The way people work, travel, communicate, shop and live has changed drastically over the past decade, and even more so over the past year with COVID-19. Automakers and suppliers face fast advancements in technology, new competitors like Google and Apple, and other challenges. To keep pace, DENSO teams are tossing out antiquated processes and ways of working.
With a completely new product, incomplete specifications, new features, and short development lead-time, Manager Nour Salama and her software development team had no choice but to approach their work differently, using an agile work methodology. An emerging approach to software development, agile methodology when applied to software development, encourages faster development, frequent review, adaptation, rapid delivery, and strong teamwork. Here’s how it works:
After the team is awarded business, they have a planning meeting to discuss what needs to get done. They lay out all the features that will be implemented, milestones, required user stories/tasks, how long tasks might take, and more. The project is then split into 12-week timeframes, each of which is made up of six (6) sprints.
A sprint is a way for the team to organize the workload into smaller packages. Instead of having a never-ending to-do list, they have a set list of tasks that they are focused on during the 2-week sprint. Each sprint typically focuses on one or two user stories at a time. A few user stories combined result into a complete feature.
“The reality is that plans change, and we have to be ready to shift and move with the change,” said Nour. “We have a long-term plan so everyone can see where we’re going, what we want to achieve. But, working in smaller sprints allows us to have a product that we can react to quickly and adjust quickly based on business or environmental changes, or customer requirements. If we wait for all requirements to be developed and in place, taking a traditional approach to development, we would move very slowly and most likely wouldn’t meet expectations or be competitive.”
At the beginning of each 12-week period, the team meets to discuss what user stories/tasks are slotted for each sprint and who’s doing what. This allows the team to work on different aspects of the project and learn new skills.
“Our goal is to have every team member capable of doing every type of task. This gives us opportunity for rotation within the group, to level up associates, and keeps work interesting for everyone. Depending on the tasks that need to get done and an associate’s capability, we assign mentors within the group to support and help with this learning process.”
The team also holds a 15-minute daily meeting to discuss what each team member plans to accomplish that day, and what challenges or roadblocks they hit. This allows the team to shift their focus if needed or quickly jump in to support a team member so the project stays on track.
After each sprint period, the team then holds a Sprint Review & Retrospective meeting to view the product demo, discuss fixes, and talk about what worked and what didn’t, so they can improve their approach for the next sprint and beyond.
While these constant touchpoints and fixes support the team’s efficiency and product quality, Nour admits it hasn’t been easy:
“We were struggling to grasp the agile methodology at first. We were all self-taught, trying to read and learn on our own. We finally decided to take formal training and this made all the difference. It helped us understand how this way of working impacts our products, changes our products, and what tools we should be using to support our new way of working.
“Even with training and tools, we still need to be flexible. There are some conflicts with agile work methodology and the traditional automotive development process. We have to tailor our approach and find a balance in doing everything properly so that we can meet customer expectations, as well as fulfill DENSO process requirements. We are working on a product that has never been done and a lot of rework is required. Having the ability to approach it with agile methodology makes us more efficient with our time and will create a better quality product in the end.”
Nour is confident that other groups could implement and benefit from the agile work methodology, whether in software development or other areas of the company.
“Our associates have been excellent in driving this change. As they have become more familiar with this way of working, they are suggesting improvements, referring to training concepts regularly, and sharing their ideas on how we can continue to do things differently.”
DENSO globally introduced Reborn 21, an initiative to help guide all of our efforts on actions that will help the company survive and thrive this year and beyond. Learn more about Reborn 21 and how teams are rebuilding quality and changing the way we work, here (password: denso2020). All associates play an important role in helping the company survive and thrive – to share your story or ideas, email Communications@na.denso.com.
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