Sprint Goal: What’s the point?

Our latest sprint goal was to give you guys the ability to set great sprint goals... Needless to say, we nailed it! (Like always... :) )

Urban Turtle allows you to add a Sprint Goal to all of your iterations. “But, what is a great sprint goal?”, you ask.

Here is some insight to help you define great sprint goals.

What is a sprint goal?

A sprint goal is a short description (one or two sentences) of what the team plans to achieve during the sprint. It is written collaboratively by the team and the product owner. The Sprint Goal is an objective that will be met within the Sprint through the implementation of the Product Backlog, and it provides guidance to the Development Team on why it is building the Increment.

What is the benefit of using a sprint goal?

As the Scrum Guide states: a sprint goal “gives the Development Team some flexibility regarding the functionality implemented within the Sprint.”

It allows the team to understand the big idea behind their work. It helps them focus and act as a team to make the sprint goal happen.

How to define a great sprint goal?

Your sprint goal must be related to your release goal. It helps you achieve it (talk about stating the obvious). A sprint goal should also be S.M.A.R.T. (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound.). This will allow you to determine whether your sprint was successful or not.

It is best to define a sprint goal after all the stories have been selected for the sprint. It’ll be easier for the team to craft the sprint goal together since they have a better understanding of the work to be done.

The best advice

Keep in mind that the sprint goal will increase the chance that you’ll end up where you want to go. Moving fast is not the same as going somewhere...

So, tell us your experience with Sprint Goals, did they help your team go somewhere?

P.S. Why the A-Team? Well, because they work as a team to achieve a common goal... and they're badass!