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Unlocking Agile Productivity with Claude.ai

Unlocking Agile Productivity with Claude.ai

Revolutionize Agile Workflows: Enhance UI Mockups with Claude.ai

Sumeth Manasikarn
December 31, 2024

Reading Time: 8 min ⏱️

Three weeks back, I shared a post about creating clear UI mockups for developers on LinkedIn. Today, I want to explore how Claude.ai can enhance Agile processes to benefit all roles, including product owners, scrum masters, feature teams, project managers, QA teams, and software automation teams.

Closing the Gap in Agile Workflows

Product backlog refinement, a key step in Agile, needs clear requirements to align all stakeholders on the final software vision. To do this, we need effective tools to help product owners and users stay in sync.

Many of you have tried using ChatGPT for generating clear UI mockups for software development teams. However, ChatGPT lacks the capability to create actual UI previews with code. This limitation often makes it challenging to close the gap between design vision and implementation. Consequently, this gap can lead to misaligned expectations, inefficiencies, and increased time spent clarifying design intents.

Why Pick Claude.ai for UI Mockups?

To tackle these issues, Claude.ai stands out as a strong tool for Agile teams. You can use Claude.ai with prompts from ChatGPT or within Claude focusing on:

App Design Plans
Core Features
UX/UI Layouts
Workflow Mapping
Mockup Data

This approach creates visual artifacts, previews, and demos that software development teams can easily understand and use as a guide.

Workflow Diagram Example for a Task Management Application

UX/UI Layout Examples for a Task Management Application

The Claude.ai Advantage

Claude.ai shines in its ability to change and preview UI screens. Unlike ChatGPT, Claude offers a more grounded editing process enabling:

Smooth Collaboration: Clearer visual communication with stakeholders.
Effective Guidance: Mockups serve as actionable references for developers.
Enhanced Productivity: Faster iterations of mockups aligned with Agile sprints. We can use the chart control to navigate mockup results.

Chart Controls in Claude.ai

Using the Projects Feature to Maximize Productivity

Claude.ai's "Projects" feature (available for Pro and Work plans) is a game-changer for Agile workflows. Here's how to use it:

Organized Workspaces: Make dedicated projects for different teams or features.
Knowledge Base: Upload relevant documents, wireframes, or specs for easy access.
Team Context: Share projects across your organization to align stakeholders.
Custom Instructions: Set project-specific guidelines to streamline talks with Claude.

Projects List & New Project Creation

Create your project

Add contents to project knowledge

Upload relevant documents to your project knowledge

Set project instructions and save them to your project

By utilizing the Projects feature, teams can centralize collaboration, ensure consistency in communication, and share understanding between the product owner and the Agile team through UI mockups that are continuously updated during the iterative sprint cycles as part of the product backlog refinement process. This allows stakeholders to maintain clarity in development goals with the developer team by leveraging regularly updated UI mockups.

For example, teams can visualize changes in real-time, ensuring alignment and reducing misunderstandings during sprint cycles.

Remember, the development process is designed to improve iteratively throughout the sprint cycles.

Example: Building a Daily Scrum Task Management Application

Let’s look at an example of how a product owner can collaborate with a scrum team to develop a Task Management Application.

Objective:
This application is designed to help developers efficiently track their tasks and streamline daily scrum sessions. Below are the example requirements:

Features

Two Tabs for Task View:
- Yesterday: Displays tasks completed or in progress from the previous day.
- Today: Displays tasks planned, in progress, or completed for the current day.
Analytics Section:
- Displays the percentage of tasks completed for both Yesterday and Today.
- Circular progress indicator showing task completion status (e.g., 33% completed).
Task Listing:
- Tasks should be displayed in a card format with the following information:
  - Title: Brief description of the task.
  - Details: Short notes or details about the task.
  - Task ID and Date: Unique identifier and the due/completion date.
  - Status Indicators:
    - Done: Indicates task completion.
    - In Progress: Shows ongoing tasks.
    - Planned: Highlights tasks scheduled but not started yet.
  - Delete Button: Allows users to delete a task.
Task Creation:
- A text input field and an "Add Task" button to add new tasks. Users should input task details such as:
  - Title.
  - Task notes or description.
  - Planned date and time
  - Tags
Task Status Update:
- Allow users to mark tasks as:
  - Done.
  - In Progress.
  - Planned.
Styling and Design:
- Modern and clean UI.
- Tasks are color-coded based on their status:
  - Done: Green.
  - In Progress: Yellow.
  - Planned: Blue.
- Use a clean and professional font and ensure proper spacing for readability.
Usability Features:
- Responsive design for mobile devices.
- Easy navigation between Yesterday and Today tabs.
- Real-time updates to the analytics section when task status changes.
Preview and Edit Mode:
- A toggle option to switch between "Preview" (non-editable view) and "Edit" mode (allows modifications).

If a scrum team simply receives requirements and attempts to implement them without further context, will the developers truly deliver what the product owner expects?

Probably not. When the final vision remains unclear, the end result often fails to meet expectations.

This is why Claude.ai is utilized—to help the development team gain a clear and comprehensive understanding before breaking down requirements into backlogs. This enables accurate assessment of backlog sizes based on the program's functions. The result is precise development that aligns with the product owner's objectives while minimizing errors, saving time, and reducing costs associated with unnecessary work or delays.

Create UI Previews with Claude.ai: A Step-by-Step Tutorial

In this tutorial, you'll learn how to create UI previews efficiently using Claude.ai, a powerful AI assistant. We'll explore two approaches based on your plan. To follow along, download the provided files:

Claude.ai Subscription Plans Comparison

Approach 1: Free Plan

Free Plan: Upload the provided files and submit the prompt

Download the "requirements.txt", "mockup_data.txt", and "detailed_instructions.txt" files.
Upload the "requirements.txt" and "mockup_data.txt" files to Claude.ai.
Submit the prompt from "detailed_instructions.txt" to Claude.ai.
Review the generated UI preview.
Collaborate with Claude.ai to refine the previews.

Approach 2: Professional Plan (using Projects feature)

Pro Plan: Create a project, adding project knowledge with the provided files and submit the prompt

Download the "requirements.txt", "mockup_data.txt", and "detailed_instructions.txt" files.
Create a new project in Claude.ai.
Add the "requirements.txt" and "mockup_data.txt” files to the project.
Copy the prompt from "detailed_instructions.txt" and paste it into set project instruction and then save instructions to Claude.ai within the project.
Submit the prompt “Create mockup UI preview for Daily Scrum Task Management Application“ to Claude.ai.
Review the generated UI preview.
Collaborate with Claude.ai to refine the previews.

Pro Tips to refine previews:
If you cannot add a new task when clicking the "+" button, try writing the prompt "cannot add a new task" and submit to Claude.ai.

Claude.ai will then add this ability and update the preview for you.
Other prompts you can try:

adjust the progress indicator for readability
cannot delete a task
cannot update task status
cannot view yesterday's task list
add one more mockup today’s task from the project knowledge

Example of Claude adding the ability to update task status based on the project knowledge

With the provided files and instructions, you have everything you need to start creating UI previews with Claude.ai. Follow the steps for your plan and experience the power of AI-assisted design firsthand. We'd love to see your results—share your creations and feedback in the comments!

Conclusion

Adopting Claude.ai in Agile workflows close the gap between UX/UI vision and implementation. It empowers teams to work smarter, not harder, by streamlining processes and enhancing collaboration. Whether you’re refining a product backlog or creating actionable mockups, Claude.ai is the productivity tool that helps your team succeed.

Ready to revolutionize your Agile processes? Let’s start building smarter with Claude.ai

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