Agile Transformation Experience of a Supply‑Chain Contract Manufacturing Team

(Image source: Internet)

Article reprinted from “INFO Information Technology Department”. This article shares the agile practice experience of a supply‑chain contract‑manufacturing team under the guidance of Agile mentor Wang Lijie.

1. Recognize Yourself

Agile mentor Wang Lijie conducted a short test to understand the team’s agile characteristics and created a portrait of the team. He highlighted strengths such as seamless testing, dedicated personnel, and delivery cycles, while pointing out areas for improvement like continuous integration, automated testing, daily stand‑ups, retrospectives, and reviews.

Based on the portrait, the team’s advantages and shortcomings were analyzed, confirming good practices and identifying the need to improve CI, automation, meetings, and reviews.

2. Project Requirement Sorting

After self‑recognition, Wang led the team to sort project requirements by functions, tasks, and user roles, visualizing key interaction flows. Requirements were divided into three layers: blue for main processes, red for refinements, and yellow for high‑priority features. Release planning (versions 1.15.1, 1.15.2, 1.16.1, 1.17.1, etc.) and status colors (green = released, blue = confirmed) were also defined.

The team then mapped the development iteration flow from requirement → ready → development → testing → release, distinguishing tasks as “doing” or “done” to enforce a Definition of Done (e.g., red heart tag). Different colored sticky notes indicated information types (yellow = feature, green = task card, red = bug). Each requirement formed a horizontal swimlane, with related tasks displayed together; a temporary task lane was added for ad‑hoc data validation and issue investigation.

Issues encountered during iterations were recorded in an “obstacle area” for timely tracking. Each iteration had a clear goal – currently “provide a factory dashboard” – displayed in the iteration goal area, with dates shown prominently to enforce the time‑box.

After delivering prototypes and documentation, the team split tasks collaboratively.

Determine iteration start and end dates (stable cycle, e.g., two weeks).

Set iteration goals and requirements.

Break down iteration tasks (granularity of about one day).

Each member writes their own task card; many hands make light work.

The team also uses a burndown chart to compare actual progress with the planned pace, making iteration planning more visual.

3. Daily Meetings

3.1 Daily Stand‑up

A 15‑minute morning stand‑up aligns issues and tasks, adjusting iteration work. Each participant answers three questions: (1) What did I do before the meeting to achieve the iteration goal? (2) What will I do after the meeting to help achieve the goal? (3) What obstacles or problems am I facing?

The first stand‑up on 24 Oct 2019 showed the team standing in a circle, passing a “microphone”, with the Scrum Master taking notes.

3.2 Retrospective Meeting

After each iteration, the team reviews what went well, what needs improvement, and what blocked progress. The guiding principle is that everyone has done their best, and improvements are discussed from that baseline.

The first retrospective used the “hot‑air‑balloon” method: participants write positive points on cards and attach them to the balloon (upward lift) and write problems on cards and attach them to the basket (downward pull). Similar items are grouped, then voted on (each person has five votes) to identify key issues.

Three‑step strategy:

Step 1 – Identify upward lift: write good points, place on balloon, explain reasons, group similar items.

Step 2 – Identify resistance: write problems and obstacles, place on basket, explain reasons, group similar items, then vote to prioritize.

Step 3 – Find solutions: write solutions next to problem cards, explain, then vote for the most reasonable solutions.

Results of the retrospective are shown in the following image.

4. Summary

Under the agile plan, the contract‑manufacturing team’s project management increasingly aligns with agile standards, becoming faster, more flexible, lightweight, and visualized. The team follows agile values of focusing on value, embracing change, delivering quickly, and continuous improvement.

Next steps include implementing continuous integration, automatically deploying code to test environments, building automated API tests, and exploring BDD (Behavior‑Driven Development) for developers.

Agile transformation is enjoyable yet long‑term; the journey of “Being Agile” never ends, and the team will keep facing challenges and reaching new heights.

Agile transformation participants:

Benefits: Online system courses by Wang Lijie, weekly live sessions – scan the QR code to join the group.