About Estimation and Story Point Sizing

Written By Allison Pollard

Photo by Daniel Mogford

I was talking with some peers recently about story points and estimation.  It's a subject that confuses many people who are new to agile, and many trainers and agile coaches don't agree on what a story point represents, when backlog items should be sized, or if estimation should be done at all.  To help Scrum Masters and agile coaches who might be struggling with the topic, I collected a few articles on the subject to help you get going:

It's not a topic that I am especially passionate about, but it is one that Scrum Masters and agile coaches should be familiar with to help teams and organizations.

Allison Pollard

Allison Pollard helps overwhelmed technical leaders debug their management approach. She teaches them how to manage up, support people through change, and make time for strategic work. Her education in computer science, mathematics, and English from Southern Methodist University helps her connect technical work with people management. As a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC) and Professional Certified Coach (PCC), Allison focuses on improving product delivery and leadership culture. Her experience includes work in energy, retail, financial, real estate, and transportation industries. Allison regularly speaks at global conferences like Scrum Gatherings and Agile Alliance's Agile20xx. She promotes women's leadership as the program director for Women in Agile's Mentorship program. When she's not working, Allison likes to drink lattes and listen to Broadway musicals. Allison is a proud glasses wearer and co-owner of Middlegame Partners.

http://www.allisonpollard.com
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