, scrum master and team member:

• Product owners communicate product vision to the development team and represent customer interests via prioritization and requirements.
• Scrum masters act as a connection between the product owner and the team. Their main role is to remove any barriers that may prevent the team from achieving its goals. Scrum masters help the team to remain productive and creative.
• Scrum teams generally consist of seven cross-functional members. For instance, software projects include software engineers, architects, analysts, programmers, QA experts, UI designers and testers.

Besides the main roles, scrum teams also involve stakeholders and managers. These players do not have any formal roles in the scrum and are involved in the process only infrequently. Their roles are often referred to as ancillary roles.

The major artifacts within the scrum methodology are:

• Product Backlog: This is a high-level list maintained throughout the entire project. It is used to aggregate backlogged items.
• Sprint Backlog: This contains the list of work the team needs to address during the successive sprints. The features are broken down into tasks, which are normally between four and 16 hours of work.
• Burn Down: The burn-down chart shows the remaining work in the sprint backlog. It provides a simple view of sprint progress and can be updated every day. It also provides quick virtualizations for reference.