Introduction to Agile Development and Scrum
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Introduction to Agile Development and Scrum
This course is part of multiple programs.
Instructor: John Rofrano
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What you'll learn
Adopt the 5 practices of Agile, a subset of DevOps: small batches, minimum viable product, pair programming, behavior- and test-driven development.
Write good user stories, estimate and assign story points and track stories using a kanban board. Incorporate Scrum artifacts, events, and benefits.
Create and refine a product backlog using the sprint planning process. Produce potentially shippable product increments with every iteration.
Create burndown charts to forecast the ability to meet a sprint goal. Use metrics to enhance performance, productivity, and client satisfaction.
Skills you'll gain
- Scrum (Software Development)
- Workflow Management
- Lean Methodologies
- Sprint Planning
- Agile Methodology
- Team Management
- Agile Project Management
- Backlogs
- Agile Product Development
- Sprint Retrospectives
- Team Building
- Performance Metric
- Team Performance Management
- Meeting Facilitation
- Kanban Principles
- Team Oriented
- Agile Software Development
- Performance Measurement
- User Story
Details to know
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- Earn a shareable career certificate
There are 4 modules in this course
Get started with using Agile Development and Scrum with this self-paced introductory course! After successfully completing this course, you will be able to embrace the Agile concepts of adaptive planning, iterative development, and continuous improvement - resulting in early deliveries and value to customers.
You will look at Scrum as a framework and learn how to apply it alongside Agile. You will also become familiar with related methodologies like Waterfall, Extreme Programming (XP), and Kanban. Apply Agile practices derived from lean manufacturing concepts, like test-driven development. Learn how a scrum team functions. Also learn about the importance of Agile iterative planning and enable yourself to write good user stories and track your team’s progress using a kanban board. Create and refine a product backlog collaboratively with the team and the customer, in a flexible and blameless culture. You'll also learn how to use burndown charts, achieve sprint goals, and conduct the sprint review and retrospective. This approach will lead you to higher levels of efficiency, with the ability to plan and execute sprints with your development team, measuring success with actionable metrics. This course is about more than facts and processes. It is about working collaboratively on a self-organizing team, coached by a scrum master, and building what is needed, rather than simply following a plan. Developed and taught by an experienced Agile practitioner, the course includes hands-on practice through realistic scenario-based labs using GitHub and ZenHub. The course will benefit anyone who wants to get started with working the Agile way or transform the organizational culture to adopt and realize the benefits of Scrum. This includes Project Managers, Product Managers, and Executives. It is particularly suitable for IT practitioners such as software developers, development managers, and IT Scrum Masters.
In this module, you will be introduced to the philosophy and characteristics of Agile. You will learn about other methodologies including Waterfall, Extreme Programming (XP) and Kanban, and how they relate to Agile. You’ll explore the five practices of working Agile. Next, you’ll get an overview of Scrum as a framework for applying Agile principles to project management. You’ll learn how Scrum benefits the project management process by advocating defined roles, events, and artifacts. You’ll learn how companies can organize for success using Agile, and how team alignment and autonomy contribute to building better systems. You’ll also learn how to recognize and avoid Agile anti-patterns and measure Scrum team health.
What's included
9 videos4 readings4 assignments1 discussion prompt
9 videos•Total 59 minutes
- Introduction to Agile Development and Scrum•3 minutes
- Agile Principles•5 minutes
- Methodologies Overview•9 minutes
- Working Agile•12 minutes
- Scrum Overview•5 minutes
- The 3 Roles of Scrum•9 minutes
- Artifacts, Events, and Benefits•6 minutes
- Organizational impact of Agile•6 minutes
- Mistaking Iterative Development for Agile •3 minutes
4 readings•Total 16 minutes
- Course Overview•10 minutes
- Summary and Highlights•2 minutes
- Summary and Highlights•2 minutes
- Summary and Highlights•2 minutes
4 assignments•Total 54 minutes
- Practice Quiz •12 minutes
- Practice Quiz•12 minutes
- Practice Quiz•10 minutes
- Module 1 Graded Quiz•20 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 5 minutes
- Introduce yourself•5 minutes
In this module, you will learn more details about Agile iterative planning. You will also learn how to create good user stories, estimate and assign story points, build and refine a product backlog, and build a sprint plan. For managing the Agile Plan and user stories, you can use the GitHub Projects Kanban or if you have an official email account, you can create a trial account on ZenHub and set up a Kanban board.
