Scrum Talk Daily - # 23
The third Scrum Artifact is the Increment.
An Increment is the result of the work on a Product Backlog item that was completed during a Sprint. It is additive to all prior Increments and thoroughly verified, ensuring that all Increments work together. In order to provide value, the Increment must be usable.
The Commitment for the Increment is the Definition of Done.
Usable. Done.
Work cannot be considered part of an Increment unless it meets the Definition of Done. The Definition of Done is a formal description of the state of the Increment when it meets the quality measures required for the product.
Multiple Increments may be created within a Sprint. The sum of the Increments is presented at the Sprint Review.
If the Definition of Done for an increment is part of the standards of the organization, all Scrum Teams must follow it as a minimum. If it is not an organizational standard, the Scrum Team must create a Definition of Done appropriate for the product. If there are multiple Scrum Teams working together on a product, they must mutually define and comply with the same Definition of Done.
That's how important it is. Done is Done.
What is not Done? Anything short of the org's or team's Definition of Done.
Maybe it wasn't tested... not Done.
Maybe there's a bug that falls short of the definition... not Done.
Maybe what the team worked on isn't usable by the end-user... not Done.
If your increment doesn't meet the Definition of Done, the Product Backlog item that was worked on during that Sprint doesn't result in an Increment. If a Product Backlog item does not meet the Definition of Done, it cannot be released or even presented at the Sprint Review. Since the sprint ends when the Sprint's timebox expires, not Done means it goes back to the Product Backlog.
Usable. Done.
How important is the Transparency of why, what, and how when it comes to the work to perform? How about not really knowing what Done requires? Are your Developers creating the plan for the Sprint and involved early in User Story creation and Product Discovery so that estimates are more accurate?
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