Allocation of resources during morning scrum?

Question

I find that process to be a bit confusing, but from the time I've been here, I get the impression that resource allocation happens during the morning scrum meetings. So for example, if Dev A has 8 tasks and Dev B has 6 tasks, Dev A will work on the two most important tasks for the current day and Dev B will work on the most important task for the day.

The next day's scrum is set up the same, i.e. decide what task gets work on based on its priority. For some reason, this is throwing me off as a new PM because I can't allocate resources at the time of creating the project. So my process is simply to:

1. Create the WBS
2. Plot the schedule (gantt, critical path, etc.)
3. Client communication

While I'll assigned a dev for my project for the duration of the project, it can get postponed depending on the fire that the Dev has to put out on a certain day.

How do I advise the company on handling its resources properly in such a situation? Has anyone else been in a situation where the morning scrum is also the time to decide what fires are put out for the day?

Answer 1

The intention of the daily scrum meeting is exactly as you describe it being used. Its a "we did this, now we're going to do that" meeting. Honestly, you shouldn't even be involved in the meeting at all as a PM. Your role is to prioritize their backlog, their role is to choose which team members do what, and when. You are approaching your team as individuals, rather than as a team. You need to think of assigning tasks to the team, rather than to the individual.

Oh, and drop the Gantt charts. They hurt more than they help. Unchain your team and your projects and you will find they work faster and more efficiently.