Agile, not just another corporate buzzword…

Agile project methodology evolved in the software community, starting in the 80’s and becoming clearly defined in the late 90’s and into 2001. The goal was to quickly deploy software to market, and the project approach has gained more and more popularity. Companies such as Yahoo, Google and Microsoft use different variations of Agile to bring products and services to the public. Unlike traditional waterfall project management, Agile scales very well in small, medium and large-scale business environments.

One of the key differences to what most of us know as the traditional project approach, Agile does not focus on heavy documentation. The emphasis is on the spirit of the team. This character is shown in the graceful attitude toward change, the creativity of seeking the simplest design, the integrity to meet commitments, and the open communication between all team members. There is a focus on doing valuable work, and at a quick but sustainable pace.

The Agile Manifesto, written by some of the industry’s thought leaders, defined this new approach…
We are uncovering better ways of developing software by doing it and helping others do it. Through this work we have come to value:
• Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
• Working software over comprehensive documentation
• Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
• Responding to change over following a plan
That is, while there is value in the items on the right, we value the items on the left more.

Agile methodologies arose in response to a systemic crisis of distrust and dishonesty in the software industry. Its focus is not on bureaucracy, tools and documents, but principles, practices and processes that acknowledge humans are doing complex work in a complex world. Agile gives people their humanity back by a leadership philosophy that nurtures collaboration and team work.

From among the twelve principles to Agile development, over the last few years of practice I’ve distilled these key points that guide my project approach:
• Frequent demonstration of progress drives a quick pace
• Accommodate changing requirements with simple design and execution
• Consistent and frequent communication keeps the focus on efficiency and productivity
• Motivated, self-organizing teams are a result of frequent reflection on successes and challenges

There are many flavors of Agile, such as Crystal Clear, Extreme Programming, and Scrum. In January 2007 I was certified as a Scrum Master. Over the years and throughout projects we’ve defined a Sundog Agile Method which takes best of breed practices and adapts them to client needs. This was in response to a diversity of project types - any given month sees me leading an infrastructure enhancement, a software integration , adding a product section to a marketing website, and creating an email marketing campaign. Each client, project, and team deserves a customized approach, and Agile methods give me freedom in a framework of principles rather than book of rules.

Over the next few posts I’ll be exploring terminology and components of Agile, and how I adapt them for various client and project needs with the core principles of Agile as my touch point (see the first four bullet points above).

This 5-minute video is an entertaining introduction to Scrum terminology and basics: