[teampractices] Please help define the term "core work"

[Tilman Bayer]

On Tue, Jan 5, 2016 at 12:23 PM, Kevin Smith <ksmith at wikimedia.org> wrote:
>
> Summary:
> Please visit this wiki page[2] to help define the term "core work".
>
> Long form:
> The WMF annual planning process[1] is being revised this year in several ways.

That Q&A [1] only contains about two sentences about the actual
planning process. Will we be updating
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Annual_Plan#Annual_Plan_process_summary
, or at least clearly mark it as outdated?

>
> One is to attempt to categorize work as "Core", "Strategic", or "Other", which should help us communicate our work externally, and to improve our internal budget and strategic planning processes.
>
> As Lila mentioned in a recent update, we need to define these terms. The Team Practices Group was asked to help the stakeholders reach agreement on these definitions, so we have created a wiki page[2] about "core". It contains a draft (strawdog) definition, along with rationale and examples. Through the discussion there, the definition will be refined so it can be used throughout the foundation. Note that this will not be limited to product development teams--it will be org-wide.
>
> Early planning for FY 2015-2016 will start next week, and that will benefit from having a working definition. So if you have any strong feelings about this, please voice them as soon as possible. However, I envision this as being a living definition which can continue to evolve over time. So even if you can't participate this week, please visit the page when you can, and share your ideas then.
>
> This work relates to various discussions and pilots last year related to "maintenance fraction", and "interrupt" or "unplanned" work. However, this conversation has a tighter focus, along with (hopefully) a clear rationale for the categorization. It also relates to the "New/Reactive/Maintenance" categorization that have been used recently in the Quarterly Reviews, but is distinct from that as well.
>
> Aside from annual planning, we believe that categorizing this work will help teams themselves. For example, it might help them realize when they are getting pulled into doing work that is neither core nor strategic, or it might help identify opportunities to invest in improvements that would greatly reduce the ongoing effort required to keep existing features working smoothly.
>
> Please continue this discussion on wiki, or email me (or just the Team Practices list) if you have process questions or concerns.
>
> [1] https://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/2015-2016_Annual_Plan/Questions_and_Answers
> [2] https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Team_Practices_Group/Tracking_core_and_strategic_work
>
> Kevin Smith
> Agile Coach, Wikimedia Foundation
>
>
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>



-- 
Tilman Bayer
Senior Analyst
Wikimedia Foundation
IRC (Freenode): HaeB