As a project manager at EBS, our primary focus is on delivering projects using Agile methodologies. With Agile principles guiding our approach, we formed a dedicated cross functional teams comprising developers, designers, testers, and business analysts. We kick off the projects by conducting collaborative workshops with stakeholders to define the project’s vision, goals, and initial product backlog.

Using Agile, we must at least be following these particular ceremonies, in addition to other that PM consider to be productive:

Sprint Planning: At the beginning of each sprint, the team conducts a Sprint Planning session. During this ceremony, the team reviews the items in the product backlog, discusses their priorities, and selects the user stories or tasks to be completed during the sprint. The team estimates the effort required for each selected item and commit to delivering them by the end of the sprint. 

Daily Stand-up Meetings: The team holds daily stand-up meetings, also known as Daily Scrums, to provide status updates, discuss progress, and identify any obstacles or impediments. Each team member answers three questions: What did you accomplish yesterday? What are you planning to do today? Are there any obstacles blocking your progress? These short meetings foster transparency, collaboration, and alignment among team members. 

Sprint Review: At the end of each sprint, the team conducts a Sprint Review meeting. During this ceremony, the team showcases the completed work to stakeholders, including the client, and gathers feedback. The demo includes a demonstration of the new features or enhancements developed during the sprint. Stakeholders have the opportunity to provide input, ask questions, and suggest changes or improvements. 

Sprint Retrospective: Following the Sprint Review, the team holds a Sprint Retrospective meeting to reflect on the sprint’s successes, challenges, and opportunities for improvement. The team discusses what went well, what didn’t go well, and identified actionable items to enhance their processes in the next sprint. The retrospective encourages continuous improvement and fosters a culture of learning and adaptation within the team.

Talking about what the best practices are, we MUST consider that the priorities are: 

• Cross-Functional Teams: Agile teams are typically small, cross-functional groups comprising members with diverse skills necessary to complete a project. This setup fosters collaboration, enhances communication, and ensures that all aspects of the project are addressed efficiently. 
• Iterative Approach: Agile emphasizes breaking down the project into smaller, manageable chunks called iterations or sprints. Each iteration typically lasts from one to four weeks, during which a potentially shippable product increment is developed. This iterative approach allows for early and continuous delivery of value to stakeholders. 
• Continuous Feedback: Regular feedback loops are integral to agile project management. Stakeholders, including clients and end-users, provide feedback at the end of each iteration. This feedback is used to refine the product backlog and guide subsequent iterations, ensuring that the project remains aligned with stakeholder expectations. 
• Adaptive Planning: Agile embraces change and acknowledges that requirements may evolve over the course of a project. Instead of detailed upfront planning, agile teams engage in adaptive planning, where plans are continuously refined and adjusted based on feedback and emerging insights. This enables teams to respond quickly to changing priorities and market dynamics. 
• Prioritized Backlog: The product backlog is a prioritized list of features, enhancements, and fixes that need to be addressed during the project. The backlog is dynamic, with items reprioritized based on changing requirements and stakeholder feedback. This ensures that the team is always working on the most valuable and high-priority tasks. 
• Regular Reviews and Retrospectives: Agile teams conduct regular reviews at the end of each iteration to demonstrate completed work to stakeholders and gather feedback. Additionally, they hold retrospectives to reflect on what went well, what didn’t, and how processes can be improved. These ceremonies promote continuous improvement and team learning. 
• Empowered Teams: Agile teams are self-organizing and empowered to make decisions regarding how they will accomplish their work. Team members collaborate closely, share knowledge, and support each other to achieve common goals. This fosters a sense of ownership, accountability, and commitment among team members. 
• Continuous Integration and Testing: Agile encourages continuous integration, where code changes are integrated into the main codebase frequently. Automated testing is also emphasized to ensure that new features do not introduce regressions or bugs. This enables teams to maintain a high level of product quality while delivering updates rapidly. 
• Transparent Communication: Transparent communication is crucial in agile project management. Teams hold regular stand-up meetings to discuss progress, impediments, and plans for the day. Additionally, information radiators such as burndown charts and task boards are used to keep everyone informed about the project’s status and progress towards goals. 

• Focus on Value Delivery: Agile prioritizes delivering value to customers and stakeholders early and often. By focusing on the most valuable features and iterating based on feedback, agile teams maximize the return on investment and ensure that the delivered product meets the needs of its users. 

 ~ Cristian Zagornii