Product Owner vs. Business Analyst

So, what is the difference between a Product Owner and a traditional Business Analyst? Well, that is a complicated question to answer. But let’s dig in. First, in Scrum, the Business Analyst role does not officially exist. If you recall, you only have three roles: Scrum Master, Product Owner, and the Scrum Team. That’s it. The Product Owner is the appointed representative of the Business; they are the voice which drives the Scrum delivery processes. A Product Owner:

1. Represents the “Voice of the Customer”

2. Develops and refines the Product Backlog

3. Defines business value of Product Backlog items

4. Establishes the priority and optimizes value of the work the Scrum Team performs

5. May or may not write the User Stories
   

At a high level, a Product Owner is generally less technical and is more oriented towards the business. In a lot of respects, from a traditional Waterfall view, they function both as the SME and perform less technical BA work. As we stated earlier, a Business Analyst does not exist on a Scrum Team, so where do they go? This is where things get organization specific.

Some organizations will absorb the BA and they will simply become part of the Scrum Team. On a Scrum Team, a Business Analyst might:

1. Write the User Stories

2. Perform additional analysis which will become artifacts during the Sprint (process models and diagrams, data dictionaries, low and hi-fi prototypes)

3. Execute UAT (write test cases, execute tests, maintain issues log)
   

In other organizations, a Business Analyst will transition into the role of the Product Owner. Meaning they will typically become more involved in the business side of the organization and less embedded within IT. The success of this transition will largely depend on the person’s ability to adapt and being comfortable representing the business. A Business Analyst is traditional a liaison between the Business and IT; a Product Owner represents the Business and product itself.

An Overview of the 3 Roles in Scrum

The Scrum Master:

The Scrum Master is a facilitator and servant leader. This person is typically well versed in the Scrum product delivery framework and serves as a go-to expert regarding Scrum principles and practice. A great way to think of a Scrum Master is as a coach and educator.

Responsibilities:

• Acts as a servant leader, one who leads by example and has a team first mindset

• Ensures principles of Scrum are understood and regularly practiced by the team

• Removes any impediments the Scrum team may encounter

• May assist the team in facilitating in Scrum ceremonies (such as Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, and Sprint Retrospective)

The Product Owner:

The Product Owner in Scrum is typically the key stakeholder for the product development effort. This individual should have a long-term vision for the product and should be able to communicate that vision to the Development team.

Responsibilities:

• Develops the Product Goal/Roadmap

• Creates and maintains the Product Backlog including defining, prioritizing, and ensuring Product Backlog Items are clearly visible and understood by all

• The responsibilities defined above may be delegated (however, the PO is still responsible for any work that is delegated to others)

The Development Team:

The Development Team is structured in a way to be self-empowered, with the ability to manage work internally. In short, they decide how to fulfill the vision of the Product Owner defined via the Product Backlog.

Responsibilities:

• The Development Team is a cross functional, self-organizing unit with the ability to transform the backlog items into Product Increments. Their primary responsibility is to execute the Sprint.

• Plan/participate in the Daily Scrum, this provides the team an opportunity to inspect their work and adapt as needed.

• Groom (create/refine/estimate/prioritize) items in the Product Backlog; ensure enough items are available and ready for the next Sprint.

• Collaborate with the Product Owner (and Scrum Master) to plan each Sprint (including defining the Sprint Goal).

• Plan/participate in the Sprint Review and Retrospective; utilize the Sprint Review to inspect/adapt the Product Increment(s). Utilize the Sprint Retrospective to inspect and adapt the process.

A Brief Overview of the Scrum Ceremonies

In Scrum, there are four distinct ceremonies (and five if you include Product Backlog Refinement), these include:

1. Sprint Planning

2. Daily Scrum

3. Sprint Review

4. Sprint Retrospective

5. Product Backlog Refinement (*)

1.  Sprint Planning:

The purpose of the Sprint Planning meeting is to plan each Sprint. The first step is to identify a Sprint Goal, which is the overarching objective for the Sprint. The second key is to begin defining the scope for the Sprint. The Development team begins pulling the highest priority User Stories, in line with the Sprint Goal. These User Stories are then assigned to the team members; at this point, they begin identifying the tasks required to execute each User Story. Any roadblocks or issues are also identified.

Meeting Length: The Sprint Planning meeting is a maximum of 2 hours in length, multiplied by the number of weeks for the Sprint.

