Coaching Quality and The Definition of Done

Delivering high-quality solutions is of utmost importance in today’s fast-paced world. Coaching Quality and the Definition of Done are fundamental values that foster an environment of collaboration, accountability, and attention to detail. 

In this post, we explore the most effective ways to approach Coaching Quality, sharing key best practices that can be applied at different stages of your learning journey. By following these foundational techniques, you can equip yourself with the skills and knowledge needed to implement successful team strategies. However, it's important to remember that Coaching Quality is just one component of the bigger picture. To gain a comprehensive understanding of your current process status, we recommend taking advantage of our free agile assessment for Scrum Masters and Agile Coaches.

Coaching Quality and The Learning Journey

At Lean Agile Intelligence, we recognize Coaching Quality to be the individual's ability to orchestrate the creation of high-quality solutions. We have organized the learning journey into four distinct stages - Developing, Emerging, Adapting, and Optimizing - and will cover each of these stages in-depth, providing you with practical advice and techniques to enhance your skills in this area.

Source - What does Definition of Done mean in Agile?

Developing

A coach “developing” an understanding of the value of Coaching Quality and adopting the foundational techniques should focus on the following improvements:

• The What: Coaches the team to craft a definition of done that is visible at all times.

  • The How: The Definition of Done is a formal description of the state of the Increment when it meets the quality measures required for the product. Quoting directly from the scrum guide:

     “The moment a Product Backlog item meets the Definition of Done, an Increment is born. The Definition of Done creates transparency by providing everyone with a shared understanding of what work was completed as part of the Increment. If a Product Backlog item does not meet the Definition of Done, it cannot be released or even presented at the Sprint Review. Instead, it returns to the Product Backlog for future consideration.”

  • Agile coaches help craft the definition of done AND coach the team to ensure it’s visible at all times to one another as well as others outside the team who may be interested in seeing it.

• The What: Coaches the team on the process of adhering to the DoD 100% of the time

  • The How: In order for the DOD to be an effective working agreement, it must be owned and upheld by the team. As mentioned in the criteria above, start with an agreement about what is in the DOD and how it will be used. In addition, coach edge cases when it might not be applicable and come to an agreement on what to do In that scenario. For instance, technical stories, research, etc might have different “done” criteria than stories or other PBIs. Create an agreement around the differences and define a way that the members of the team will uphold the agreement. You can ask the team, “What we will you do if you don’t follow your own agreement?”

Emerging

A coach “emerging” beyond the foundational techniques of Coaching Quality and embracing it as they become more proficient should focus on the following improvements:

• The What: Coaches the team to routinely extend the DOD to promote higher quality

  • The How: Coach to revisit your definition of done at team retrospectives with the intent of modifying as needed. You can even have a mini retro on the definition of done itself. As the team matures and CI/CD, DevOps practices mature in and around the team, the DOD should be updated accordingly.

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"The Definition of Done is a formal description of the state of the Increment when it meets the quality measures required for the product."

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Adapting

A coach that is “adapting” the Coaching Quality to extract the full benefit should focus on the following improvements:

• The What: Coaches team of teams to craft a consistent DOD that can then be extended by each team based on their needs

  • The How: One of the key fundamentals of scaling is having a shared definition of done. That does not mean that every team’s DOD should be exactly the same but at a minimum, they need to share a core set of criteria. This way when any team integrates their work, everyone is aligned on what the expectations are for “done.” This is specifically called out in the scrum guide.

    • “If the Definition of Done for an increment is part of the standards of the organization, all Scrum Teams must follow it as a minimum. If it is not an organizational standard, the Scrum Team must create a Definition of Done appropriately for the product.”

• The What: Coaches peers on the definition of done creation and adherence techniques

  • The How: A large part of growth as an agile coach is the ability to share your knowledge and experiences with peers and leadership and learn from one another. This can be done in the form of guilds, COPs, one on ones, lean coffees, and more.

Source - Definition of Ready & Definition of Done

Optimizing

A coach “optimizing” knowledge sharing of the Coaching Quality practice learnings across the enterprise should focus on the following improvements:

• The What: Coaches leadership on the importance of the DOD, and why it must be visible at all times to everyone

  • The How: The Agile Coach has been relentless in spreading best practices by coaching leadership on the Coaching Quality and the practice has been demonstrably improved throughout the organization.

• The What: Coaches leadership to enhance the DOD to reduce the need for multiple layers of "done" when needed

  • The How: As agile coaches gain more experience, they often gain experience coaching at scale. When working with multiple teams, it’s important to establish a definition of done between teams and leadership using the techniques outlined above.

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"A large part of growth as an agile coach is the ability to share your knowledge and experiences with peers and leadership and learn from one another."

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Conclusion

In conclusion, Coaching Quality highlights an individual's ability to manage the creation of high-quality solutions. The Definition of Done is a critical aspect of Coaching Quality, and it is a formal description of the state of the Increment when it meets the quality measures required for the product. By focusing on improving their skills in Coaching Quality, coaches can help their teams deliver high-quality solutions and meet or exceed expectations. If you want to gain a comprehensive understanding of your coaching process status, we recommend taking advantage of our free agile assessment for Scrum Masters and Agile Coaches.