BRM and agile - delivering the right things on time

Software development is leading the way: Agile teams work on new features in sprints and deliver them regularly in top quality. We assume that this is really the case and yet we find that the features are not used as intended and the expected benefits do not materialize. The tireless efforts of everyone involved to deliver high-quality features have not paid off. Dissatisfaction arises among all stakeholders. Among the customers because the features do not support and simplify their essential activities, in the software teams because their use does not lead to the expected benefits for the customers and at management level because features have obviously been developed that do not deliver any added value for the company.

How can this be done better? Is it about better aligning the agile teams with business needs? Is it about orchestrating the collaboration between the business and the agile teams? Is it about co-creation of business value?

Is the ladder on the right wall? Only then will there be added value when climbing up.

BRM combines the strategic thrust with agile product development

Business and top management define the strategy and its direction. Agile software teams produce features based on user stories. Both the implementation of the strategy and feature production are iterative. After each iteration, the extent to which the expected benefits have been realized is reviewed, whether fine corrections are necessary, whether goals need to be adjusted or whether new paths to the goals should be taken.

BRM connects the two levels and forms the link between the strategic goals of the business and top management and the tactical goals of the agile software teams. The Business Relationship Manager ensures that the implementation of the strategy and feature production in the agile teams are coordinated and that everyone involved is pulling in the same direction.

Business Relationship Manager (BRM) and Product Owner (PO) combine two levels

Product owners and Business Relationship Manager

Product owners are focused on effective delivery by the agile software team. Sprint by sprint, they ensure that user stories from the product backlog are implemented and delivered so that they offer maximum value for the customer. As part of the agile software team, the Product Owner works at the tactical level, ensuring quality, efficiency and effectiveness in the here and now.

The Business Relationship Manager ensures that strategic goals and directions are turned into actionable roadmaps for the agile software teams, that changes to the strategy are reflected in the roadmaps and ultimately flow into the backlogs of the agile software teams. In this way, the Business Relationship Manager connects the strategic and tactical levels.

The Product Owner and the Business Relationship Manager are jointly responsible for the co-creation of business benefits.

                                      Co-Creation of business benefits by BRM and PO

Conclusion

The agile software teams develop products incrementally in each sprint by delivering incremental and high-quality changes to the products. In short, they ensure that the journey moves forward. The Business Relationship Manager provides orientation for the agile software teams with its roadmaps. They act as a GPS to the strategic goals, or in other words, they ensure that the journey reaches its destination. The co-creation of agile software teams and Business Relationship Managers ultimately ensures that the right features are delivered on time and that added value is created. For the customers, because the features support and simplify their essential activities, in the software teams, because their use leads to the expected benefits for the customers and at the management level, because features have been developed that deliver added value for the company. Now the ladder is on the right wall and the added value is created as you climb up.

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Further literature and sources

brminstitute. (2019, October 31). Transformative Organizational Success: The Nexus of BRM, Agile, and DevOps Methodologies. BRM Institute. https://brm.institute/transformative-organizational-success/

brminstitute. (2020, December 8). A Perfect Union: BRM and Agile Development and Delivery. BRM Institute. https://brm.institute/white-paper-brm-and-agile/