Agile is not dead
- but it did not keep its promises either…
The popularity and application of Agile have grown over the past 20 years. Agile has risen from something we once considered only small software development teams did, to large global enterprise implementations of product or service development. There are many success stories about what Agile has helped organisations achieve, and for many individuals, the adaptation of Agile has been a life-changing experience.
However, in recent years, disillusionment about Agile has begun to grow in the market. Promises such as twice the work in half the time, increasing predictability, higher customer satisfaction, higher employee engagement, and the like seem not to be met after all. Organisations of various sizes have come to the conclusion that the Agile promises were not kept. Some of them have already started rolling back; others are trying to optimise by discontinuing what they consider unproductive roles, while still others are still trying to figure out what went wrong and what to do.
With this series of blog posts, I will put a sceptical and unidealised perspective on Agile and implementations of Agile. I am, however, not going to shame Agile or any particular Agile framework as just being the latest fad, but I will point out what we have found to be dysfunctional behaviour and approaches among the communities of so-called agilists, thought leaders, consultants, as well as organisations applying Agile, their employees, and their managers - overall, I call it Agile mishaps.
Web & Content Manager at MASSIVUE | A sustainability enthusiast
3 个月Great read, Bent Myllerup! I agree, Agile hasn’t kept all its promises, but it’s still very much alive when used with the right mindset and approach. If you're interested in exploring how Agile can evolve for the future, we’re hosting a webinar on 28th Nov where we’ll discuss new strategies and frameworks that put people and outcomes at the center. Would love to have you join us! https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwsf--gqzwoE9w9jqvUZtNBPSSEzRW6o5h5#/registration
Successful Outcomes By Connecting Purpose to Your Products & People
1 年I am not sure agile did anything of the things you suggest. I think the teams and people surrounding those teams made those things happen (if indeed they did). It's somewhat contrived now but still holds a thread of truth. Agile was never the goal, it was some principles and values to help guide great teams (and perhaps organisations) to make better, more customer satisfying software. The promises made were by those selling agile, not agile itself.
Principal Engineer
1 年Great series Bent! What I like to think about when someone says Agile is dead is a nice green meadow, and someone pointing to the middle of it and shouting "that oak tree there is dead!". That tree there (in your company) was never really there. How can it be dead?