What is Planning Poker?

If you work in an agile team, you’ve probably encountered Planning Poker, a fun and structured way to estimate effort and complexity for tasks or user stories. It’s a simple, interactive method that brings everyone on the team into the process, helping ensure estimations are well-rounded, unbiased, and accurate.

Planning Poker isn’t about card games or betting, though it shares some of the spirit of games by making estimation more engaging. The aim is to combine different team members’ perspectives to reach a shared understanding of how challenging a task might be, which is vital for effective sprint planning.

How Planning Poker Works

So, how does it actually work? Here’s a step-by-step guide to the typical Planning Poker process:

Preparation: Before the session, each team member gets a set of cards, typically with numbers in a sequence like Fibonacci (1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, etc.), though some use T-shirt sizes or other scales. Each number corresponds to the effort or complexity required for a task.
Story Presentation: The Product Owner or team leader presents a user story or task. The team discusses the story briefly to make sure everyone understands what’s involved, including any known requirements, dependencies, or risks.
Discussion: After the initial explanation, team members discuss questions they have or concerns about the story. If someone thinks there’s a hidden complexity or something not considered, now’s the time to share it. This step ensures everyone has the same understanding.
Estimation Round: Here’s where it gets interesting. Everyone selects a card from their deck based on their own estimation of the effort needed. Without revealing their choice, they place their cards face down on the table. Once everyone’s ready, they flip the cards over together.
Consensus Building: It’s common for estimates to differ. In this case, those with the highest and lowest estimates explain their reasoning, highlighting factors others may not have considered. The team then discusses until they reach a consensus, often doing another round of voting if needed.

Why Use Planning Poker?

Why go through this whole process? Why not just ask one person to estimate? Planning Poker offers several big benefits:

Brings Diverse Perspectives: Different team members bring different experiences and skills, and this method taps into that diversity, leading to more accurate estimates.
Reduces Anchoring and Bias: When everyone reveals their estimates simultaneously, it prevents anyone from being influenced by others. This is especially helpful in keeping new or quieter team members from being swayed by more experienced voices.
Encourages Engagement: Estimation is rarely anyone’s favorite task, but Planning Poker adds an interactive element that keeps everyone involved and invested.
Leads to Better Sprint Planning: Accurate estimates help teams manage their workload and deliver value within each sprint, leading to more predictable and sustainable productivity.

Tips for Effective Planning Poker

Set Expectations: Make sure everyone understands what each number or value represents, whether it’s effort, time, or complexity.
Encourage Openness: Team members should feel comfortable sharing concerns or uncertainties. It’s better to address potential issues early rather than after work begins.
Don’t Overthink: Planning Poker is meant to streamline estimation. Keep the sessions productive and time-boxed to avoid long debates.

Planning Poker is simple but incredibly effective. By giving everyone a voice, the team can create estimates they can confidently commit to, while making estimation less of a chore and more of a team-building exercise. So next time you’re gearing up for a sprint, give Planning Poker a try—it might just become a new favorite in your agile toolkit.