Assignment .pdf
- 1. Assignment 03: Agile Methodology This assignment is to understand the candidate’s experience in running multiple squads in an agile development environment. The ideal candidate is the “quarterback” between Outbound PM, Design, Engineering, and Agile Coach to ensure everyone is aligned on the goals, outcomes, and expected delivery of software in a high-velocity environment. Walk us through your experience in leading multiple squads through an agile development environment across co-located teams in NYC and Dhaka. Introduction: A product owner's core responsibility is to quarterback between teams and stakeholders to deliver high-octane products ensuring seamless alignment and collaboration. To achieve that transparency is the key, every stakeholder must be informed of what the other team members are doing. From my previous experience, Ensuring clear transparency between different squads where teams have geographical dispersions is a constant communication channel is a must, and also daily huddles to understand the todo and accomplishments. Additionally, there has to be someone who will work as the Person In Charge not just the point of contact who will ensure clear communication and required decision on time. Will explain this more elaborately below. Challenges: a. Managing co-located teams in New York City and Dhaka introduces complexities related to time zone differences, cultural disparities, and potential communication barriers. b. Ensuring alignment among diverse cross-functional teams, such as Outbound Product Management, Design, Engineering, and Agile Coaching, necessitates effective collaboration and communication. c. Meeting the demands of a high-velocity environment requires precision, efficiency, and adaptability to deliver quality software on schedule. d. Upholding Agile principles and practices, including sprint planning, backlog grooming, daily stand-ups, and retrospectives, is vital for successful product development. Experience and Solutions: a. Implemented a robust communication strategy that takes into account time zone differences to ensure that teams in both locations remain synchronized. Introduced a
- 2. suite of tools and platforms, including video conferencing and collaborative task management software, to facilitate remote collaboration. b. Pioneered regular cross-functional team meetings to foster a shared understanding of goals and priorities. Encouraged open dialogue and the exchange of ideas among teams to leverage diverse expertise. c. Ensure a daily meeting to go over each assignment at the beginning to track each one's progress and difficulties. The purpose of the huddle is to provide updates on each ticket; specifics will not be discussed. One detail at a time can be described. For elaborative discussion recommend people to have separate and specific meeting. d. Streamlined Agile processes, reducing waste and enhancing the team's ability to meet tight deadlines by doing exhaustive backlog grooming, capacity planning, task prioritization, sprint planning, and robust retrospection. e. Conducted Open discussions to reinforce Agile principles among team members and stakeholders. Emphasized the importance of continuous improvement through regular retrospectives and feedback loops. Results: A. Cross-functional teams in New York City and Dhaka have witnessed improved collaboration, leading to a more seamless exchange of ideas and greater alignment on project objectives. B. Agile processes have been streamlined, resulting in increased efficiency and the ability to meet high-velocity expectations. C. A culture of Agile excellence has been cultivated, with teams and stakeholders embracing Agile principles and participating in continuous improvement practices.
- 3. Assignment 2: Prioritization Analysis As a candidate for the role, you are expected to be able to balance different projects based on the needs of customers, the impact on retention and adoption, and the availability of your engineering resources. Given that you are managing a team of 4 engineers which includes a tech lead, 2 established engineers, and an intern, you have been asked to deliver the following: 1. A Bug was reported by multiple clients at the same time but it is not blocking any core functionality within the platform. There is a workaround, but the workaround is less than ideal. Required resources- 1 Engineer, 3 points. 2. A Bug that is blocking a strategic client from performing a core use case within the platform. Required resources- 1 Engineer, 5 points 3. A client commitment to improve the software must be delivered within the next 7 days. Required resources- 2 Engineers, 8 points. 4. An internal commitment that is half done so far and is expected to be completed within the next 3 days if you continue to work on it. Required resources- 2 Engineers, 3 more points Given the above scenario, walk us through how you would prioritize the work in a stacked rank order. Please come prepared with your own mental model or framework on how you would prioritize the work Introduction: Prioritizing work effectively is a critical aspect of a Product Manager / Owner role. To prioritize the given tasks in a stacked rank order, I would consider several factors, including customer impact, strategic importance, resource availability, and timelines. But as for any business, it’s very important to ensure customer satisfaction and a high retention rate, keeping those external factors in mind I will do my prioritization. Here's how I would approach this task in the below priority sequence: Prioritize Tasks and Reasoning: 1. Bug Blocking a Strategic Client (5 points & 1 engineer): A bug blocking a strategic client from performing a core use case is of high priority. Because It directly impacts a key customer's ability to use our platform effectively. As this task requires 5 points which is effectively 4 Days' worth of work, optimizing the workaround will break the task into multiple sub-tasks and will monitor the incremental improvement of the task. And will ensure that it is addressed promptly so that we can maintain a positive relationship with the strategic client.
- 4. 2. Client Commitment (8 points & 2 engineers): A commitment made to a client is a matter of trust and reputation. It must be upheld. With a commitment to improve the software within the next 7 days, it is essential to allocate the necessary resources to meet this deadline. The task has 8 points which means the potential timeline to complete this task is 5 to 7 days, and as I can assign 2 of my resources for this task, I will break this task into multiple smaller sub-tasks so that the resources can complete the whole task in an incremental manner and accomplish the work within 7 days. Therefore can ensure that the commitment is fulfilled, which is vital for customer satisfaction, trust, and retention. 3. Bug Reported by Multiple Clients (3 points & 1 engineer): While this bug may not block core functionality, and a nonideal workaround is there, the important fact here is, that the bug has been reported by multiple clients. Which indicates that it has a noticeable impact on customer experience and satisfaction. Given that it only requires one engineer and 3 points which means 18 hours will be required to complete this, it can be addressed relatively quickly. It should be a priority to maintain customer trust and satisfaction. 4. Internal Commitment (3 points & 2 engineers): The internal commitment that is already half done should be completed as it is expected within the next 3 days. This work will likely have a positive impact on the internal team's productivity. Also, this task has 3 points which means it is 3 days' worth of work, it indicates that it can be addressed relatively quickly and the commitment is fulfilled promptly. My prioritization framework is based on the following principles: 1. Customer-related tasks take precedence because customer satisfaction and retention are paramount for any business. 2. Tasks that involve strategic clients or commitments have high importance due to their long-term impact on the company. 3. I consider the available resources. For example, if I have an intern on the team, I might assign less critical tasks for their learning and development. 4. I give high priority to tasks with imminent deadlines, ensuring we meet our commitments. This approach balances customer needs, strategic commitments, and resource allocation, ensuring that we address critical issues promptly while managing internal commitments efficiently.
- 5. Assignment 1: As a candidate for the role, you are expected to manage an engineering team and assist them in understanding and scoping the user stories, acceptance criteria, and designs for what they need to deliver; help them facilitate through the deliverables and mitigate blockers to ensure timely, quality delivery of products. However, while working with a certain team you identified that the team is not working to its full potential. Upon further evaluation, you observed the following issues: 1. The Tech Lead is not very vocal within the team and is not motivating the team members to give their maximum effort. 2. The team's overall morale is down which is contributing to the extension of delivery deadlines. 3. New York based stakeholder for your team has recently joined the squad and may not be fully ramped up on the agile delivery process. 4. Lack of teamwork is clearly visible within the team. 5. The team is constantly failing to meet deadlines and are delivering buggy products. Given the above scenario, what would your proposal be to ensure that the team members get back their motivation and deliver software on-time, on-quality? Introduction: Its a serious matter of concern, when its been identified that the team is not delivering at their 100% of potential. Additionally it is visible that there are lack of motivation in the team. In this situation their Supervisor or Lead is not being vocal or motivating them can lead to massive failure as a team, as a organization, and also as individuals. Being a member of the core team it is definitely my responsibility to motive the team, understand their barriers and blockers, and also ensure that the teams moral is up again. Therefore, I will try to dive deep into their pain points as a friend and teammate and also will try to motivate them by showcasing the overall organizational vision, team vision, and more importantly Individual prospects. Will be elaborating the whole in multiple section below. 1. Leadership and Motivation: Will try to engage with the tech lead a little more to understand his or her barrier, will schedule a one-on-one meeting with the Tech Lead to understand their perspective and any challenges he or she might be facing. Will try to encourage my tech lead to take a more active role in motivating team members. Will try to highlight the overall team performance, and the individuals
- 6. we are working with. So that my tech lead start reacting more as a leader than a supervisor to ensure team binding and individual elevation. If I can feel that there is a lack of inspiration in leadership in my tech lead I will try to Inspire and promote leadership qualities within the Tech Lead by providing coaching and mentorship. Additionally to encourage the team, will suggest my lead to set a positive example, support team members, and recognize and reward their contributions. And finally to establish better team bonding, will organize team-building activities and workshops to improve cohesion and camaraderie among team members. A motivated team often depends on strong interpersonal relationships. 2. Morale and Delivery Deadlines: To address the concerns, will conduct individual and group meetings to discuss team members' circustances and frustrations. Will Actively listen to their feedbacks and take steps to resolve any issues affecting team morale. If to achieve or resolve this I need to connect or conduct session with my management I will do that. I will try to ensure clear expectations from my team, and will communicate tranperantly for quality and deadlines. Will try to engage them to the larger vision and impact of this project or tasks, so that the team members are aware of the significance of their job and how it affects the project's outcome. With a clear communication with my management I will Implement a recognition and rewards system to acknowledge exceptional performance. Recognize achievements publicly and offer tangible rewards to boost team morale. 3. Onboarding New Stakeholder: As my new remote stakeholder is partially ramped up on agile process, I will arrange a welcome meeting for the stakeholder to introduce them to the team. This meeting should include team members, including the Product Manager, Product Owner, Scrum Master, and developers. During the introduction, provide an overview of the project, its goals, and the stakeholder's role within the team. Additionaly will emphasise on the high-level overview of agile methodologies and principles. Will try to give in depth understandoing on the iterative nature of agile, emphasizing adaptability and customer-centric development. Share essential agile concepts such as user stories, sprints, backlog, and the importance of continuous feedback. If I identify that there is a gap in my stakeholders understanding, will arrange a formal agile training sessions. These can be facilitated by an experienced Agile Coach or a team member well-versed in agile methodologies. The training should cover the agile framework being used, such as Scrum, and Kanban. I will encourage my new stakeholder to interact with the team regularly. Will include in daily stand-up meetings, sprint planning sessions, sprint reviews, and retrospectives for more clear understanding. Also will assign a mentor or buddy from the team who can answer questions and
- 7. provide guidance. This person can help the stakeholder navigate the agile process, tools, and team dynamics. And also will ensure a regular one-on-one meetings with the buddy to address specific queries and concerns. 4. Building Teamwork: Will try to create a collaborative work environment by promoting cross-functional teamwork. Assign team members to tasks that require collaboration and mutual support. Will try to arrange motivational session, where we can discuss on the teamwork and strenght of it. With a discussion to my tech lead and management will try to Invest in training and skill development opportunities for team members to enhance their capabilities and foster a sense of competence. Will make sure to conduct regular retrospectives to evaluate the team's performance and identify areas for improvement. Encourage open discussions and constructive feedback. 5. Ensuring the Deadlines with Non Buggy products: Firstly, as a Product Owner I have to ensure that all the Deliverables are well defined from the beginning. And also the Vision and importance are clear to my team. Have to prepare comprehensive User Stories, Acceptance Criterias, Error Cases, and Wireframes. Secondly, have to establish open and effective communication channels within the team. Maintaining regular communication with developers, testers, and other stakeholders to discuss the progress and challenges. Ensuring effective daily stand-up meetings to address any roadblocks and need to align everyone on this. Will try to breakdown the project and tasks into manageable smaller sub tasks, so that the incremental growth can be easily monitored. Significantly, I will Prioritize quality assurance and testing of each tasks. Have to ensure that testing is an integral part of the development process, not a last-minute activity. Will consider implementing test-driven development (TDD) to catch bugs early in the development cycle itself. Lastly, will emphasize on collaborative problem-solving culture. When issues or bugs are identified, team needs to be collaboratively involved to finding solutions. Additionally, address not only the symptoms but the underlying causes of problems.