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.

• 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.

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.

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

QA reserves the right to improve the specification and format of its courses for the benefit of its customers without notice to the customer.