OFBiz Blog

Programming for the open source OFBiz ERP system, but use the system itself for development too? This is your chance using the open source OFBiz Scrum component because it is now part of the general distribution. Not only for new developments but also for maintenance, issue system, time registration and invoicing!

If you are not familiar with the Scrum development framework, read the following short documents:

1. Scrum guide in various languages
2. Scrum in 30 seconds
3. Scrum in 5 minutes

Feature list of the scrum component:

1. Management of products, projects, sprints and tasks
2. Management of the product backlog by the product owner.
3. Management of product error reports in Scrum terms: unplanned backlog items.
4. Time reporting on a task level.
5. Invoicing on a backlog item level.
6. Security for product scrum admin, product owner, shareholder, scrum master and team member
7. Graphical reports as sprint burn down chart and status of backlog.
8. Storage of documents and notes and emails on a product, sprint and backlog item.
9. Categorization of backlog items.
10. Interface with SVN showing the changes on a task, backlog, product and system level.
11. Integrated QA function by a separate testing group.
12. Vacation and sick leave interface from the time-sheet to the HR component

Demo data has been included in the system however if you want to start from scratch:

1. make sure every person involved is entered in the party manager, have a login id and have the related company is assigned.
2. Go to scrum administration and add the parties to the scrum component with their scrum function and, when a time registration is required, rate percentage. Yes, people can have more than one function.
3. Create a product and assign product owner and scrum master.
4. Let the product owner (or scrum master or admin) add backlog items and order them by priority.
5. Create a project and a sprint identifying how many backlog items in the sprint (they are taken from the top)
6. Add team members to the sprint.
7. Add tasks to the backlog items and let the team members decide who is doing which tasks.
8. Now members can see on the tasks screen what needs to be done and can enter daily the hours  (planned/actual) on their time sheet.
9. You can follow the sprint on the burn down chart.
10. At any time you can generate the invoice for the product owner company in his currency if you entered the company rates properly in the accounting component.

If you need support introducing this way of working in your company, let us know, we as a company have an experience with this component for about one year with about 10 projects.

Related blogs:

• OFBiz Scrum, one year experience [20273]
• The Scrum Product Owner [17643]
• OFBiz Scrum introduction [16718]