Agile adoption cheat sheet?
Posted by Stan Taylor on August 09, 2008
Amr Elssamadisy, author of Agile Adoption Patterns, has published an 'Agile Adoption Cheat Sheet' in InformIT in which he outlines the steps to take in order to adopt agile.
One thing strikes me right away about this article: it makes no mention of the agile manifesto or the agile manifesto's principles. Perhaps the author assumes that the reader already understands these basics, but I don't really see how an organization can adopt agile without starting with the manifesto and principles. As I have mentioned before, you can follow all the steps in this guide but still not be agile unless the entire organization understands and buys into the values and principles of the manifesto.
Update: Amr Elssamadisy, the author of the article, replies in the comments.
Comments
Perhaps the author assumes that the reader already understands these basics, but I don't really see how an organization can adopt agile without starting with the manifesto and principles. As I have mentioned before, you can follow all the steps in this guide but still not be agile unless the entire organization understands and buys into the values and principles of the manifesto.
You are right on both points Stan:
- I do not mention the manifesto, I also don't mention personal values and principles that are necessary for a successful team, or the fact that inspection and adoption are key to any practice. It is only a cheat sheet. There is only so much I can say :)
- You can adopt ALL the practices and still not be Agile. But that's ok. Being Agile should never be the point. Meeting your business goals is why we adopt these practices. So, if you've met your business goals - whatever they are, that's the important point. Who cares about being 'Agile'?
- You can get a better idea of what's included in the book on the InfoQ, Keith Braithwaite's blog, Lachlan Heasman's blog, and finally good ole amazon reviews with no less than Linda Rising herself leaving her opinion.
Posted by: Amr Elssamadisy | August 10, 2008 10:51 AM
Thanks for the reply, Amr.
Meeting your business goals is why we adopt these practices.
I agree completely, but often business goals aren't met unless the whole organization buys into the values--for instance, understanding that not everything--schedule, functionality, quality, etc--can be determined up front.
Posted by: Stan Taylor | August 10, 2008 02:03 PM