Agile is widely regarded as the most popular project management approach, with 71% of companies adopting Agile techniques in 2023.
When implemented correctly, Agile helps businesses enhance productivity, predictability, and operational efficiency, allowing them to deliver solutions to customers more quickly.
However, Agile comes with its challenges, particularly in managing dependencies among multiple teams. As projects expand, the number of team members increases accordingly. The recommended approach for managing a growing team is to split it into multiple teams. This division can lead to communication and coordination issues, especially when each team works on its sprint.
Today, we want to discuss synchronized sprints and why they are the most effective for multi-team projects, providing real-life examples.
Our company, Attico International, currently houses approximately 15 specialized teams dedicated to developing and supporting Drupal-based websites and applications.
Initially comprising only 4 development teams, our workflow was straightforward and manageable. However, scaling our operations and rapidly increasing the number of teams posed significant challenges:
To streamline operations and overcome these challenges, we implemented synchronized two-week sprints on the majority of our projects. This strategic decision proved pivotal, offering several substantial advantages.
01. Flexibility and team agility
Synchronized sprints empower us to swiftly reallocate team members across projects as needed. This agility proves invaluable in bolstering specific initiatives or addressing urgent project demands promptly, ensuring optimal resource allocation.
02. Streamlined administrative processes
By synchronizing sprints, we significantly reduced the number of meetings, demos, and releases.
This reduction not only lowers administrative overhead but also frees up more time for teams to focus on direct project deliverables. The unified sprint cadence simplifies workflow management, enhancing overall efficiency.
03. Enhanced transparency and control
Tracking the progress of all teams has become easier since they are on the same page. This approach has not only improved our ability to manage projects effectively but also ensured more flexible and transparent interaction between teams, contributing to our overall success and competitiveness in the software development market. Moreover, synchronized sprints streamline release management and promote knowledge sharing among teams.
04. Faster project launches
Synchronized sprints enable new projects to begin faster, within the already established workflow.
This means that a new team can easily get into the rhythm and start working without spending time aligning schedules and processes with other teams. Forming a “core team” of 1–2 developers for new projects within one or two sprints is easy and effective, ensuring a smooth project kickoff.
05. Easier project onboarding
When changing or expanding the team composition, new members can adapt to work faster thanks to synchronized sprints. They can join the project and start actively participating from day one without spending much time familiarizing themselves with the individual schedules and work processes of each team.
06. Increased scalability
Sprint synchronization simplifies scaling the team for a new project.
New employees can be quickly added to existing teams or new teams created according to project requirements. This way, one can increase the team by up to 8 people during several two-week iterations.
Ken Schwaber, the author of four books about Scrum, pointed out that it’s much better to synchronize rather than overlap sprints.
Here are some of his arguments in favor of this:
For Attico International, synchronized sprints have become not only an effective management tool but also a fundamental element of our corporate culture, fostering innovation and collective growth.
As we continue to evolve in the competitive software development landscape, synchronized sprints remain integral to our operational strategy. They empower us to navigate complexities with agility, enhance collaboration across teams, and deliver exceptional results.
