Scrum Poker Estimator: A Planning Poker Tool for Accurate Story Point Estimation

Abstract

Over the last few decades, the rising popularity of software development projects guided by Scrum methodology led to an increase in the challenges of effective project planning and management. These challenges are more serious for teams which include inexperienced members, as the requirements are constantly changing, and the flow of work is highly dependent on the members' efficiency. Different tools were developed to support teams in managing project phases and whereas the estimation phase plays a crucial role in Scrum software development, it has been given special attention. Planning Poker, considered one of the most common estimation techniques existing in the field, is a gamified technique that helps team members in estimating user stories efficiently. One of the limitations of this technique is that it depends on team experience and judgments. In other words, it does consider the inexperienced teams and guiding them to an accurate estimation. In this research, a Scrum Estimator Poker tool is developed to facilitate the process of estimating user stories, especially for inexperienced members. A set of influential criteria were collected to effectively calculating the proper estimation for each user story based on members’ experience, complexity and size of the story, in addition to the time needed to perform that story. The calculation done through a form of questions that filled by members at the beginning of estimation process. The tool also aims to facilitate team negotiation during the estimation by highlighting the state of individuals’ estimates as an appropriate estimate, overestimate or underestimate. The developed tool proved its effectiveness during the practical implementation by providing more accurate estimates against previous unstructured estimates regarding a test group’s user stories.