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From Cobbled to Agile: Reinventing Library IT at Emory University

Learn how Emory University re-engineered its Library IT division, shifting from a piecemeal, capacity-questioned setup to a comprehensive operational vision with professional staffing plans and performance metrics. Discover the tools used for agile teams and their impact. Follow their two-year agile transformation journey with light-weight project planning, process management, task tracking, and measurement tools. Emory University shares the business model, operational strategies, and iterative process improvements that led to successful IT restructuring and enhanced productivity.

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From Cobbled to Agile: Reinventing Library IT at Emory University

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  1. From Cobbled To Agile:Re-Engineering Library IT Joan A. Smith, PhD Emory University

  2. Why we did it • Library IT Division “Cobbled” Together • Created piecemeal over 15+ years • Technology dumping ground • ILS + Desktop Support + Grant Projects + Webs + System Administration + Anything Involving a Computer • Mixed Staffing Situation • Regular Staff + Faculty + Contract Staff + Undergrad Students + Grad Students • Capacity questions • Project costs, capacity, impact unknown & unmeasured • Few staff + lots of projects = prioritization crisis Emory University

  3. Back Then... HodgePodge Group A Multitude of Projects If it’s computing, it belongs in IT! A Variety of Staff & Skills .......No Capacity Planning....... Emory University

  4. What was needed • Comprehensive Operational Vision • Professional Staffing Plan • Capacity and Cost Measurements • Performance Metrics In other words: A Business Model Emory University

  5. Comprehensive Operational Vision • Clear mission statement • why we’re in business • who we serve • Defined “tech stack” • primary tools for doing our job • skill levels expected • University-IT role vs. Library-IT role • Service redundancy = wasted money • Focus on appropriate market share • Utilize economies of scale Emory University

  6. Professional Staffing Plan • Classic, industry-based model • Technical Project Managers • Software Developers • System Administrators • Sustainable project staffing • Post-grant maintenance & updates • Common “tech stack” • Professional development & mentoring • Junior, intermediate, senior levels of expertise • Code/Project/System Reviews for coaching • Training materials, conferences, “info-forums” Emory University

  7. Capacity and Cost Measurements • How long to get “X” done? • Will it be on time (% probability)? • How many people to get X delivered? • What is complexity level of project X? • How soon can we start on new project Z? Emory University

  8. Performance Metrics • Measure Planned Effort • Time: Planning/Development/Deployment • Cost: Planning/Development/Deployment • Support Costs (software, security patches, e.g.) • Measure Actual Times/Costs & Compare • Refine the Estimating Process • Play It Again, Sam • Keep Track of Grant & Matching Funding • Don’t exceed matching unnecessarily • Track accuracy of plan against real expenses incurred Emory University

  9. How we do it *Continuous improvement! Emory University

  10. Plan 1 3 5 4 2 Emory University

  11. Execute Begin: Iteration #1 End: Iteration #1 Emory University

  12. Measure Emory University

  13. Rinse & Repeat Emory University

  14. Timeline: 2 Years & Counting 8 months 12 months 20 months Emory University

  15. Light-Weight ToolsFor Agile Teams • Project Planning Tools • Web-Based Proposal Form • Dashboard • Process Tools • Scrums (Cork Board + Index Cards) • Iteration Planning Meetings • Web-Enabled Process Management • Task Tracking Tools • TRAC (http://trac.edgewall.org/ ) • Time-Tracking Tools • ActiTime (http://www.actitime.com/ ) • Measurement Tools • dWrangler • Velocity Estimating • Evaluation Tools • RAP Sheets • Iteration Reports Home-Grown & Open-Source Note: Screenshots on next slides for reference during live tools demo Emory University

