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Managing Sprints and Iterations in Azure DevOps

Introduction​

Sprints (also called iterations) are time-boxed periods in which teams complete and deliver a set of user stories. Azure DevOps provides robust tools for planning, tracking, and managing sprints as part of an agile development process.

Sprint Planning at Enable App​

🗓️ Sprint Cadence​

At Enable App, we follow these sprint practices:

  • Sprint length: 2 weeks
  • Sprint planning: Every other Monday, 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
  • Sprint review/demo: Friday before sprint end, 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
  • Sprint retrospective: Last Friday of sprint, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
  • Daily stand-ups: Every workday, 9:30 AM - 9:45 AM

📊 Capacity Planning​

Before each sprint begins, it's important to understand the team's capacity:

  1. In Azure DevOps, navigate to Boards > Sprints > [Your Team] > Capacity
  2. Enter each team member's available days for the sprint
  3. Account for time off, holidays, and other commitments
  4. If using hours, define working hours per day (default is 6 productive hours)
  5. Optionally enter activity allocations (development, testing, design, etc.)

This information helps ensure the team doesn't commit to more work than it can realistically complete.

Setting Up Sprints in Azure DevOps​

⚙️ Configuring Iterations​

Before your team can use sprints, they need to be configured:

  1. Navigate to Project Settings > Team Configuration > Iterations
  2. Click + New to add a new iteration
  3. Create a hierarchy of iterations (e.g., Release 1 > Sprint 1, Sprint 2, etc.)
  4. Set date ranges for each sprint
  5. Assign iterations to your team

👥 Team Configuration​

Each team can have its own sprint schedule:

  1. Go to Project Settings > Teams
  2. Select your team or create a new one
  3. Go to Iterations and Areas
  4. Select which iterations apply to your team
  5. Set the default iteration for new work items

Sprint Planning Process​

🎯 Planning Meeting Agenda​

  1. Sprint Goal Review (15 min)

    • Product Owner presents the objectives for the sprint
    • Team discusses how the goal aligns with product roadmap

  2. Capacity Check (10 min)

    • Review team capacity for the sprint
    • Identify any planned time off or reduced availability

  3. Backlog Review and Selection (60 min)

    • Examine top-priority user stories
    • Clarify requirements and acceptance criteria
    • Select stories for the sprint based on priority and capacity
    • Break down stories into tasks if needed

  4. Commitment and Confirmation (15 min)

    • Team confirms commitment to the selected stories
    • Update sprint backlog in Azure DevOps
    • Assign initial owners to stories or tasks

🛠️ Creating the Sprint Backlog​

In Azure DevOps, create your sprint backlog as follows:

  1. Navigate to Boards > Backlogs
  2. Make sure stories are prioritized correctly
  3. Drag top-priority stories to the current sprint or use the context menu
  4. Click on each story to add tasks if needed
  5. Verify that the total work aligns with team capacity

Breaking Down User Stories into Tasks​

📋 Task Creation​

For complex user stories, breaking them down into tasks helps track progress more effectively:

  1. Open a user story in Azure DevOps
  2. Navigate to the Tasks tab
  3. Click Add Task
  4. For each task, include:
    • Clear, action-oriented title
    • Description of the work to be done
    • Estimated hours
    • Assigned team member (optional during planning)
    • Any dependencies or prerequisites

📝 Task Examples​

A user story for "User Profile Management" might include tasks like:

  • Design database schema for user profiles
  • Create API endpoints for profile CRUD operations
  • Implement form validation
  • Create unit tests for profile validation
  • Implement profile image upload functionality
  • Add authorization checks to profile endpoints

Using the Sprint Board​

📊 Board Overview​

The sprint board provides a visual way to track work:

  1. Navigate to Boards > Sprints > [Your Team] > Taskboard
  2. View tasks organized by story and status
  3. Default columns are: To Do, In Progress, Done
  4. Customize columns in Project Settings > Team Configuration > Status

