About this course: This course covers the techniques required to break down and map requirements into plans that will ultimately drive software production. Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to: - Create effective plans for software development - Map user requirements to developer tasks - Assess and plan for project risks - Apply velocity-driven planning techniques - Generate work estimates for software products
Created by: University of Alberta
Taught by: Kenny Wong, Associate Professor
Computing Science, Faculty of Science
| Basic Info | Course 4 of 6 in the Software Product Management Specialization |
| Commitment | 4 weeks of study, 1-2 hours/week |
| Language | English |
| How To Pass | Pass all graded assignments to complete the course. |
| User Ratings |
Syllabus
WEEK 1
Module 1: Introduction to Planning
Welcome to the first module! In this module, you will be learning some basic principles that you will need for effective planning. You will start this module off with an introduction to planning. You will then learn about how planning, and the approach you take to planning, can reduce uncertainty in your project. We will then move onto learning how to breakdown a project into small, manageable pieces, and how to organize those pieces. Finally, we will go over the differences between estimates, targets, and commitments. Together, these lessons will build a good base for learning planning techniques at both the release and iteration level.
7 videos, 5 readings
- Video: Specialization Preview
- Reading: Meet your presenters: Morgan Patzelt
- Reading: Meet your presenters: Bradley Poulette
- Video: Introduction to Agile Planning for Software Products
- Reading: Course Resources: Agile Planning for Software Products
- Reading: Course Map: Agile Planning for Software Products
- Video: 4.1.1: Introduction To Planning
- Video: 4.1.1A: Introduction To Planning
- Video: 4.1.2: Uncertainty Space
- Video: 4.1.3: Work Breakdown Structure
- Video: 4.1.4: Estimates, Targets, and Commitments
- Reading: Module 1: Supplemental Resources
Graded: Peer Review Assignment: Work Breakdown Structure (Graded)
Graded: Module 1: Assessment (Graded)
WEEK 2
Module 2: Project Planning
Welcome to module 2! Now that you’ve gotten your feet wet with general principles in project planning, let’s talk about some specific ways that you can use to implement those techniques. We’ll first discuss the concepts of story points and velocity, then move into how time boxing can be used to improve your project efficiency. We’ll then introduce the Gantt chart, a basic tried and true method of visualizing project tasks. We’ll finish off with techniques for planning your project at a release level, which will set the stage for iteration planning in the next module.
6 videos, 4 readings
- Video: 4.2.1: Story Points
- Video: 4.2.1A: Story Points
- Reading: Discussion: User Story Points
- Video: 4.2.2: Velocity Estimates
- Reading: Discussion: Velocity
- Video: 4.2.3: Time Boxing
- Video: 4.2.4: Gantt Charts
- Video: 4.2.5: Release Plans
- Reading: Release Planning Tips
- Reading: Module 2: Supplemental Resources
Graded: Peer Review Assignment: Release Planning (Graded)
Graded: Module 2: Assessment (Graded)
WEEK 3
Module 3: Iteration Planning
This module will be focusing on planning techniques at the iteration or sprint level. You will start by looking at various techniques for estimating task time. You will then look at task dependencies in more detail. This will come in handy when you learn two visual planning charts--the Critical Path Method chart, and the PERT chart. Finally, you will learn the process for creating an iteration plan. By the end of this module, you will have the tools you need to plan sprints or iterations for development.
6 videos, 2 readings
- Video: 4.3.1: Estimating Task Time
- Video: 4.3.1A: Estimating Task Time
- Reading: Worksheet and Discussion: Calculating Task Time
- Video: 4.3.2: Task Dependencies
- Video: 4.3.3: CPM Chart
- Video: 4.3.4: PERT Chart
- Video: 4.3.5: Iteration Planning
- Reading: Module 3: Supplemental Resources
Graded: Peer Review Assignment: CPM Chart (Graded)
Graded: Module 3: Assessment (Graded)
WEEK 4
Module 4: Risk Planning
You’ve made it to the last module, congratulations! Here, we’re going to talk about what can cause projects to fail. We’ll start off by discussing common causes of failures, including anti-patterns. Then, you’ll learn how to assess risks, looking at their likelihood and potential impact on the project. We’ll end on an optimistic note by leaving you with strategies for intervening when risks present themselves and avoiding those risks to begin with.
8 videos, 3 readings
- Video: 4.4.1: Anti-Patterns
- Video: 4.4.1A: Anti-Patterns - Team
- Video: 4.4.1B: Anti-Patterns - Development
- Video: 4.4.1C: Anti-Patterns - Management
- Video: 4.4.1D: Anti-Patterns - Individual Developers
- Video: 4.4.2: Common Causes of Failure
- Video: 4.4.3: Risk Assessment, Likelihood, and Impact
- Video: 4.4.4: Risk Strategies, Contingency, Mitigation
- Reading: Discussion: Product Management Techniques
- Reading: Module 4: Supplemental Resources
- Reading: Acknowledgements
Graded: Module 4: Assessment (Graded)
Graded: Course Final Assessment (Graded)
FAQs
How It Works
Coursework
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Creators
University of Alberta
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Pricing
| Audit | Purchase Course | |
|---|---|---|
| Access to course materials | Available | Available |
| Access to graded materials | Not available | Available |
| Receive a final grade | Not available | Available |
| Earn a shareable Course Certificate | Not available | Available |
Ratings and Reviews
Great course with some excellent examples. Learned lots of new things and methods.
Another home run class!
I've been waiting for the end of the Capstone project to review all courses of the specialization. I want to check how they interact and how would the concepts be applied. I couldn't be more satisfied! This specialization is very complete and focused on the main topic "Software Product Management". Although there are several additional resources for us to deeply analyse a concept that interest us, the overall course gives you the necessary view of all options available without becoming to generic. I really recommend this specialization and congratulate all the team involved on developing this course. Thanks!
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Great, valuable and informative course