  16. Project Planning Tools (1) • All projects require a proposal • Simple • Fast (mostly) Emory University

  17. Project Planning Tools (2) • Web-Based • Consistent • Quick Status Emory University

  18. Project Planning Tools (3) Dashboard tracks all projects and status phase Emory University

  19. Process Tools (1) • Several tools involved • Coordination via Dashboard: Emory University

  20. Process Tools (2) • Scrums: Bulletin Board + Index Cards Yes, it is analog on purpose… Emory University

  21. Process Tools (3) • Web-Enabled Process Management Everyone contributes… Emory University

  22. Task-Tracking Tools (1) • Staff use TRAC to manage tasks • Note wiki comment option • SVN data noted, too • This is a single task ticket • Change history clarifies • Attachments optional Emory University

  23. Task-Tracking Tools (2) • Project-oriented view of tasks • Note break-down of User Stories into individual tasks • Also note Milestone headline Emory University

  24. Task-Tracking Tools (3) • Timeline for a project – one of many views Emory University

  25. Task-Tracking Tools (4) • And there is the usual SVN repository… Emory University

  26. Time-Tracking Tools (1) • Staff enter project time daily (well, they try…) Emory University

  27. Time-Tracking Tools (2) • Example Report: Total time for each of our projects Emory University

  28. Time-Tracking Tools (3) • Custom reports available Emory University

  29. Measurement Tools (1) • TRAC & ActiTimehooked into our metric tools • dWrangler is a home-grown product built with Django Emory University

  30. Measurement Tools (2) • Velocity estimates enable capacity planning • “Points Open” tracked for each project • “Points Completed” tracked for each project Velocity = Points Completed Per Iteration Emory University

  31. Evaluation Tools (1) • Monthly RAP Sheets (Report on Resources, Activities, Plans) • BRIEF summary of project • Discussion points for managers Emory University

  32. Evaluation Tools (2) • Iteration Meetings & In-Meeting Report • Written while in the meeting • Focus on continuous improvement Emory University

  33. Lessons Learned • One step at a time • Organize the teams • Conduct trial-runs for ~ 3 months • Set a “go live” date • Training, training, training • All members need to understand the Process • No blame, just gain: incremental improvements • Requires (mostly) disciplined behavior by all team members • Measure, predict, measure again • Refine the estimates with actual performance data • Teams improve; measure again Emory University

  34. Agile Manifesto (http://agilemanifesto.org/ ) We are uncovering better ways of developing software by doing it and helping others do it. Through this work we have come to value: Individuals and interactions over processes and toolsWorking software over comprehensive documentationCustomer collaboration over contract negotiationResponding to change over following a plan That is, while there is value in the items on the right, we value the items on the left more. Emory University

  35. From Cobbled To Agile -ish • Agile is a journey, not a destination • Still refining our tools, teams, processes • Some projects need more planning than usual for Agile projects • Too frequent changes can affect hard deadlines • User stories don’t work for System Administration tasks • Some projects are more about configuration and deployment than software development • Agile doesn’t work for all projects, all roles, across all teams • Underlying concepts are sound for estimating team capacity • Keep what works, refine/replace/remove what does not Emory University

  36. Questions? Feedback and Comments are welcome Thanks for attending Contact me: joan.smith@emory.edu Emory University

  37. Links for Screenshots • https://digital.library.emory.edu/ • https://heisenberg.library.emory.edu/dwrangler/tracback/digital-masters/ • https://heisenberg.library.emory.edu/dwrangler/ • https://techknowhow.library.emory.edu/announcements/iteration-report-13-sept-24-sept-2010 • https://techknowhow.library.emory.edu/announcements/planning-meeting-iteration-11-oct-22-oct-2010 • https://heisenberg.library.emory.edu/dwrangler/tracback/projects/worksummary/ • https://larson.library.emory.edu/trac/digitalmasters/timeline • https://larson.library.emory.edu/trac/digitalmasters/roadmap • https://larson.library.emory.edu/trac/digitalmasters/ticket/133 • https://heisenberg.library.emory.edu/dwrangler/tracback/digital-masters/collection-editing/ • https://techknowhow.library.emory.edu/ • http://bohr.library.emory.edu:7080/actitime/login.do Emory University

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