Agile is not your gas pedal.

 - Back to basics

It has been more than 2 decades since the agile manifesto was incubated and eventually
published. For those who understood the agile values & principles well, 'agile' has been more than a word in the English dictionary - they have been living agile or being agile.

The others, have 'generally' been doing agile with full cognizance & often, labelling it not good
for managing project lifecycles - often calling it a misfit. No offence, but this population believes that "agile is a gas pedal" & just doing agile will help deliver outcomes faster & sooner.

Talking of outcomes, quite often it is perceived that "no matter what project management methodology or technology you use, in the end - all that matters is the outcome!" Is it? Really?!? What about the journey or team hardship, change in plans (etc.) enroute to the destination or simply put the outcomes?


This ability to change course/action plans is what I'll refer to as agile being a steering wheel. Someone* has rightly said - more than the destination, the journey is the reward!

All put together in a very succinct way - while agile embraces change & the freedom to "fail fast
and fail early", it also reminds one to look at the rearview mirror for retrospection, feedback and course correction.

So... Agile is not your gas pedal. Its your steering wheel


From the desk of,
(Humanitarian & Agilist)


Location: Pune, Maharashtra, India

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Increasing your Agile Team's Outcome Predictability

Image
Understanding Predictability in Agile Team Outcomes   "Understanding Predictability in Agile Team Outcomes" refers to the study or analysis of how consistent and reliable the results or achievements of a team practicing agile methodologies can be. This involves examining the factors that contribute to the team's ability to deliver on time and within scope, as well as identifying potential challenges or obstacles that may impact their predictability. By understanding these dynamics, organizations can better manage and optimize their agile teams for more consistent and successful outcomes. In today's rapidly changing world, the significance of accurate weather forecasts cannot be overstated. Similarly, in the world of software development, predictability is crucial for Agile teams. The ability to deliver outcomes predictably is a key factor in Agile team success. Achieving predictability can be challenging for Agile teams due to various factors such as capacity planning
Read more

Stop starting, start finishing.

Image
Limiting WIP & reasons for high WIP My first post on Kanban  deserved a sequel for sure! While it isn’t possible to have literally no work in progress, the overall goal of a project team is to finish as many things as they can, and not be in a state of continually starting. Having too much #WIP makes this goal even more difficult.  The impact of too much WIP on efficiency and throughput is one of the reasons it is often regarded as a concern. According to studies, the cost of context change is frequently far more than people anticipate. It is evident that dropping one object and taking up another cannot be done in such a way that no time or energy is spent between the two. However, there is sufficient evidence to suggest that the loss is rarely worth the gain. These apparent consequences of having too much going on are easy to identify once you know what you're looking at. Looking around the team, you'll notice that there are many tasks open, few of which are done, and many
Read more

Mastering the Daily Scrum

Image
- A Key Ingredient for Agile Success Introduction: In the fast-paced world of software development and project management, staying on top of tasks, priorities, and progress is essential. The Daily Scrum, often referred to as the Daily Standup, is a cornerstone of the Agile methodology. It's a brief, focused meeting that empowers teams to synchronize, collaborate, and make data-driven decisions. In this blog post, we'll dive into the what, why, and how of the Daily Scrum to help you harness its potential for your agile projects. What is the Daily Scrum/Daily Stand-up? The Daily Scrum is a daily ritual (a scrum event) that brings the entire team together for a brief, time-boxed catch up. Its primary objectives are: Synchronization: Ensure that everyone is on the same page regarding the sprint goal and knows what to work upon given the priority. Collaboration: Encourage open communication among team members. Identify and Remove Obstacles: Highlight any impediments that need res
Read more