Our software development system allows requirements and solutions to evolve as we collect usage data and feedback from our customers. Monday through Thursday, the stories used to build features come from a collaboration of a small, cross-functional team that includes an internal “customer”, a business analyst, a software developer, and a UI designer. We measure the complexity of the work in dimensionless “points.”
Free Point Friday is a slight departure from our normal process; it allows our technical team can work on whatever THEY think is the most important. Past free point projects have included the “related products” feature on our site that improves as more customers make inquiries, a site called Oneth1ng.net that makes our morning standup meeting digital, and a test implementation of Facebook Connect.
We believe that a formal process is likely to produce incremental improvements, but giving developers free reign every Friday is going to yield something delightfully unexpected that users will love. The Free Point work is unaccountable by design. It’s not measured, reviewed, or inquired about unless you choose to share and ask for that feedback.