• 2 Hours x 2 Week Sprint = 4 Hour Meeting (time box)

2.  Daily Scrum

The purpose of the daily scrum is to enable team members to give a brief status update. Three questions are answered by each team member:

1. What did I do yesterday?

2. What am I doing today?

3. Are there any blockers?

If any issue requires extensive discussion, it is tabled until after the meeting. The goal is to keep the meeting brief, so as not to waste anyone’s time. The Scrum Master is an optional attendee, in general, he or she will help facilitate this meeting.  

Meeting Length: Typically 15 Minutes (however some organizations may run 30 minute meetings)

3.  Sprint Review:

The purpose of the Sprint Review is to review the work increment(s) which were completed during the Sprint. This meeting occurs on the last day of the Sprint. In it, the Project Stakeholders are invited to review the work (typically a demo) and to provide constructive feedback.

Meeting Length: The Sprint Review meeting is a maximum of 1-hour in length, multiplied by the number of weeks for the Sprint

• 1 Hour x 2 Week Sprint = 2 Hour Meeting (time box)

4.  Sprint Retrospective:

The purpose of the Sprint Retrospective is to review how effectively and efficiently the team worked during the Sprint. If there were any challenges or impediments, the team will use this time to discuss. The Sprint Retrospective is generally an internal team meeting; invitations to this meeting may be restricted to outsiders. The reason for this is to enable the team to speak freely and find ways to discuss areas of improvement.

Meeting Length: There really is no agreed upon standard. Some organizations use the 1-hour in length, multiplied by the number of weeks for the Sprint as a rule of thumb.

• 1 Hour x 2 Week Sprint = 2 Hour Meeting (time box)

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5.   Backlog Refinement

A fifth ceremony which could be included here is Product Backlog Refinement. Product Backlog Refinement is an ongoing, collaborative effort between the Product Owner and the Development Team to add the requisite detail to each Product Backlog Item. If not already, many backlog items are decomposed into User Stories. Details like Acceptance Criteria, Story Points, and supplementary documents are added to each User Story. One of the primary goals of Backlog Refinement is to create fully dressed User Stories which are Sprint Ready. The Product Owner is also afforded the luxury to reprioritize the board based upon changing business conditions; stories can be added or removed as needed. This flexibility enables the Scrum Team to focus on the highest priority stories, rather than a stagnant set of requirements.

As Is, To Be, and Gap Analysis

One of the most important tools in the toolkit for a BA are modeling the “As Is” and “To Be” business processes and finally performing the “GAP” Analysis. At the highest level, we are trying to identify and document what is currently occurring, what we would like to see happen in the future, and ultimately find the gaps between these two states. This type of analysis is usually focused on business processes; this can and typically does overlap with system functions (technology).

The "As Is" analysis focuses on the current state of the business in terms of its processes, including any pain points which need to be resolved. The goal is to bring clarity to what is occurring in an organization. Information is elicited from Stakeholders and SMEs who are either:

-       Performing these business functions, or are

-       Responsible for managing these processes and/or

-       Responsible for the outcomes of these processes

This information is typically boiled down into a Business Process Model. These models are a simplified, graphical representation of the real-world business processes which are occurring for an organization.

The level of decomposition of these models will depend upon the stated goals of the project. For example, if you are attempting to gain organizational efficiencies and are reengineering business processes, it is likely your models will be decomposed into a great level of detail. For most projects related to application development, this level of detail is usually not required.

The "To Be" analysis is focused on creating an ideal state of business processes in the future. The goal here is to begin identifying opportunities for improvement. Many times, processes can be automated through the creation of new applications, or enhancements to existing ones. Whereas some business processes can simply be tweaked to gain efficiency, while others can be added or removed. Time savings, opportunities to cut costs, or improve quality can all be realized through this type of analysis.

Alright, so now you have a high-level understanding of the “As Is” and “To Be analysis”, so what is “GAP” analysis? GAP analysis is simply the process of identifying the holes between your “As Is” and “To Be” analysis. A great way to think about it is identifying what steps need to be taken to fulfill the “To Be” process models. Here we are, and here’s what needs to occur. For all intents and purposes, most of your work during the project will be here, filling the gaps and implementing the “To Be” models.

As a Business Analyst, this type of analysis isn’t always required. However, it can be extremely useful on most projects. During my experience, there have been many occasions in which being detail-oriented during this phase paid off with uncovering hidden requirements. Furthermore, this is where you typically find your opportunities for improvement, or even unseen pain points. I will leave it here for now, but I will definitely be expanding upon this topic in the future; the primary focus will be on what I look for when conducting this type of analysis. 

