Understanding and Utilizing Velocity in Scrum: Insights and Criticisms

Velocity is a key metric used in Scrum to measure the amount of work a team can complete during a sprint, typically expressed in story points or hours. This article explores the concept of velocity, how to calculate it, its role in sprint planning, and the critiques surrounding its usefulness.

What is the Velocity of Your Scrum Team?

The velocity of a Scrum team is a measure of the amount of work the team can complete during a sprint. It is calculated by summing the story points of all the user stories that were completed during the sprint. Understanding the velocity of your team is crucial for effective sprint planning and estimating future sprints.

Calculating Velocity

To determine the velocity of your team, follow these steps:

Define Story Points: Ensure that your team has assigned story points to user stories based on their complexity and effort. Track Completed Work: At the end of each sprint, tally the story points of the user stories that were fully completed. Calculate Average Velocity: Over several sprints, you can calculate the average velocity by adding the total story points completed across those sprints and dividing by the number of sprints.

Example Calculation:

Sprint Points Completed Sprint 1 20 Sprint 2 25 Sprint 3 15

Average Velocity (20 25 15) / 3 20 points per sprint

Understanding the velocity of your team helps in future sprint planning as it provides insight into how much work the team can realistically take on.

Velocity: A Key Metric or a Red Herring?

While velocity is a useful tool for tracking and planning, it is often debated whether it is a truly effective measure of productivity. The following points highlight both the benefits and the drawbacks of using velocity:

Benefits of Using Velocity

Baseline for Planning: Velocity provides a baseline for planning and helps teams estimate future sprints based on their past performance. Alert for Changes: If velocity suddenly changes, it can indicate a problem that needs to be addressed. This can help in identifying issues early.

Drawbacks and Criticisms

Comparability Issue: Velocity is not a measure that can be compared across teams as different teams may estimate work differently and have varying member compositions. Potentially Useless: Some argue that velocity is a misleading metric and that focusing on actual value delivered is more important. Planning Reliability: While velocity can help with short-term planning, it may not be reliable for longer-term planning due to unforeseen changes in circumstances.

According to critics, the only real use of velocity is to be alerted if it suddenly changes, as this can indicate a problem. However, a baseline for planning is often sufficient, and the need for points may not be as critical as initially thought. Stories alone can often be used to plan a two-week sprint, and for longer planning horizons, accuracy becomes more challenging.

Conclusion

While velocity has its benefits in Scrum, it is essential to consider its limitations and the importance of focusing on actual value delivery. Teams should use velocity as a tool for planning and monitoring, but not as the sole metric for measuring productivity or success in a sprint.