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LEITWERK Consulting - agile tools

Agile tools

JIRA, Confluence, Trello and Co.
We support you in selecting the right agile tool.

In recent years, a number of providers of agile tools have established themselves on the market. These promise to simplify the organisation of agile projects. They support teams in operating according to the principles of agile project management.

But how do you know which agile project management tool is best suited to you? Which agile tool will help you to achieve your goals more efficiently?

Due to the large selection and diverse functionalities, the differences between the various agile project management tools are not always obvious at first glance.

LEITWERK Consulting supports you in selecting a suitable tool for your agile project management. In addition, we accompany you and your project team during the introduction and utilisation of the agile project management tool.

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Our performance promise

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    Choosing the right agile tool

    To select the right agile project management tool, we analyse the given project requirements together with our customers. This is the basis for identifying a suitable tool. We pay particular attention to ensuring that the choice of agile tool matches the complexity of the project.

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    A sustainable introduction of the agile tool

    When introducing the selected agile project management tool, we do not ignore change aspects. Agile tools and their use only lead to success through professional utilisation. This is why LEITWERK Consulting ensures that we closely support the project team throughout the entire introduction process and counteract any resistance with proactive, open communication. For us, a sustainable introduction is only achieved when the new agile project management tool is used by the team and its added value is recognised.

The introduction of agile project management tools helps to lead projects to success more efficiently
Stefan Kumschier
Managing Director

What agile tools are available?

Before we recommend an agile project management tool and start implementing it with you, we first clarify the following questions:

How complex are your team structures?

Is there a physical separation of team members?

How do you prioritise requirements? Where do the challenges lie?

How well does communication work?

Are many coordination meetings required?

How is adherence to deadlines organised?

What defined processes are there and how effective are they?

What agile tools are available?

In recent years, a number of agile project management tools have become established on the market. We will show you a selection of the most frequently used agile tools that we implement for and with our clients. Of course, we also think outside the box when it comes to optimising your agile project management tool landscape.

Jira - agile project management tool

JIRA by Atlassian

JIRA is one of the most widely used tools for managing the product development process of agile teams. Around 80% of our customers who operate according to an agile working model use JIRA in their daily work.

What makes JIRA so popular?

JIRA's user interface is easy to learn and still offers the possibility to visualise complex issues in an understandable way. Teams working in sprints can prioritise, plan and keep track of all requirements with the help of a sprint board and a backlog. Alternatively, teams that do not work in sprints can use a Kanban board.

By creating different issue types (epic, story, task, bugs), JIRA makes it possible to visualise requirements at different flight levels, which are assigned directly to those responsible. Dependencies between requirements can be set up with just a few clicks.

JIRA also offers an interface for creating test cases, it gives users the freedom to create their own dashboards and various reports can be generated, such as a sprint burndown chart.

Conclusion: JIRA is a tool with many options for supporting and controlling the product development process. It is particularly suitable for larger agile teams that work in sprints and need to maintain an overview of a large number of requirements.

Teams that want to work with one tool for everyone from the technical staff to the Scrum Master and the developers to the testers also get their money's worth when using JIRA.

Due to the many possibilities that JIRA offers, scaled work environments also benefit from JIRA, as dependencies can also be mapped across teams.

Confluence - agile project management tool

Confluence by Atlassian

Like JIRA, Confluence is the tool of choice for many of our customers when it comes to efficient collaboration in agile teams. JIRA and Confluence are often used in parallel, as content from JIRA can be linked to Confluence and vice versa. While JIRA tends to be used for prioritising and planning requirements, Confluence is used for developing and documenting content. Content can be created directly in Confleunce and also used for presentation purposes. This can significantly reduce the need to work with PowerPoint.

Teams can freely design their Confluence area. They can create as many pages as they like and organise them themselves in a hierarchy or page navigation. This allows the entire project/team or department structure to be mapped. Inserting macros (e.g. virtual whiteboards) can also make it much easier to create content.

Furthermore, several team members can work on a page at the same time without content being overwritten. Commenting and notification functions facilitate coordination within the team. All pages can be exported as word or pdf.

Confluence also offers the option of organising appointments in a cross-team calendar and a blog to support communication.

Conclusion: Confluence is particularly suitable for agile teams that also use JIRA, as the two tools are very compatible. Agile teams that use Confluence as their only filing and documentation platform also benefit from this tool.

Like JIRA, Confluence is often used in a scaled environment, as Confluence areas of several teams can be linked together quickly and easily.

Trello - agile project management tool

Trello by Atlassian

Trello, like JIRA and Confluence, is an Atlassian tool. It offers comparatively fewer functions. Trello is primarily suitable for planning the requirements of an agile team that organises itself using the Kanban method or a similar approach.

Trello offers users the option of creating any number of columns for their planning, which in turn can be filled with any number of task cards. It is mainly operated via ‘drag and drop’ and is very easy to learn. The board can be well structured using various coloured labels. There are also other smaller functions that make working with Trello very easy.

Conclusion: Trello is more suitable for small agile teams that have few dependencies both within their requirements and to external interfaces. Teams that do not work in short sprint cycles also benefit from the more pragmatic presentation of a Trello board.

Advantages of agile tools

The successful introduction of an agile project management tool offers you various advantages:

  • Icon Efficient communication & reduction of duplication of work

    Efficient communication & reduction of duplication of work

  • Icon Structured processes & targeted prioritisation

    Structured processes & targeted prioritisation

  • Icon Improved adherence to delivery dates

    Improved adherence to delivery dates

  • Icon Optimised knowledge exchange

    Optimised knowledge exchange

  • Icon Transparency

    Transparency

  • Icon Reduction in admin effort

    Reduction in admin effort

Project examples

I. More efficient communication with the agile project management tool JIRA

Scope of commission

As part of the assignment, two experienced LEITWERK consultants supported our client's team. Our client from the automotive sector needed support with the introduction and establishment of the agile project management tool JIRA. Our focus was particularly on empowering employees and optimising processes. We also had to support the change process with targeted change management.

Initial situation

Agile methods were already being used successfully in our customer's software development. A JIRA Kanban board was an essential component for organising the various teams. However, one relevant aspect of software development was still missing. Obtaining customer feedback was not yet sufficiently integrated into the product development process. The lack of feedback loops repeatedly led to challenges in the development process.

Solution approach

The first step was to analyse the existing processes together with the team. All challenges were then presented transparently. This information was then used to define new processes. The introduction of the JIRA ticket system meant that customer enquiries could be passed directly to the software development team via the support team. They were then evaluated, prioritised, implemented and tested. The project team was also trained in the use of JIRA through intensive workshops.

Results

The introduction of JIRA and the use of a ticket system established a transparent process for recording and processing customer requirements. Among other things, this led to a 35% increase in the productivity of the project team. In addition, the introduction of JIRA has improved cross-location collaboration.

II. Efficient document management with Confluence

Scope of commission

As part of the commission, two experienced LEITWERK consultants supported the six-person team of our client from the automotive sector. The aim of the assignment was to introduce a new Confluence area that supports and facilitates internal processes in the best possible way.

Initial situation

As part of a PMO, we supported our client's transformation from a project structure to an agile product structure in the aftersales department of an automotive group. The agile tools JIRA and Confluence were increasingly used. In the course of this reorganisation, a new, user-specific concept was required for the best possible use of these tools.

Solution approach

A concept for the new Confluence area was developed and implemented in consultation with the internal topic managers. The specific project situation and the needs of the employees were also taken into account. Our consultants made targeted use of the Confluence functionalities and options that were relevant to the specific customer environment. All employees were also trained in the use of Confluence in the form of classroom training.

Results

The new Confluence area included an audit-compliant meeting management system for the efficient management of agile meetings. This enabled open tasks to be tracked better and decisions to be documented more clearly. Confluence is also used as an agile tool for collaboration and communication within the team. The clear structure of the new Confluence area promotes intuitive use and enables a targeted exchange between all participants. The transparent division of tasks means that duplication of work can be avoided.

III. Introduction of the agile project management tool Azure Boards

Scope of commission

As part of the assignment, two experienced LEITWERK consultants supported our client's team from the automotive sector. The team consisted of two participants and was responsible for product development. The company was looking for a comprehensive, agile project management tool to manage the requirements more efficiently. Our support was needed for the selection and introduction of the tool.

Initial situation

Our client's internal further development and the development of new products were driven forward in an agile framework by a large number of teams and projects. Due to numerous overlaps in content, responsibilities were unclear, resulting in duplication of work, misprioritisation and inefficient use of resources. Project-specific tools and individual processes within the teams made it difficult to measure progress and plan capacity.

Solution approach

After the analysis phase, the ‘Microsoft Azure’ tool was selected as it was easily compatible with the company's agile framework. Together with the customer, we set up the agile tool in terms of content and structure, making it actively usable within a few weeks. Our aim was to convince the employees of the benefits of the new tool in order to ensure acceptance. They were trained in how to use Microsoft Azure.

Results

The rapid implementation of the agile project management tool and the use of Microsoft Azure by all teams led to increased transparency in the distribution of tasks. This made it even easier for management to recognise performance and results. Synergy effects can now be recognised earlier and used more efficiently. The expertise of individual people and teams was consolidated in a targeted manner. As a result, goals could be achieved more efficiently.

Your advantages
Why LEITWERK Consulting?

  • Icon: ‘Agile’ certified employees

    ‘Agile’ certified employees

    Almost 100% of our employees are certified SCRUM Masters (PSM I), 60% are ‘Certified LeSS Practitioners’.

  • Icon Expertise

    Expertise

    We have experience in the introduction of agile project management tools in companies of different sizes and complexity. With the help of process models, we define activities that are required to achieve specified goals.

  • Icon Community

    Active Community

    Thanks to our cooperation partners and our broad-based employees, we have access to a wide range of expertise and can therefore cover the introduction of agile tools holistically.

  • Icon Sustainable support

    Sustainable support

    We not only establish the right agile project management tool in your company, but also the necessary methods and expertise for sustainable use.

Interested? We would be happy to send you detailed information about our solution.
Contact us!
Carina Werner
Your contact person
Carina Werner
+49 89 189 235 96
carina.werner@leitwerk-consulting.com
...or write us via our contact form
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