The Value of Application Prototyping

Why do so many application development projects fail? In many cases, the reason for this are inaccurate or incomplete requirements. The move towards "Agile" was a way of combatting this. Those evangelizing this gospel will contend that changing requirements are a part of life and should be embraced with open arms. These enthusiasts propose you can flex product scope, while still meeting the business need and fitting within the time and resource constraints of a given project. Much of this is true. However, we can still do better!

But how? Ask yourself this. Would you ever buy a new home without seeing a model home? Would you ever buy a new car, without test driving it? Or buy a new shirt without trying it on? The answer to that is clearly “No”. We understand the reason intuitively, people want to test things and try them out before they make a buying decision. In the example of buying a new home, we know that most people would never buy one solely based upon Architectural drawings and sketches. It doesn’t matter how detailed these drawings are, it’s never going to happen. Then why on earth would you deliver an application without giving the Users the ability to test drive it, before it’s been developed?

Yes, stakeholders should know exactly what they are getting before it's produced. Or at the very least, something close to it. This is where prototyping comes into play. The key here is that we're translating their wants and needs into something that's both visual and tangible. We all know that most people are visual learners; your stakeholders are no different. Most stakeholders will have trouble digesting a 300-page specifications document; similarly, most will also have trouble conceptualizing a set of User Stories in an Epic. However, most if not all, can easily understand a working prototype. It’s so much easier for them to give feedback, and ultimately approve the work. In addition, prototyping can give the team a head start in terms of UX/UI, which is a huge bonus.

To be successful as a Business Analyst in today’s competitive environment, adding a skill like prototyping to your toolbelt is a huge advantage. It’s worth your time and effort to learn. So, let’s look at some more of the benefits of application prototyping:

1.    Cost Savings

The biggest benefit of prototyping is obvious, it’s the ability to save on costs. Coding is very expensive and time consuming; while you can make very large-scale changes to a prototype on the fly.  

2.    Minimize Re-work

Even if we’re working in an Agile-based environment, we still want to minimize rework. There is a significant difference between making changes based upon a business need, as opposed to a misunderstanding. One is highly productive, responding to marketplace signals. The other is unnecessary and is very costly. Prototyping can largely solve this.

3.    Increase Delivery Speed

A big morale boost derived from prototyping is the ability for the team to deliver more, in a shorter amount of time. Prototyping removes a lot of the ambiguity and guesswork out of the application development process; this time can be better spent on delivering the end solution.

Hopefully I have been able to convince you to start prototyping your solutions starting today. If not, it would be wise to at least think about adding this technique to your requirements gathering process. A less involved technique would be to start wireframing some of your end solutions; this can be very effective and is extremely simple for even a beginner. Any way you slice it, the more visuals you can add to your Requirements or User Stories, the better off you will be.

Acceptance Criteria, User Stories, and UX

Many Agile purists will argue User Stories are NOT requirements; their contention is that User Stories are goal oriented, while Requirements decompose product scope. This is partly true. Functional Requirements tend to be descriptive of a solution; however, the actual Business Requirements should be goal oriented. Hence, a statement of business need. Having worked with many Application Developers during my career, I can understand their frustration. Most developers want to avoid being “boxed in” to a solution and want the flexibility to build solid applications. In many cases, a Business Analyst will step over the line and will begin recommending solutions which either won’t work, will be too complex to develop, or will take too much time to develop. User Stories are a way to keep non-technical folks from stepping over those boundaries. Whether you’re writing traditional BRD’s, or User Stories, understand these are two METHODS which seek to achieve the same results.

We are in the business of transforming human thought, into tangible “Products” (usually applications) that achieve a business goal or solve a business problem.

The utilization of Acceptance Criteria to ensure software (a product) meets stakeholder needs is very common. In the "Agile" realm (for all intents and purpose, SCRUM), Acceptance Criteria define the boundary of the User Story; basically, it's how we can tell if the story has been fulfilled and is working as intended. In terms of language, these criteria are lower level goals the User wishes to achieve, decomposed from the higher-level User Story. For BA's, it's very similar to the way higher level Business Requirements are decomposed into Functional and Non-Functional Requirements. In that model, we are clearly stating business needs and describing the solution(s) in more and more detail.

In Agile, these Acceptance Criteria are then transformed into Test Cases; this ensures we have a Pass/Fail verdict for each criterion (and ensures that we have traceability). The idea of using a Pass/Fail method for testing quality infers Acceptance Criteria are objective. For the most part, this is true.

However, there is a major exception to this rule. User Experience. With UX, we are talking about the User’s subjective experience interacting with the web site or application. This is not to be confused with Usability, which has a narrower focus ensuring a “product” enables the User to complete a set of tasks. This means we are dealing with the User’s attitudes and opinions of the product we are delivering, not just whether it works as specified.

As many of us who have worked in custom application development for any length of time understands that this poses a challenge with regards to measuring success. We can use a variety of techniques to gain insight into a User groups’ satisfaction with our product. We can even have a fairly good idea as to their likes and dislikes. However, we must understand this is not a hard science, but can have a tremendous influence on our success.

A great example from about 10 years ago was the launch of the iPhone. Apple introduced a product which would completely revolutionize how the world communicates. This wasn't by done by accident. What set Apple apart wasn't just the functionality, it was the User Experience. From the slick packaging and presentation of a brand-new iPhone, to the building of anticipation of every release – Apple created a brand-new segment of the cell phone market which it would dominate for years to come – the smart phone.  

Over the years, many competitors have attempted to replicate this success. The devices have become increasingly sophisticated, with an astonishing amount of functionality packed into a small unit. While the competition could match the physical qualities of the iPhone, most were unable to match Apple’s success. Do you remember the Blackberry Storm? I don’t either.

So, what does this all mean? The most important implication of this example is that it is NOT enough to focus on objective measures of success. Fulfilling a User Story and passing Acceptance Criteria is simply a starting point, the attitudes and interest of your Users may be even more important. It’s not just what your Users can and want to do, it’s how they feel about what they’re doing. Their attitudes and opinions can ultimately make or break your project, so it’s very wise to pay attention.  

Entrepreneurship for Women 101: How to Start an Online Business

By Elena Stewart

The COVID-19 pandemic hurt working women in particular, as many lost their jobs when stay-at-home orders went into effect. For others, the increase in household responsibilities led them to make tough career choices. Recent research shows around 2 million women considered downshifting their career or leaving the workforce, with the most significant percentage being those with children under 10. The silver lining is that many discovered their ability to generate income with an online business, giving a new career to those who lost their job and providing flexibility to working moms. Today, Agile BSA shares a few tips on starting your own successful home business.

Choose Your Job/Specialty

Thanks to digital technology, you have several online business options available to you. To narrow down your choices, think about what you are good at and how you can use that to help others. For example, if you are a crafty person, you can set up an online store to sell your products. Starting a blog is an excellent choice if you have a talent for writing, as is freelancing as a copywriter or proofreader. A bookkeeping or accounting service is always in demand, especially with small businesses. Other ideas include:

•        Virtual assistant

•        Web designer

•        Graphic artist

•        Photographer

•        Travel agent

•        Life coach

Write a Business Plan

Your next step is to create a business plan that lists all the details of your new startup and how you plan on making it a success. This plan comes in handy if you need to get investors involved to fund your new company.

Consider forming your business as a limited liability company to reap tax advantages and get more flexibility and less paperwork. It also limits your personal liability should you face a lawsuit in the future. Check your state's LLC formation rules before moving ahead, as regulations vary nationwide.

Create a Brand

Creating a brand for your new business gives you a competitive edge in the marketplace. It makes you memorable to consumers and brings attention to the products or services you offer. Decide what style you want to convey to the public, whether whimsical, friendly, luxurious, or formal.

A logo is an essential part of building your brand awareness, as it creates a solid first impression with customers and clues them into what separates your company from your competitors. Therefore, it is worth the extra money to hire a professional designer to create one for you.

However, if your startup budget is tight, you can create one yourself with a bit of help. Online logo makers can assist you in designing your own attractive and creative logo. Afterwards, make sure you add your new logo to your invoices. Incidentally, as vital as it is that you maintain precise and accurate records, you can also save money in that area as well by using a free invoice maker program.

Market Your Business on Social Media

The easiest and least expensive way to tell the public about your new company is to market it on social media platforms. There is no cost to create a Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube page for your business. Making a social media strategy document helps you set goals, schedule your content and keep all your posts organized.

Now is a great time to start your own online business. Following these tips can help you make it a success.

Agile BSA is dedicated to improving the profession of Business Analysis as it transitions into an Agile world. Over the coming weeks, months, and years – we plan on contributing as much knowledge as we can to the profession of business and system analysis. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions!

Tips for Effective Wellness for Remote Workers

By Mark Harris

The work-from-home culture is becoming the norm these days, and more businesses are starting to reap the benefits of building remote teams. By working with freelancers.

Working remotely is productive and acceptable, so many people prefer working away from a centralized location. However, building a wellness program when working remotely comes with challenges and obstacles, as it’s easy to start bad habits. Presented by Agile BSA, these guidelines help you solve the problem of building wellness programs for remote workers.

Explore Resources on Building a Healthy Workspace

Many people working at home don’t have a specific workspace like an office with the right furniture. A good home office setup can improve your productivity as it gives you the best environment to focus on what matters. You can find ideas on designing a wellness program through different work-from-home ergonomics infographics. These guidelines help you make the work environment more comfortable with just a few simple adjustments.

Another option is to make the workspace healthier by incorporating more natural lighting. You can also explore outdoor working options to get vitamin D from the sun and boost your immune system. This will keep depression at bay and also improve your sleep by ensuring your circadian rhythm is in balance. You could add mirrors to the home office to reflect light and increase that sunny feeling in your space.

Because you’ll be working from home, it’s important to pay attention to the energy around your home office. If energy around the home is negative, this will impact your productivity. There are different steps you can explore to clear negative energy, including organizing, decluttering, and cleaning to eliminate tension and boost your focus.

Social Interactions are Vital for Well-Being

Social isolation is linked with mental health problems. While working remotely, you should never lose touch with the world around you. Don’t lock yourself in the house and forget to go out to meet up with family and friends. It helps to clear your mind, which is important in managing the strain that comes with dealing with the workload the entire day.

Don’t forget to look your best while working remotely. To look great, get some clothes that make you feel good about yourself. The idea is to buy comfortable clothes that fit without sacrificing style. 

Be Aware of Burnout

Employee burnout is common among remote workers, so if you don’t have a daily commute, the barrier between time off and the workday can become a blur. If you’re home a big part of the day, it gets easy to do more than you should for each day. Talk to your manager and let them understand they should respect your time, so they should not send you tasks out of the normal working schedule, except in an emergency situation.

When you feel too exhausted to continue, pause and let your body recharge. You could take a nap or go outside to catch some fresh air. Working for too long could impact your mental health, which ultimately impacts your productivity.

Set Boundaries

If you’re working from home, set boundaries and build a routine and schedule that suits your needs. This helps you distinguish between work life and your home life. When you get off the clock, it’s ideal to turn off work notifications and wait until the next workday to respond to emails. This helps you feel like you’re not at work, even if your office is in your home. Another boundary you should make is ensuring you have a designated space for your office. By doing this, you ensure you can step away from the work area when done.

So, you can easily decompress for the rest of the day. Find a chair and a desk that gives you comfort, ensuring you sit comfortably when working for hours at a time.

Find a Workout You Enjoy

Sitting for hours working on projects can have a toll on your physical and mental health. You must find a way to address this before it wrecks your body. One of the ideas to explore is embracing the workout you enjoy. Exercise offers many health benefits, which explains why it’s an excellent option when exploring self-care.

You can find fun exercises that are ideal to do at home. Many gyms and instructors offer online programs that don’t require going to the gym. You can create time within the day to work out and ensure you’re fit physically and mentally. You could also access free online workout classes if you want something that will help you to get started.

Connect with Coworkers

Be intentional about maintaining connections with coworkers. This can help you relax and build relationships. It’s a good idea to fight the feeling of isolation. Find an option for communication that will create that connection with your coworkers. You can start an online chat group that works like casual conversations you would have in an office setting.

Also, you could consider creating a regular happy hour, lunch club, book club, or other meeting time that helps you often connect to discuss non-work-related topics.

Take Breaks During the Day

Regular breaks throughout the workday are vital to keeping yourself focused. It also reduces burnout. You should step away from the work area to enjoy an actual lunch break. Also, consider setting a timer for 30 productive minutes, then a five-minute break. During the break, you can do mini-exercises like stretching and deep breathing to stay motivated. 

Despite working from home, you should never lose focus and get comfortable. It’s important to stick to the wellness ideas that will help you stay motivated. Protect your health by avoiding burnout. Take breaks and incorporate physical exercise into your routine. Build a comfortable workspace with natural lighting and a decluttered setup.

AgileBSA.com has one goal: to help improve the profession of Business Analysis as we transition to an Agile world. Learn more by exploring the Agile BSA blog.

Why You Need Accurate Financial Projections for Your Business and How To Create Them

By Elena Stewart

Whether you are hoping to open a new location, hire new employees or improve your investment portfolio, accurate financial projections are important for your small business. They provide insight into how your decisions may impact the future financial health of your enterprise. Agile BSA presents the following tips that can help you make accurate financial projections for your small business.

Importance of Financial Projections

Financial projections provide insight into how your business earns and spends money. They help you monitor your cash flow, adjust production plans and change your pricing strategies. An accurate financial projection is also important for estimating your annual tax burden. Additionally, state regulations may require you to file an annual report to retain your right to do business. Financial projections are usually part of this report. Failing to comply with regulations can result in fines or penalties.

Uses of Financial Projections

There are a variety of ways you can use financial projections to improve your business. Investors and lenders want to see the documentation that supports your ability to meet future financial obligations and grow your company. Your business plan and financial projections are a central component of this documentation. Financial projections also help you adjust your business strategies to achieve your profit goals.

Financial Projection Creation

The financial projection creation process begins with creating a sales forecast. This forecast provides a picture of what is driving sales for your company. Next, create an expense budget. This gives you an idea of how much your expenses may change for different scenarios. Third, create your income statement projection. This is how much money you expect to make during the forecast period.

A cash flow projection is your next step. This provides you with an idea of what your liquidity is and how cash flows in and out of your business throughout the projection period. Follow this with a balance sheet projection. The balance sheet shows you what your company's predicted worth is. 

The process of creating and interpreting financial projections is not a simple one. If you are struggling to understand it, refreshing your skills by obtaining an online accounting degree may be helpful. You can increase your knowledge of basic accounting principles, balance sheets and other financial statements and learn how to make accurate financial projections.

Alternatively, consider an online Master of Business Administration program to boost your financial skills and business savvy. According to government data, 79% of colleges offer classes or entire degrees online. Going to school online allows you to keep running your business while also managing your studies and family life.

Software for Financial Projection Creation

Financial modeling is a complex process. Using software can simplify the process and make the data easier to understand. Many accounting packages include basic financial forecasting tools. However, you can access more advanced features by using a program specifically for financial projections.

These programs usually integrate with your accounting software so that you do not need to input the data a second time. Financial forecasting software can help you fine-tune your business plan, create multiple budgets for various scenarios, track historical budgets, consolidate budgets across departments, compare forecasts with actual data and set up "what if" scenarios to account for future budget changes.

Understanding the financial implications of business decisions is an important part of running a successful business. Learning how to create and interpret financial projections can help you with your decision-making process.

Building a Better Recruitment Funnel

By Elena Stewart

High turnover and low recruitment numbers are ongoing problems in many industries. So, how do you build a team of skilled workers that are excited to come to work every day? By implementing solid recruitment marketing strategies. Your strategy for recruitment needs almost as much attention as your general marketing strategy, and all forward-facing activities — including recruitment — must adhere to your brand identity. Here are a few sobering stats on the employment market today:

• The unemployment rate is 4.8%. While that number is substantially higher than the 3.5% unemployment rate pre-pandemic, it still means a fiercely competitive job market. 

• Average turnover is 57.3%. It's important to note that total turnover includes employees released by the employer, but it still works out to replacing more than one out of every two workers, every year, and that number has been trending upward for years.

• Cost to recruit new employees exceeds $4k. Spending an additional $4,000 on replacing half of your workforce every year is unsustainable, particularly since that doesn't include any spending on training after you make the hire.

With these numbers in mind, recruitment becomes a critical business issue when planning for the future expansion of your business. So, here's a few ways you can expand your recruiting reach with minimal expense.

Hiring or Recruiting: What’s the Difference?

Hiring happens after you've sorted through resumes and had interviews with various candidates. Recruiting is what brings those candidates to the door. Your recruitment efforts help you find the best hires out there. But, attracting top talent often means creating an attractive workplace. 

Building an Attractive Workplace

Before delving deep into unusual compensation options or benefits, start by taking a look at your company as it stands. Do your hiring practices match your company culture? Do job seekers looking at your listings get a look at how your company functions? An attractive workplace is subjective, so it's important to be transparent about what potential hires might expect from working with you. HR Daily Advisor recommends implementing employee recognition plans and emphasizing the benefits of your location as a way to add some zing to your recruitment efforts. 

Getting Social with New Connections

Social media is a must for any recruitment process. Whether you want to snipe employees with a proven track record in your industry or get the best new grads coming out of a local, industry-specific degree or training program, you need to connect with them as early as possible. 

Eye-catching banners prominently displayed on all your social media outlets are an affordable way to funnel talent. Once you've made that social connection, advertising on your own pages means you're one step closer to getting someone to apply. Work with a graphic designer or use an online banner template and personalize it with your text, colors, font, animation, or even video.

Bring Those Recruitment Numbers Up

The right strategy can go a long way toward giving you a stack of quality resumes for every open position in your company. Connecting early and often is a key target when building a recruitment funnel. When your recruitment strategy aligns with your corporate culture and brand, the result is lower turnover and higher productivity. Visit the Agile Blog for more tips.

Top 4 Payroll Mistakes, or Why Your Business Needs Payroll Services Now

Taking a hard look at your payroll processes can be hugely beneficial to your business. Every successful business could benefit from professional payroll services. Agile BSA presents the following ways established companies and new businesses alike still make mistakes when it comes to payroll — and ways to take advantage of having a professional at the helm of your payroll operations:

Mistake 1: Misclassifying employees

Misclassifying your employees can lead to difficulties for them in getting the benefits they need and are entitled to by law. It can also negatively impact your payroll processes come tax season. This can also be considered a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), so take great care to avoid incorrectly classifying those who work for your business. 

Mistake 2: Missing federal deposit deadlines

Payroll tax deposits are due by the 15th of the month after you paid your employees. For example, if your employees are paid in January, the tax for whatever you paid them will be due February 15. Don’t miss these deadlines!

Take note: The federal tax refund schedule is also an important resource to know so that your employees can be sure when they can expect a refund from the government after you have provided their appropriate tax forms.

Mistake 3: Keeping incomplete or sloppy pay records

The FLSA requires companies to keep employee records for at least three years and resources like pay stubs and tax documents for a minimum of four years. All of this data should include hours worked, how much you are paying people per hour or per product, and the dates you paid them. Having incomplete or sloppy records can result in hefty fines down the road, so it’s important to use employee timesheets connected to time tracking software that captures this data for you and includes smart reporting so that you have access to accurate records. 

Mistake 4: Making freelance and contractor payroll errors

If you are employing the services of freelancers or independent contractors, you need to make sure you take the right administrative steps and send the appropriate 1099 forms. The IRS has recently adjusted the 1099 designations, which you should familiarize yourself with:

• 1099-NEC: “NEC” is short for “non-employee compensation,” which means that if you had freelancers or contractors who don’t count as employees for your business (i.e., you don’t offer them benefits or take out income taxes from their checks), this is what you will need to file. The 1099-NEC also encompasses payments to attorneys.

• 1099-MISC: This comprises miscellaneous payments of more than $600. In the past, this is what a freelancer or contractor would file. However, for 2020, the IRS has changed these restrictions so that those folks will be filing a 1099-NEC.

The IRS will levy fees to employers who don’t file these forms appropriately, so make sure you pay attention to what you’re filing and when. If you’re using a full-service payroll software, you can quickly and easily file 1099 online forms in as few as three steps, which makes the entire process easier — no waiting for the mail to run or going to the post office. 

Hire a professional today

If any of these errors sound familiar — and even if they don’t — you should consider employing the services of a professional payroll expert. You will have more faith in your operations and can rest easier at night knowing payroll mistakes won’t be made.

The Best Tools for Keeping Your Business Going in 2021

Courtesy of Julie Morris - www.juliemorris.org

The pandemic has made it difficult for many businesses to thrive. Indeed, research shows that more than 100,000 businesses that temporarily closed during the pandemic have since shut down for good. Even making it this far is quite the accomplishment.

Still, you might be searching for ways to make sure your business continues to survive throughout the pandemic and beyond. That’s where AgileBSA.com has you covered. We’re proud to offer the best advice, resources, and services business owners need to succeed. Let’s take a look at some of the tools you can use to push your business forward in 2021.

Reassess Your Business Basics

Before you start investing in huge advertising campaigns or launching a complete redesign of your business’s homepage, consider the basic choices you made when you first started your business, such as business structure. In the US, small businesses are considered sole proprietorships from their start. Many business owners stick with this to avoid cost or hassle.

However, other structures may make better sense for your business. For example, many business owners would benefit from forming a limited liability company, or LLC. This offers less liability when it comes to debts and litigation, as well as some tax advantages. If you don’t want to deal with the red tape, consider hiring a formation service to do the work for you. This way you can make sure it’s done well without sacrificing your own time and energy.

Upgrade Your Physical Space

If you have a shop or office, now’s the time to invest in any big aesthetic upgrades you’ve been thinking about making. After all, vaccinations are underway across the country, and mask rules and restrictions are loosening as a result. People are ready to get out and be in the world again, and with the right upgrades, your space can be as welcoming as possible.

For example, you might decide to give your walls a fresh coat of paint. Focus on something that suits your brand while making your space feel bigger and brighter. Replacing the carpet is another great upgrade. Not only will it look great, but it will reduce allergens in your business, helping you, your customers, and your employees feel better while you’re there.

Invest in Digital Marketing

Finally, if you haven’t done so already, now is the time to invest in digital marketing. Since the pandemic, people have spent more and more time online. Although restrictions are loosening and we’re no longer collectively homebound, the ability to reach people digitally will remain a powerful tool when it comes to getting customers.

