DSDM Offshore

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DSDM Offshore

• Steve Messenger
• Patrick Vermeij

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Agenda

• Introduction of the speakers
• The need for DSDM Offshore
• Offshore Team
• Communication is Key
• Offshore Risks
• The DSDM Phases Applied to Offshore
• Summary

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What is Offshore?

• A project whereby a development process, which
  is the responsibility of one organisation, is
  performed by another organisation at a separate
  location.

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Why Go Offshore?

• Offshore can provide
• Large pool of resource
• Lower rates
• Extended working hours
• Leading to
• Faster, cheaper development
• Giving your business
• Agile response to business changes
• Competitive Edge

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Frequently Encountered Issues

• Communication
• Cultural differences cause different perceptions
• Understanding and trust
• Logistical
• Legal and Contractual Issues
• Hidden Costs
• More Management
• Costs of travel
• IT infrastructure and data communication
• Product delivery
• Late
• Poor Quality

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Offshore is Easy!
Specification
Create Specification
Choose Vendor
Throw Over the Wall
Receive Perfect System
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Offshore is Easy?
DSDM
BUT...
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Offshore Issues With DSDM

• People
• Impossible to locate everyone in the same place
• Communication and understanding
• Cultural differences a barrier to DSDM principles
• How do we ensure a one-team environment?
• Organizational
• Onshore / offshore have different objectives
• Ensuring collaboration in a contractual
  relationship

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DSDM Offshore

• Amendment of DSDM targeted at offshore
  development
• Highlights
• There is one team! (no offshore and onshore
  teams)
• Specialized and extended roles
• Communication is key
• Predefined risk list
• Extended product quality criteria
• Additions to the DSDM process

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Agenda

• Introduction of the speakers
• The need for DSDM Offshore
• Offshore Team
• Communication is Key
• Offshore Risks
• The DSDM Phases Applied to Offshore
• Summary

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Empowerment

• Is there a culture of empowerment?
• Bring developers to you
• Contractual clauses
• Confidence is basis for empowerment
• Vendor has knowledge of business area
• Use same offshore vendor
• Appropriate decision making
• Business team members make business decisions
• Technical team members make technical decisions

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There Is One Team!

• Remove isolation
• Ambassadors
• Face to face meetings

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There Is One Team!
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New Roles

• Ambassador Developer
• Representative of offshore developers at onshore
• Senior Offshore Supplier
• Counterpart of the executive sponsor
• Offshore Technical Coordinator
• Liaising with technical coordinator
• Test Coordinator
• Coordinator of testing, which takes place at
  several locations

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Amended Roles

• Technical Coordinator
• Work with onshore and offshore (face to face) to
  ensure a system that meets the non-functional
  requirements
• Coordinate usage of environments at all locations
• Executive Sponsor
• Ensure a collaborative and co-operative contract
  in which changes can be reversed
• Resolve escalated issues between offshore and
  onshore
• Others
• Be aware of cultural differences

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Agenda

• Introduction of the speakers
• The need for DSDM Offshore
• Offshore Team
• Communication is Key
• Offshore Risks
• The DSDM Phases Applied to Offshore
• Summary

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Communication

• Offshore development differs from traditional
  development in
• Physical distance
• Different time zones
• Communication is the Achilles Heel of offshore
  development
• Rely more on results, less on gut feeling
• Tools capture results

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Means of Communication

• Face to face meetings
• Tele-conferencing facilities (telephone and
  video)
• Desktop collaboration tools
• Electronic project rooms
• Project assets available to the whole team (all
  locations)
• Configuration management tools
• Requirements management
• Test and defect management

No Project Without Face-2-Face!
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Ensuring Product Quality

• Ambassadors MUST travel to tell the story
• The WHY and the WHAT from the horses mouth
• Involve Offshore at earliest possible opportunity
  (creation of PRL)
• Frequent product deliveries, reviews and testing
• Mechanism is needed for developers and testers to
  interact
• Desktop collaboration tool for demonstration of
  defects
• Issue management tool to keep track of issue
  status

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Communication per Product (1/3)

• Best forms of communication for products

Product Type of Communication
Business Area Definition Face to face workshops Electronic project rooms
System Area Definition Face to face meetings Tele conferencing facilities
Development Plan Face to face meetings
Prioritized Requirements List Face to face meetings
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Communication per Product (2/3)

• Best forms of communication for products

Product Type of Communication
Functional Model Face to face workshops (several) Desktop collaboration tools
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Supporting Communication (1/2)

• Best forms of supporting communication

Product Type of Communication
Project Deliverables Configuration management tool Electronic project rooms
Project Management Face to face meetings Tele conferencing facilities Electronic tools for documents / issues management.
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Supporting Communication (2/2)

• Best forms of supporting communication

Product Type of Communication
Quality Management Prototype review sessions tele/video with desktop collaboration tool. Test records etc. in EP-room
Workshops Face to face on priority issues. Tele / Video

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Agenda

• Introduction of the speakers
• The need for DSDM Offshore
• Offshore Team
• Communication is Key
• Offshore Risks
• The DSDM Phases Applied to Offshore
• Summary

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Risks (1/3)

• Cultural differences
• Could lead to misunderstanding and delays
• Mitigate by
• analysis of differences
• awareness and acceptance
• Daily business risks
• Things can go wrong at several locations
• Mitigate by
• Face to face meetings with key people at both
  locations
• Communicate, communicate and communicate

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Risks (2/3)

• Multiple-locations risks
• Projects at multiple locations are more complex
  (e.g. time differences)
• Mitigate by
• Face to face meetings at all locations
• Create and stick to a communication plan
• Planning and control risks
• Planning and or budgets are not met
• Mitigate by
• Allowing offshore overhead into the timebox plan
• Continuous communication of status of project
• Prompt escalation of issues

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Risks (3/3)

• Partnership risks
• One of the parties does not meet the requirements
  of the other
• Mitigate by
• Clear communication
• Close and open monitoring
• Contractual risks
• The contract is not co-operative, collaborative
  and/or does not allow changes to be reversible
• Mitigate by
• Contracts negotiators must follow DSDM principles

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Agenda

• The need for DSDM Offshore
• The 9 Principles Applied to Offshore
• Communication is Key
• Offshore Roles
• Offshore Risks
• The DSDM Phases Applied to Offshore

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Phases Feasibility Study
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Phases Business Study
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Phases Functional Model Iteration
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Design and Build Iteration
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Phases Implementation

• Is onsite phase. No offshore-specific aspects.

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Summary