Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time

by Jeff Sutherland

The office of the Chief Information Officer of the State of Washington is responsible not only for what technology is purchased, but how it’s made. The CIO’s office is made up of twenty people who are supposed to make sure massive IT failures, costing tens of millions of dollars, don’t happen. Meanwhile, the department handles IT upgrades for the parts of the government that do everything from issue driver’s licenses, to distribute unemployment benefits, to regulate fish and wildlife. In 2012 they oversaw eighty requests totaling more than $400 million. And they issue standards and guidance to various agencies on how to implement state policy. To do that, they use Scrum.