This lesson is in the early stages of development (Alpha version)

Teamwork for Research Software Development

This lesson teaches how to successfully work together in a team. It is geared primarily towards people that create research software in an academic setting, however the lesson is most likely also useful for anyone trying to work on a team in scientific projects. Finally we hope that anyone wanting to get better at working in teams can learn something from this lesson.

The widespread standard in academia has been, and still is, to work individually for the majority of one’s time. However, if done well, working in a team can be more fun, more productive, and more effective.

We start with discussing the benefits and downsides of working in teams. Next, we introduce the Agile way of working, a useful set of guidelines for effective teamwork. We learn about Scrum and Kanban, which are popular practical implementations of the Agile principles. We finish with discussing challenges of working in teams in a research environment and exchange practical recommendations for teamwork.

Upon completion of this lesson you will have a set of tools that help you work in teams more effectively, productively, and enjoyably.

Prerequisites

No specific skills or knowledge are required to follow this lesson

Schedule

Setup Download files required for the lesson
00:00 1. Why work in teams? What are the benefits of working in a team?
What are downsides of working in a team?
00:30 2. Introduction to Agile What is ‘Agile’?
Why should I work in an Agile way?
01:00 3. Introduction to Scrum What are the 3 key roles in a Scrum team?
What are the different Scrum rituals?
What are the Scrum artifacts?
02:25 4. Introduction to Kanban What is Kanban?
What is a Kanban board?
Can we combine Scrum and Kanban?
03:10 5. Comparing Agile methodologies How do Scrum and Kanban relate to the Agile manifesto?
What are differences between Scrum and Kanban?
What are other Agile methodologies?
03:35 6. Challenges for Agile way of working in research What are challenges for an Agile way of working in research and how do I solve them?
04:15 7. Practical recommendations for team work What are practical tips for doing team work?
What soft skills are valuable when working in teams?
How can I apply what I learned in my daily work?
04:40 Finish

The actual schedule may vary slightly depending on the topics and exercises chosen by the instructor.