Benchmarking is a process by which companies measure their performance and compare it to others. It helps them understand how they perform against the competition and identify opportunities for improvement. In an Agile environment, benchmarking has become a primary means of evaluating and monitoring performance. With many teams working in parallel on different projects, there’s no single department that can serve as the “final judge” of quality for every project working its way through development. Benchmarking is not only important for continuous integration but also for other critical elements of Agile such as product owners, requirements documents, user stories, and metrics.

Why is Benchmarking Important in Agile? #

Benchmarking is designed to help companies set goals, identify areas of improvement, and measure progress over time. It can also help companies determine if there are other opportunities for collaboration or partnership. For example, a company might decide to partner with another company that performs better than it does in a given area. It can then use the other company’s best practices to improve its own performance. Benchmarking can also be used to help set realistic expectations for customers and clients.

For example, a company might decide to benchmark its average time to develop a new feature against other companies in its industry. This can help it determine how long it should be taking to develop that feature and why. It’s also important to note that benchmarking is a continuous process. Once you start benchmarking, you’ll want to continue to do so over time as your team, your company, and the software development landscape evolves. You’ll want to keep benchmarking so that you can identify areas of improvement and stay competitive in the marketplace.

Benefits of Benchmarking in Agile #

Align teams against best practices: With many teams working in parallel on different projects, there’s no single department that can serve as the “final judge” of quality for every project working its way through development. Instead, teams are responsible for “signing off” on their own work in order to meet project deadlines. By benchmarking against industry standards, teams can align with best practices and standards in the industry while also meeting project deadlines.

Product owners: Product owners are responsible for setting the project’s overall goals and objectives. They’re also responsible for setting the project’s scope based on those goals. When teams are benchmarked against industry standards, they can use those standards to set realistic expectations for the project’s scope. They can then use those same benchmarks when setting expectations with stakeholders and customers. This can help to ensure that customers get what they expect and nothing less.

Requirements documents: One of the ways that teams can set project goals and objectives is by creating requirements documents. These documents set the goals for the project, define the project’s scope, and outline the project’s expectations. When teams have access to industry standards, they can use those benchmarks to set realistic and achievable expectations for their requirements documents.

User stories: User stories are a common and popular way of breaking down and planning software development projects. They’re often used to track progress against those projects as well. When teams have access to industry standards, they can use those benchmarks to set realistic expectations for their user stories. This ensures that teams are setting achievable goals and completing projects on time.

Metrics: Companies often use metrics to track several different aspects of their performance and development. For example, they may track sales figures, employee satisfaction, or the number of bugs or issues reported by customers. When teams have access to industry standards, they can use those benchmarks to set realistic expectations for their metrics. This ensures that teams are tracking reliable figures over time.

Types of Software Development Benchmarking #

Process benchmarking: This type of bench-marking compares the way that different departments and teams work to determine best practices. For example, a company may choose to benchmark their marketing and sales teams against other companies in their industry to determine the best and most effective ways to sell their products.

Technology benchmarking: This type of bench-marking compares one type of technology against another. For example, a company may decide to benchmark its use of Java against another programming language such as Python. The goal is to determine which technology performs better in certain areas.

Project portfolio benchmarking: This type of bench-marking compares the performance of an entire project portfolio. It may look at several different factors, such as cost, timelines, and the number of issues reported. The goal is to determine which projects or departments perform better and why.

Limitations of Software Development Benchmarking in Agile #

Data is dated: When companies first start benchmarking, they often conduct thorough and lengthy research to find the best benchmarks. Unfortunately, this means that the data is not always up to date. For example, it may be based on older technology or data. This can make it difficult to update the data and incorporate it into an Agile environment.

Data is static: Because companies often conduct thorough and lengthy research before starting the benchmarking process, they often rely on static data. This means that the data doesn’t change over time, which isn’t ideal for agile environments. Static data can make it difficult to adapt to changing technologies, processes, and company goals over time.

Benchmarks don’t account for company culture: Companies often conduct thorough and lengthy research before starting the bench-marking process. They then use that research to find industry best practices and standards. Unfortunately, those benchmarks don’t account for company culture. Different companies have different cultures, and those cultures can have a significant impact on performance. This means that benchmarks aren’t always ideal for every company.

Conclusion #

Benchmarking helps companies set goals, identify areas of improvement, and measure progress over time. It can also help companies determine if there are other opportunities for collaboration or partnership. When companies first start bench-marking, they often conduct thorough and lengthy research to find the best benchmarks. Unfortunately, this means that the data is not always up to date or flexible enough to incorporate into an Agile environment. Overall, it’s important to remember that bench-marking is a continuous process. Once you start benchmarking, you’ll want to continue over time as your company, team, and the software development landscape evolve.