Oana Călugar

According to the Scrum Alliance, “Scrum is an Agile framework for completing complex projects. Scrum was originally formalized for software development projects, but it works well for any complex, innovative scope of work. The possibilities are endless. The Scrum framework is deceptively simple.

In the previous issue, we introduced the performance management framework OKR (Objectives and Key Results) and how it can help us build and grow performant product teams. In short, OKR is a set of measurable objectives and key results that we set quarterly. Each objective has a responsible, and at the end of each quarter we draw the line and evaluate the results: how many goals we were able to accomplish? Next, we will consider a timeline for implementation of OKR in a company, with a snapshot of annual and monthly activities.

A set of well-defined objectives is an essential prerequisite for the success of any company. Company objectives are extremely important for Product Teams because they guide strategic decisions in a manner which seeks to align itself with the solution meant to solve the issues product users are confronted with. Even if there are many models and methodologies for performance management, the OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) model is one of the best means of keeping the people involved in development focused on the target. The model provides a clear and simple view of objectives and key results, as well as a transparent and measurable way of tracking the progress made to reach those objectives.

Analytics will take center stage as the volume of data generated by embedded systems increases and vast pools of structured and unstructured data inside and outside the enterprise are analyzed. Companies will need to manage how to filter the huge amounts of data coming from the IoT, social media and wearable devices, and then deliver exactly the right information to the right person, at the right time. Analytics will become deeply, but invisibly embedded everywhere. Big Data is an important enabler for this trend but the focus needs to shift to thinking about big questions and big answers first and Big Data second — the value is in the answers, not the data.

When you enter 2012.howtoweb.co, you encounter these words: How to Web 2012 has reached its end. Thank you all for attending! One month after the conference, I am still inspired by some of the speeches I’ve heard and the people I’ve known. And I’m really sorry it only lasted for two days and it was over. How to Web was held in Bucharest on 7 and 8 November.