BCS Agile Foundation Certificate

Agile has caught the attention of business leaders in the UK and globally as a means of managing change, reducing time to market, eliminating waste and attracting and retaining customers. The question is – what is Agile Project Management and how does it differ from traditional waterfall? What are the roles, skills and competencies required?

This two-day foundation certificate course is concerned with the use of Agile practices in projects, product and software development.

The course is designed to ensure the delegate has suitable knowledge of the core concepts of Agile practices, the Agile values and principles, across a breadth of Agile methodologies. It is not aimed at preparing delegates to implement a specific Agile approach.

Target Audience

The certificate is relevant to anyone requiring an understanding of Agile, including organisational leaders and managers wanting to understand the value of Agile practices, or those who work in an Agile environment.

Examination

The closed-book exam is taken during the course and consists 40 multiple-choice questions taken over an hour. A pass mark of 65% (26 out of 40) is required for delegates to become accredited.

This course includes the Relevant Methods and Approaches for Agile Teams, including Scrum, XP (Extreme Programming), DSDM Atern, Kanban, Lean Software Development and Lean Startup.

Prerequisites

Experience of working as a member of a project team, for example as a tester, business analyst, software developer, project manager, or release manager, is helpful but not required.

Proof of identity

Please ensure that you bring photo identification with you on the day of your examination as you will not be allowed to sit the exam without it.

Pre-Course Reading

There is no pre-course reading required.

Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course you will be able to:

Recall the origins of Agile methods.
Understand and apply the core values and principles of Agile methods.
Know the difference between the defined process and the empirical processes used in Agile.
Explain the issues identified in the traditional / waterfall approach.
Recognise myths that are often attributed with Agile practices.
Know the different approaches to the empirical model for improvement and change.
Explain the business culture and the economic case required for Agile.
Understand the implication of Agile practices on individuals, teams and businesses.
Explain the way in which we engage customers into an Agile project.
Know how we respond to change in an Agile project.
Describe the common Agile roles, techniques and practices.

• Course content

  The course is designed to present theoretical models and current industry practices, with an emphasis on understanding the intentions behind the four value statements of the Agile Manifesto. Towards the end of the course, we look at Agile approaches in use today, at a high level only.

  The course includes the following syllabus areas:

  The Agile Manifesto

  4 Values
  12 Principles

  Rationale & Benefits of Agile

  History of Agile
  Empirical and defined processes
  The pillars of the empirical process
  The waterfall approach
  The iron triangle of project constraints
  Working with uncertainty and volatility
  Agile myths
  Empirical models for improvement and change
  Business culture and Agile
  The economic case for Agile
  The lifecycle of product development

  Individuals and their Interactions over Processes and Tools

  Motivated and Talented Individuals
  Emergent design from Self-Organising Teams

  Working Systems over Comprehensive Documentation

  Satisfy the Customer with Continuous Delivery of Value
  Deliver Working Systems Frequently
  Working Systems as a Measure of Progress
  Technical Excellence and Good Design

  Customer Collaboration over Contract Negotiations

  Business People and Developers Must Work Together
  Face-to-face Communications
  Reflect and Adjust Regularly

  Responding to Change over Following a Plan

  Embrace Change
  Sustainable Pace
  Simplicity – The Art of Maximising the Amount of Work Not Done

  Common Agile Roles

  The Role of the Customer
  The Role of the Team
  The Role of the Agile Leader
  The Role of Stakeholders
  The Agile Mindset

  Common Agile Techniques

  User Stories
  Acceptance Criteria and Scenarios
  MoSCoW Prioritisation
  Estimation using Story Points
  Agile quality assurance and testing

  Common Agile Practices

  Short Feedback Loops
  Focus on Quality
  Emergent Documentation
  Visual Boards
  Team Synchronisation Meeting
  Show and Tells
  Retrospectives
  Continuous Improvement

  Relevant Methods and Approaches for Agile Teams

  Scrum
  XP (Extreme Programming)
  DSDM Atern
  Kanban
  Lean Software Development
  Lean Startup