The adapt phase occurs at the end
of each sprint immediately following the explore phase.
In each adapt phase, you will review with the
team what has been delivered compared to what was planned
for this sprint, discuss what is and is not
working, and agree to any changes that will be applied.
Its also wise to review the prior adapt
phase lessons learned to see if trends are occurring.
The adapt phase is also the time to review the product with the customer and
confirm the features are working as expected.
Determine if anything has changed in the business
that reduces or changes the effectiveness of the features.
You'll also want to take the time to
verify the features are producing the intended business benefits.
It is critical for you to facilitate a lessons-learned discussion
in each adapt phase for feedback to be openly shared.
All input is valuable and should be considered.
You can then brainstorm ideas to resolve issues
or eliminate potential roadblocks to your team's success.
You will find a number of typical
adjustments result from these adapt phase feedback sessions.
These adjustments include: adding or removing features, adjusting the estimates
for features, or re-prioritize the features on the back log list.
Modifying the daily stand-up meetings agenda to maximize effectiveness.
Changing team members based on
project need, availability, and teaming effectiveness.
Updating the risk register, modifying or removing processes that are not effective.
And lastly adding processes, but only if they're essential to progress the project.
It's important to let all stake holders know about the changes that will
be applied to future sprints along with why those changes are being made.
If the team has been working especially hard, this is the perfect
opportunity to celebrate the successes of
the prior sprints and acknowledge specific achievements.
Some team members may need a mental break before they start the next sprint.
As project manager, you'll need to ensure the team is ready for
the next sprint and the morale is positive and ready to go.
For a longer project, I suggest occasionally giving
team members a holiday from a whole sprint to
allow them to complete other work activities or take vacation.
This allows them to return to the project rejuvenated.
Assuming this is not the end of the project, when you complete
the Adapt phase, you'll proceed to the Speculate phase for the next sprint.
Remember, if the original agreed costs or schedule have been consumed, it's
now time to end the project and proceed to the Close phase.
If this happens to
be your last sprint, the project is now ready to be closed.
The close phase now begins.
The administrative activities and the close phase include: ensuring vendors
have been invoiced and payments received, reconciling any project financials.
Working with managers and team members to
redeploy people to other projects or work activities.
Communicating the overall project results to the project team and other
key stakeholders. Now is the time to toot your horn.
Next, ensure business benefits continue to be monitored and achieve.
It is important to transition this monitoring to the customer.
And last, if Agile project management in new to your company, provide a
special recap on why the Agile process worked and what lessons you learned.
You should skip the temptation to skip or shorten the close phase activities.
Project closure is important to ensure the project does not linger unnecessarily.
That also gives everyone the chance to
appreciate the significance of what has been achieved.