Sprint planning is a big deal in the Agile world. It’s all about setting the team up for a productive and focused sprint. Based on what I’ve learned, there are a few key things that make sprint planning work well. In this post, we’ll go through those elements and how you can use them to nail your next sprint planning session.

Prioritized PBIs

The first step to a great sprint planning meeting is having a list of refined Product Backlog Items (PBIs) that are estimated and ordered by priority. This way, the team has a clear understanding of the most important items, which they can then organize to fit into a cohesive sprint goal. Here, the Scrum Master plays a crucial role by challenging the team on refining these items and ensuring that everyone understands the different tasks associated with each PBI.

Doable PBIs

Every PBI you pick for the sprint should be something that can be done within one sprint. The Scrum Master challenges the team to deliver small increments of value and to make the scope as small as possible. This involves breaking down the PBIs into manageable chunks and making sure everyone knows what “done” looks like. For my teams, knowing the current state of the solution and the desired state after implementing the PBI has been very helpful in defining what “done” looks like.

Clear Goals

During sprint planning, define a clear sprint goal. This gives the team direction and helps them make decisions that align with the goal. Geoff Watts writes in his book “Scrum Mastery” that a ‘forced-fit’ sprint goal, where the team takes the top priority PBIs from the backlog and then tries to define a sprint goal around these items, is both uninspiring and usually unsuccessful. He recommends either creating a sprint goal bottom-up, where the team finds a group of related PBIs that make sense to do together, or top-down, where the Product Owner states a desired future state for the end of the sprint and the team then chooses the PBIs that will help achieve this goal. It’s super important that everyone in the meeting feels empowered to make choices. When the team feels ownership and accountability, the outcomes are always better.

Manage Capacity

The team needs to know its capacity and consider any risks or dependencies when planning the sprint. Understanding how much work the team can handle helps avoid overcommitment. It’s crucial that the team aims to find the right balance in how much work can be done during a sprint. The mentality of “we’ll just move it to the next sprint” is a no-no. Discuss everyone’s availability, potential blockers, and how to handle dependencies to keep things running smoothly. By accurately assessing capacity and managing risks, the team can commit to a realistic and achievable sprint plan.

What strategies have worked for you in your sprint planning sessions? Share your experiences and thoughts in the comments below!