Transform Backlog with Tracer Bullets!

"Tracer Bullet Development(TBD)" is a term popularised by Andrew Hunt and David Thomas in their book "The Pragmatic Programmer”. click here

The primary goal is to clarify the development path by implementing key architectural components and functionalities. This initial version, or "tracer bullet," is deployed to gather early feedback from stakeholders, allowing for risk mitigation, validation of design decisions, and early identification of potential issues. As feedback is received, the development team iteratively refines and expands the software, gradually adding features and adjusting the course based on evolving project dynamics. TBD provides continuous visibility into the project's progress, ensuring that stakeholders understand and can track the development, while its adaptability allows for flexibility in responding to changing requirements.

Tracer Bullets even Spikes and Technical stories are not commonly used by scrum teams. However, these are the hidden gems of the sprint. Specifically for the large programs and teams.

?? Is TBD the same as Prototyping?

Even though Both approaches contribute to an iterative and adaptive development process, TBD focuses on creating a functional end-to-end backbone to guide development along a clear path, and prototyping emphasises the creation of tangible representations to validate user requirements and improve user experience.

The choice between them often depends on the specific goals and context of the project.

?? What are the benefits?

Overall, it combines the benefits of early risk identification, stakeholder collaboration, and an agile, adaptive approach to guide the development process along a visible and validated path.

?? What are the recommendations?

Irrespective of the stage of your implementation, set up an Agile Pod to take up the tracer bullets.

Most of the time we do these activities in our regular sprint tasks but always consider them as normal tasks. This results in a messy product backlog, which makes prioritization very challenging.