Activity: Iteration Plan Review

Roles and Activities > Manager Role Set > Project Reviewer > Iteration Plan Review

Purpose To approve the proposed work plan for the current iteration.
Steps Schedule Iteration Plan Review meeting Distribute meeting materials Conduct Iteration Plan Review meeting Record decision
Input Artifacts: Risk List Iteration Plan Software Development Plan	Resulting Artifacts: Review Record
Frequency: Once per iteration
Role: Project Reviewer

Workflow Details:

Project Management

Plan for Next Iteration

The Iteration Plan Review is held when the Iteration Plan for the current iteration has been developed. The objective of this review is to ensure that the proposed plan of work will satisfy the objectives set out for the iteration, as documented in the Software Development Plan.

Schedule Iteration Plan Review Meeting

Attendees of the Iteration Plan Review should include a customer representative and the project's management team (the project manager, plus the team leads for the various functional areas of the project team). Representative(s) of the Project Review Authority may also be involved.

Once the attendees of the Iteration Plan Review Meeting have been identified, set a date/time for the meeting to take place. It is important that you provide sufficient lead time to allow the participants to review the project materials that will be used as the basis for the approval decision.

Distribute Meeting Materials

Prior to the meeting, distribute the project materials to the reviewers. Make sure these materials are sent out sufficiently in advance of the Iteration Plan Review Meeting to allow the reviewers adequate time to review them. A minimum set of artifacts that should be presented for review is:

Iteration Plan
Risk List
Software Development Plan

Conduct Iteration Plan Review Meeting

During the meeting, the reviewers assess the proposed Iteration Plan to determine whether it will satisfy the objectives set out for the iteration in the Software Development Plan. The reviewers also look for any erroneous assumptions or omissions in the plan. Consider such things as:

Does the planned work support the stated objectives for the iteration? Is any work included that doesn't support these objectives?
Are sufficient resources identified in the plan, and are these resources available/acquirable?
Does the plan address the most significant risks to the project?
Are the deliverables and the evaluation criteria for the iteration clearly identified?
Have iteration estimates been prepared using sound analytical methods?
Does the plan address the needs identified in the Business Case and Vision?
Are review points and milestones scheduled at frequent enough intervals?

At the end of the meeting, the reviewers should make their approval decision. The result can be one of the following:

Plan Approved	The iteration will proceed as planned.
Project Canceled	Project no longer viable given the known risks and project budget/schedule.
Decision deferred	More information is needed, or further investigation is required before an approval decision can be made.

Record Decision

At the end of the meeting, a Review Record is completed capturing any important discussions or action items, and recording the result of the Iteration Plan Review. If the result was "decision deferred" a follow-up Iteration Plan Review Meeting should be scheduled for a later date.

Rational Unified Process