Duration: 1 week | Difficulty: ⭐⭐☆☆☆ | Prerequisites: Module 2
Learn the ceremonies, artifacts, and rhythms of modern product teams. This module covers Scrum mechanics, roadmapping, and the day-to-day processes that keep teams aligned.
You'll learn:
- Scrum ceremonies (Sprint Planning, Standups, Review, Retro)
- Product roadmapping (Now/Next/Later)
- Release planning and versioning
- OKR quarterly planning
ReserveEasy Application: Sprint 15 Plan
- The Scrum Framework
- Sprint Planning
- Daily Standup
- Sprint Review
- Sprint Retrospective
- Product Roadmapping
- OKR Planning
- Key Takeaways
Scrum: Agile framework for delivering complex products through iterative sprints.
| Role | Responsibility | Key Activities |
|---|---|---|
| Product Owner | Maximize product value | Prioritize backlog, write user stories, accept work |
| Scrum Master | Facilitate Scrum process | Remove blockers, run ceremonies, coach team |
| Development Team | Build the product | Estimate, develop, test, deploy |
graph LR
A[Sprint Planning - 4 hours] --> B[Daily Standups - 15 min/day]
B --> C[Development Work - 10 working days]
C --> D[Sprint Review - 2 hours]
D --> E[Sprint Retro - 1.5 hours]
E --> A
style A fill:#e1f5ff
style B fill:#fff4e1
style C fill:#ffe1f5
style D fill:#e1ffe1
style E fill:#f5e1ff
Duration: 2-4 hours (for 2-week sprint)
Attendees: Product Owner, Scrum Master, Dev Team
Goal: Commit to work for the upcoming sprint
- PO presents Sprint Goal: "Enable users to modify reservations"
- Team reviews top backlog items (already refined)
- Team asks clarifying questions
- Team commits: "We'll complete US-045, US-046, US-047" (21 points based on velocity)
Inputs:
- Prioritized product backlog
- Team velocity (last 3 sprints: 18, 21, 24 → avg 21)
- Definition of Ready checklist
Outputs:
- Sprint Goal (1 sentence)
- Sprint Backlog (committed user stories)
- Team breaks stories into technical tasks
- Identifies dependencies
- Each developer picks initial tasks
Example Breakdown:
US-045: As a diner, I want to change my reservation time
Technical Tasks:
- Add "Modify" button to booking confirmation page (Frontend - 0.5 days)
- Create
PATCH /api/v1/bookings/{id}endpoint (Backend - 1 day) - Check real-time availability before allowing change (Backend - 1 day)
- Send updated SMS confirmation (Backend - 0.5 days)
- Write unit tests (Backend - 0.5 days)
- UAT test cases (QA - 0.5 days)
Total: ~4 days of work
Duration: 15 minutes MAX
Time: Same time every day (e.g., 9:30 AM)
Attendees: Dev Team (PO/SM optional)
Each person answers:
- What did I complete yesterday?
- What will I work on today?
- Are there any blockers?
Example:
Alice (Frontend):
- Yesterday: Finished "Modify" button UI
- Today: Integrate with PATCH API
- Blockers: None
Bob (Backend):
- Yesterday: Built PATCH endpoint
- Today: Add availability validation
- Blockers: Waiting for Staging database refresh (DevOps)
Scrum Master:
Action: I'll follow up with DevOps to unblock Bob.
❌ Reporting to the manager: This is peer-to-peer sync, not a status report
❌ Problem-solving: Take complex discussions offline
❌ Going over 15 min: Use a timer, respect everyone's time
Duration: 1-2 hours
Attendees: Team + Stakeholders (execs, customers)
Goal: Demo completed work, gather feedback
-
Recap Sprint Goal (5 min)
- PO: "Our goal was to enable booking modifications. Here's what we shipped."
-
Live Demo (30-45 min)
- Team shows working software (not slides!)
- Example: "Sarah logs in, clicks 'My Reservations,' selects one, clicks 'Modify Time,' system checks availability in real-time, she picks a new time, boom - SMS sent with new details."