For example, you can use your website to post content your customers can use to solve problems and learn new things. The more functional your content is, the more likely it is to boost your rank on search engines like Google and Bing. This means that more customers will find you when they look for your services, rather than your competitors.

Another good way to use digital marketing is investing in targeted advertising. Social media sites, search engines, and other sites track users’ habits and behavior in order to get a sense of who they are and what they need. This allows them to sell targeted ads that go straight to the customers who are most likely to actually purchase your product or service. Rather than casting a wide net and hoping to catch a few people along the way, you can narrow your message to the people who truly need it.

These are just a few of the techniques you can use to keep your business going through the pandemic and beyond. We hope this article has helped you figure out the best plan of action for your company so you can make your dreams come true.

Looking to learn more about Agile and business analytics? Contact us with your questions!

 Photo Credit: Pexels

Anatomy of a User Story

So, what is a User Story? In the field of software application development, a User Story is a brief description of a feature of an application told from the perspective of an End User (typically). The language is plain, and avoids the extremely formal verbiage used in a typical Requirements document (e.g. “The system shall do X, Y, & Z”). The format and structure of a User Story is also fairly simple:

As a [End User]

I want to be able to [Insert a description of the application functionality]

So that [Insert a description of the business value realized]

Acceptance Criteria:

1. List acceptance criteria #1

2. List acceptance criteria #2

3. List acceptance criteria #3

As you can see, the overall structure of a User Story is relatively simple. However, things can get very complex quickly based upon the type of functionality you are attempting to describe. The most important thing isn’t actually the User Story…it’s the Acceptance Criteria associated with the User Story that is most critical. If we do not define the Acceptance Criteria, we can never know whether if the User Story is complete.

Think of it as a funnel, at the top is your User Story…it’s your high level goal. As we move through the funnel, we are testing against each piece of Acceptance Criteria. Only when each Acceptance Criteria has been fully tested and passed, can we consider that User Story to be complete. If you’re a Product Owner, or a Business Analyst working under a PO, you probably already know that writing the detailed AC is where you will be spending most of your time.

In terms of Requirements gathering, are User Stories enough for large scale application builds? No. User Stories and Acceptance Criteria are typically a starting point when it comes to analysis. Developing the AS IS and TO BE process models, writing the Business/Data Dictionaries, and defining the Use Cases are just an example of things that still need to be done on the majority of projects. These artifacts are critical for a DEV team member to be able to do their job…swapping out a BRD for User Stories does not change that fact. So having that BA skillset is still required, now more than ever.  

What is Agile governance?

In order to answer this question, we need to clarify terminology up front. Agile is typically short hand vernacular for SCRUM. When most people think of “Agile”, they really mean “SCRUM”. In reality, Agile is more a philosophy and mindset towards business:

·         Kanban is Agile

·         SCRUM is Agile

·         XP is Agile

When it comes to software development, Agile is an effort to maximize business value, while minimizing waste.

Examples of these include:

Kanban is a lean manufacturing approach and scheduling system originally developed by Toyota; its focus is JIT manufacturing. This concept has made its way over into the IT world.

XP refers to Extreme Programming. Extreme Programming (XP) is an iterative approach to programming and focuses on frequent releases. These iterations may go a week or two at most (SCRUM sprints are typically 2-4 weeks). XP also provides some prescriptions on development practices (such as pair programming or automated testing).

SCRUM is a lightweight, product delivery framework for application development (SCRUM is not Project Management). In terms of requirements, SCRUM only has four ceremonies:

·         Sprint Planning

·         Sprint Review

·         Sprint Retrospective

·         Daily Stand Ups

And three roles:

·         Scrum Master

·         Product Owner

·         The Team

So when we look at these Agile delivery frameworks and practices, we must understand they do not exist in a vacuum. We still need ways to manage the supporting projects, and ensuring the product delivery meets its targets. We need some governance.

Now, when I say governance, I do not mean a rigid process that ties people’s hands. But we can’t have the Wild West either. Each organization will need to develop a reasonably structured approach to managing these App Dev projects, while enabling their software delivery teams to achieve success.

It’s reasonable for the project team to develop a Project Charter, to estimate costs in terms of time and resources, or to identify/manage project risks. Getting the status on software delivery on a weekly basis is also not unreasonable. That’s effective Agile governance. What we don’t want to do is burden these teams with unnecessary tasks and busy work.

Effective Agile governance is really being able to identify what things add business value, what is required, and what tasks/artifacts that are not necessary. It’s trimming the fat, and being lean in terms of the environment, structure, and processes surrounding your App Dev projects.