Teams are more effective when they learn how to properly break down large chunks of work into smaller chunks of work. These small chunks can then be delivered incrementally, and eventually, complete the large chunks of work.
Agile methodologies like Scrum emphasize the need for refinement to take place continuously. This is because refinement allows teams to incrementally deliver much larger ideas by delivering many small increments. In order for those small increments to still be useful and valuable to stakeholders, teams have to learn how to break down work so that they can deliver thin slices.
Refinement is the act of breaking down large chunks of work into smaller chunks. This is particularly relevant to complex work where even seemingly straightforward tasks can quickly take days or weeks due to unforeseen challenges.
Agile methodologies like Scrum emphasize the need for refinement to take place continuously. This is because refinement allows teams to incrementally deliver much larger ideas by delivering many small increments. In order for those small increments to still be useful and valuable to stakeholders, teams have to learn how to break down work so that they can deliver thin slices.
However, refinement is often difficult for teams. It requires extensive analytical and technical skills, and also creative thinking. Russo (2021) found that such skills strongly contribute to Agile project success. Verwijs & Russo (2022) established from a large sample of Scrum teams that teams that engage in frequent refinement are indeed more effective than those that don’t.
So what are strategies to start improving?
👉 First, a good strategy is to practice and develop the skills that teams need to properly refine work. The Agile community has developed many useful strategies to do so over the years.
👉 Second, refinement is best done continuously. In practice, this means that some items are refined by the entire team collaboratively during refinement workshops, whereas others are refined by one or two members separately. The aim is to keep refinement focused on the work in the current iteration or one very close to this one.
👉 Third, refinement is particularly hard for teams that are not properly cross-functional and do not possess the needed skills to deliver end-to-end work. If you find that this is the case, make it your first priority to broaden the skillsets in teams. For software teams, this often means testing skills, business analysis, architecture, and visual design.
Actions to start small and simple are:
1️⃣ Vote which item on your Product Backlog is the least clear. In the next Sprint, clarify 3 of these items together with the Product Owner. Or remove them.
2️⃣ Invite at least 1 stakeholder for your next backlog refinement session and work together to clarify the top Product Backlog items.
3️⃣ Split the team into pairs during the next refinement session. Each pair selects one item and takes 30 minutes to refine it. Afterward, share the results and define the next steps together.
Closing
What is your experience with improving refinement❓ What recommendations do you have to help a team start improving❓
Refinement is one of the 20+ factors we measure to determine Agile & Scrum team effectiveness. Based on the results, teams receive evidence-based feedback on how to start improving.
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