What's included
9 videos3 readings4 assignments1 discussion prompt9 plugins
9 videos•Total 71 minutes
- Destination Unknown•3 minutes
- Agile Roles and the Need for Training •5 minutes
- Kanban and Agile Planning Tools •8 minutes
- Creating Good User Stories•10 minutes
- Effectively using Story Points•6 minutes
- Building the Product Backlog•7 minutes
- Backlog Refinement: Getting Started•10 minutes
- Backlog Refinement Finishing Up•11 minutes
- Sprint Planning•11 minutes
3 readings•Total 6 minutes
- Summary and Highlights•2 minutes
- Summary and Highlights•2 minutes
- Summary and Highlights•2 minutes
4 assignments•Total 50 minutes
- Practice Quiz•10 minutes
- Practice Quiz•10 minutes
- Practice Quiz •10 minutes
- Module 2 Graded Quiz•20 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 5 minutes
- Agile in Your Workplace•5 minutes
9 plugins•Total 140 minutes
- Hands-on Lab: Get Set Up in GitHub•20 minutes
- [Optional]Hands-on Lab: Get Set Up in ZenHub•20 minutes
- Hands-on Lab: Create an Issue Template in GitHub•10 minutes
- Hands-On Lab: Assemble Your Product Backlog Using GitHub•15 minutes
- [Optional]Hands-on Lab: Assemble Your Product Backlog using Zenhub•15 minutes
- Hands-on Lab: Refine Your Product Backlog Using GitHub•20 minutes
- [Optional]Hands-on Lab: Refine Your Product Backlog using Zenhub•20 minutes
- Hands-On-Lab: Build the Sprint Plan from Your Product Backlog Using GitHub•10 minutes
- [Optional]Hands-on Lab: Build a Sprint Plan from Your Product Backlog using Zenhub•10 minutes
This module describes the daily workflow for executing a sprint plan, including how to determine which story to work on and how to keep the team updated on progress. You will learn what a daily stand-up is and how to run one. You’ll learn how to use burndown charts to forecast the team’s ability to achieve the sprint goal. You’ll learn how to conduct the sprint review and the sprint retrospective. And you’ll find out how to measure success and use actionable metrics to improve the team’s performance.
What's included
8 videos3 readings4 assignments1 discussion prompt6 plugins
8 videos•Total 38 minutes
- Workflow for Daily Plan Execution•5 minutes
- The Daily Stand Up•5 minutes
- Using Burndown Charts•4 minutes
- The Sprint Review•4 minutes
- The Sprint Retrospective•4 minutes
- Using Measurements Effectively•5 minutes
- Getting Ready for the Next Sprint•5 minutes
- Agile Anti-Patterns and Health Check•6 minutes
3 readings•Total 6 minutes
- Summary and Highlights•2 minutes
- Summary and Highlights•2 minutes
- Summary and Highlights•2 minutes
4 assignments•Total 50 minutes
- Practice Quiz•10 minutes
- Practice Quiz•10 minutes
- Practice Quiz•10 minutes
- Module 3 Graded Quiz•20 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 5 minutes
- Agile and Teams•5 minutes
6 plugins•Total 70 minutes
- Hands-On-Lab: Move Stories from In Progress to Done Using GitHub•10 minutes
- [Optional]Hands-on Lab: Move Stories from In Progress to Done using Zenhub•10 minutes
- Hands-On-Lab: Setup Burndown Chart for Your Plan Using GitHub•10 minutes
- [Optional]Hands-on Lab: Setup a Burndown Chart for Your Plan using Zenhub•10 minutes
- Hands-On-Lab: Sprint Closure and Backlog Refinement with GitHub•15 minutes
- [Optional]Hands-on Lab: End of Sprint Activities using Zenhub•15 minutes
What's included
2 readings1 assignment1 peer review1 app item2 plugins
2 readings•Total 2 minutes
- Congrats & Next Steps•1 minute
- Thanks from the Course Team•1 minute
1 assignment•Total 40 minutes
- Final Graded Quiz •40 minutes
1 peer review•Total 60 minutes
- Option 2: Peer-Graded Submission and Evaluation•60 minutes
1 app item•Total 60 minutes
- Option 1: AI-Graded Submission and Evaluation•60 minutes
2 plugins•Total 30 minutes
- About Final Project•15 minutes
- Final Project Overview and Scenario •15 minutes
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Reviewed on Mar 19, 2024
Good introduction to agile development and scrum. With a caveat: ZenHub is changing and to complete the lab project some exploration is necessary, further the free trial actually is 14 days.
Reviewed on Aug 20, 2023
One of the best courses for Agile Philosophy and Scrum mastery. I wish I had attended it before the 1.5 years I was participating in sprints in my former job on POC (proofs of concept) delivery.
Reviewed on Jul 23, 2025
The teaching method was quite interesting and easy to follow. If most courses on Coursera applied this method, more participants would be able to maximise the benefit of these courses.
Frequently asked questions
No. This is an introductory course that assumes no prior knowledge of Agile, Scrum, or DevOps.
To complete the labs, you will need to set up an account for GitHub and set up an account for Zenhub. Both are free and available via a web browser! There is nothing to download or instrall. A guide for signing up for these accounts is included in the course material, with screen shots and simple step-by-step instructions.
Yes. The labs are optional so that managers and executives can complete the course without completing the labs. If you are a practitioner, or are pursuing the DevOps Foundation Specialization or DevOps Professional Certificate, you are strongly encouraged to complete the labs, as well as the optional HONORS module project.
If you opt to not do the labs, you will still be able to receive a certificate of completion for this course, Introduction to Agile Development and Scrum.
More questions
Financial aid available,
