Large-scale application of IBM Design Thinking and Agile development for IBM z14

In this paper, we describe the application of IBM Design Thinking and Agile development for the IBM z14 project. We discuss the adoption of IBM Design Thinking practices and its impact on the development and client reception of IBM z14. Furthermore, we show how the design direction of the IBM z14 system was iteratively shaped by involving key members of client organizations (“sponsor users”) early in the development process. Next, we discuss how applying Agile practices in a hardware/firmware environment—with iterative development and test, playbacks, and continuous integration—allowed for faster course correction and delivery on a challenging schedule. This paper provides a case study for the adoption of IBM Design Thinking and Agile practices, which were originally designed for small team operations, and the challenge of applying them to a large-scale development organization such as the IBM team developing the z14 with more than 1,000 engineers.