🔄 Updating Work Status​

During the sprint, team members should:

  1. Update the status of their tasks daily
  2. Move items across the board as work progresses
  3. Update remaining work hours for accurate burndown
  4. Add comments to share progress or raise issues
  5. Link work items to pull requests or commits

📈 Monitoring Progress​

Azure DevOps provides several tools to monitor sprint progress:

  1. Burndown Chart: Shows remaining work over time

    • Navigate to Boards > Sprints > [Your Team] > Analytics
    • A healthy burndown shows steady progress toward zero

  2. Capacity Chart: Shows allocation vs. capacity

    • Navigate to Boards > Sprints > [Your Team] > Capacity
    • Helps identify overloaded team members

  3. Sprint Dashboard: Customizable overview

    • Create at Overview > Dashboards > + New Dashboard
    • Add widgets for sprint progress, bug trends, etc.

Mid-Sprint Activities​

📣 Daily Stand-ups​

Effective daily stand-ups keep the team aligned:

  1. Each team member answers:

    • What did I complete yesterday?
    • What will I work on today?
    • Are there any impediments blocking my progress?

  2. Update the taskboard during or immediately after the stand-up

  3. Follow up separately on issues that need deeper discussion

🔍 Handling New Work​

When new work emerges during a sprint:

  1. Product Owner evaluates the priority of the new item
  2. If critical, the team discusses what can be removed to make room
  3. Update the sprint backlog accordingly
  4. Document the change and rationale

Non-critical new work should be added to the product backlog for future sprints.

End of Sprint Activities​

🔎 Sprint Review/Demo​

The sprint review showcases completed work:

  1. Each team member demonstrates their completed user stories
  2. Stakeholders provide feedback
  3. Product Owner accepts or rejects stories based on acceptance criteria
  4. Incomplete stories are discussed and typically moved to the next sprint

🤔 Sprint Retrospective​

The retrospective focuses on process improvement:

  1. What went well during the sprint?
  2. What could be improved?
  3. What specific actions will the team take to improve?

In Azure DevOps, you can use the built-in retrospective tool:

  1. Navigate to Boards > Retrospectives
  2. Create a new retrospective for the completed sprint
  3. Add feedback items under appropriate categories
  4. Create action items and assign owners
  5. Review previous retrospective action items

🧹 Sprint Closure​

Before starting the next sprint:

  1. Close the current sprint in Azure DevOps
  2. Move incomplete work to the next sprint or back to the backlog
  3. Update work item status and resolve any discrepancies
  4. Review velocity and update future sprint forecasts if needed

Customizing the Process​

🛠️ Azure DevOps Customization​

Azure DevOps can be customized to match your team's workflow:

  1. Navigate to Project Settings > Team Configuration
  2. Customize:
    • Backlog levels
    • Working days
    • Taskboard columns
    • Work item types
    • Fields and forms

📱 Mobile Access​

For team members on the go:

  1. Download the Azure DevOps mobile app
  2. Use responsive web views on mobile browsers
  3. Subscribe to email notifications for important updates

Best Practices for Sprint Management​

✅ Do's​

  • Keep user stories small and focused
  • Update tasks daily
  • Hold timeboxed, focused meetings
  • Use burndown charts to track progress
  • Address impediments quickly
  • Celebrate successes and learn from failures

❌ Don'ts​

  • Don't overcommit the team's capacity
  • Don't change sprint goals mid-sprint
  • Don't skip retrospectives
  • Don't let tasks stagnate without updates
  • Don't forget to update remaining work estimates

Conclusion​

Effective sprint management in Azure DevOps helps teams deliver value consistently and predictably. By following the practices outlined in this guide, your team can better plan, execute, and learn from each sprint cycle.

Remember that the goal of sprint management isn't to follow rigid processes but to enable the team to collaborate effectively and deliver value to users quickly and consistently.

Additional Resources​