-
Stakeholder Feedback (15-30 min)
- Stakeholder: "Love it! Can we also let her change party size?"
- PO: "Great idea - I'll add that to the backlog as US-048."
-
What Didn't Get Done (5 min)
- PO: "We committed to US-047 (restaurant approval) but it got blocked by a database migration. Moving to Sprint 16."
- Deployed to staging environment (not localhost!)
- No critical bugs
- Acceptance criteria met
- Product Owner approved
Duration: 1-1.5 hours
Attendees: Dev Team only (safe space)
Goal: Improve processes, not judge people
Facilitator (Scrum Master): "What should we START doing?"
- Developer: "START pair programming on complex features - reduces bugs"
- QA: "START writing test cases before development (shift-left testing)"
"What should we STOP doing?"
- Developer: "STOP having meetings without agendas - wasted 2 hours this sprint"
- Designer: "STOP making last-minute design changes mid-sprint"
"What should we CONTINUE doing?"
- Team: "CONTINUE Friday afternoon demos - great visibility"
- PO: "CONTINUE backlog refinement mid-sprint - stories are well-defined"
| Action Item | Owner | Due Date |
|---|---|---|
| Set up pair programming rotation | Alice | Sprint 16 Day 1 |
| Create "meeting agenda" template in Confluence | Scrum Master | End of week |
Retrospective Prime Directive:
"Regardless of what we discover, we understand and truly believe that everyone did the best job they could, given what they knew at the time, their skills and abilities, the resources available, and the situation at hand."
Purpose: Communicate the product vision and sequencing of major initiatives.
timeline
title ReserveEasy Product Roadmap (2026)
section Now (Current Quarter)
MVP Launch : Booking flow
: SMS confirmations
: Deposit system
section Next (Q2 2026)
Enhancements : Booking modifications
: Restaurant analytics dashboard
: Waitlist feature (beta)
section Later (H2 2026)
Expansion : Mobile apps iOS Android
: Loyalty program
: Integration with POS systems
Why Not Dates?
- Dates create false commitments ("You promised June!")
- Priorities change based on learnings
- "Now/Next/Later" gives direction without rigidity
To Executives: Focus on business outcomes
"Q1: Launch MVP → Onboard 50 restaurants
Q2: Reduce churn → Build analytics dashboard"
To Customers: Focus on problem-solving
"Coming soon: Easier changes to your reservations based on your feedback!"
To Engineering: Focus on technical milestones
"Sprint 15-18: Booking modification epic
Sprint 19-22: Analytics infrastructure"
OKR = Objectives and Key Results (quarterly goal-setting framework from Intel/Google)
Objective 1: Launch MVP and prove product-market fit
Key Results:
- KR1: Onboard 50 restaurant partners (currently 0)
- KR2: Facilitate 5,000 bookings in March (currently 0)
- KR3: Achieve 40% Day 30 retention (industry: 25%)
Objective 2: Build a sustainable growth engine
Key Results:
- KR1: Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) < $30
- KR2: Achieve 20% booking conversion rate (search → booking)
- KR3: Net Promoter Score (NPS) > 40
✅ Ambitious but achievable: Should have ~70% confidence of hitting it
✅ 3-5 Key Results per Objective: More = lack of focus
✅ Measurable: "Increase revenue" → "Increase revenue to $100k"
✅ Time-bound: Quarterly cadence
❌ Not a task list: OKRs are outcomes, not activities
Grading: At quarter-end, score each KR:
- 0.0-0.3: Red (missed)
- 0.4-0.6: Yellow (partial)
- 0.7-1.0: Green (hit/exceeded)
Target: 70% average (if you hit 100% every time, goals aren't ambitious enough)
✅ Sprint Planning commits the team to a realistic amount of work based on velocity
✅ Daily Standups are for coordination, not reporting
✅ Sprint Review demos working software to gather feedback
✅ Retrospectives improve process through Start/Stop/Continue
✅ Now/Next/Later roadmaps communicate direction without rigid dates
✅ OKRs align the team on ambitious, measurable quarterly goals
📖 Read Next: Module 6: Quality Assurance
🏗️ Apply: Review Sprint 15 Plan