Developers are a very big part of the process and because they’re such an important cog, we would want them to be happy. We don’t want them to just give their work without having any say, or feeling like they’re nothing more than just robots putting out work. They’re an integral part of the system and it’s important that they voice their opinions.
I have talked with a lot of developers about ways to make SCRUM more developer friendly. One of the things that they asked was that they get more communication from the top down. A lot of times there isn’t a lot of information given to them as to why some parts of the process are more important than others and why some stories are more important than others.
Very often we ask them to pivot their attention from one story to another, because of the priorities, but they have no idea why. If someone hears 30 hours for a user story, then they take it literally, and think ‘by next Monday’ it will be complete, which would not be accurate. Story points are whenever we’re estimating hours, but they’re an estimate and they should not be taken literally.
The point of a user story is that we’re sitting down with the user and we’re asking them – ‘In your daily job, in order to make this software work, what do you do and what do you need it to do?’. The developers ask that we actually talk to the users and find out what they need, instead of reading a technical document. and then deciding from there, based on the architecture, what we think a user will need.
![](https://www.teamsparq.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Jackson-Stakeman-Integrating-AI.jpg)
Removing the Stigma: Integrating AI
For all of the hype surrounding AI, some people still have a bit of anxiety about integrating it into their projects and processes. In this Tech in 2, Director of Solution Engineering Jackson Stakeman shares his AI integration tips for organizations that may still be hesitant about getting started with it.
![](https://www.teamsparq.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Chris-McRae-Tech-in-Transportation.jpg)
Advancing Tech Adoption in Transportation
In the transportation & logistics (T&L) industry, tech investments have traditionally been tied to compliance, but now, by utilizing their large amounts of data, T&L companies can do so much more. In this Tech in 2, Client Success Partner Chris McRae shares how he’s seeing T&L organizations use tech to automate workflows, gain deeper business insights and save money.
![](https://www.teamsparq.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Joe-Dallacqua-CX-vs-UX.jpg)
CX vs. UX
When it comes to application development, typically a lot of budget is put into creating a great user experience (UX), but only thinking about UX and not CX (customer experience) can be detrimental to your brand loyalty. In this Tech in 2, Principal Consultant Joe Dallacqua shares his top tips for balancing CX and UX.
![](https://www.teamsparq.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Jackson-Stakeman-Adaptation-in-Modernization.jpg)
Adaptation in Software Modernization
Traditionally, capital investments were very concrete (ie building a factory on the river because you needed water to power the mill), but nowadays in software development, things are easier to change. In this Tech in 2, Director of Solution Engineering Jackson Stakeman shares why adapting your strategies to accommodate for change is key and why you should employ the Wayne Gretzky method of skating to where the puck is going to be.