Since we were designing Release Trains, we used blue painter’s tape to create the silhouette of the train and then organized sections for shared services, business capabilities, features, systems, roles, distribution channels, how might we questions and guiding principles. In addition to the model, the scribes for the meeting created two reference documents; how might we questions and guiding principles since those would be harder to use directly from the visual model. This represented all the information the group needed to complete their assignments in the next day’s workshop. Al of this information was posted to a large foam core board (4 foot by 7 foot).
At the beginning of the second workshop, the participants used the Agile Release Train model to review the output from the first meeting. Everyone gathered around the model as key people from the 1st day’s session walked through each section. Everyone was engaged and collaborating which allowed us to start the team design workshop in short order. The feedback from everyone was that the model clarified what was done by the first group. Several people from the first workshop commented that there were key points that they realized they hadn’t fully understood earlier.
As the groups worked, the participants made changes to the model in real-time. As teams were defined, people would add details to model. When all the teams were defined, the information on the visual model was validated and I wrapped up the meeting with a confidence vote. The group ended the day with the meeting objectives and 90 minutes to spare. The leadership team used the completed model for a review and discussion with key Stakeholders.
Having the physical representation of the collaboration from both workshops created common understanding and buy-in from the participants. Using the visual model to present the information in a compelling way allowed us to tell the story of what we developed during the 2 days.
