What’s new?!?

Tom Breur

18 December 2016

My first introduction to Agile came through DSDM, although the word “Agile” to denote a group of software development methods had yet to be chosen. Then in 2000 I heard about XP, although at the time I myself hadn’t made the (even any) connection between those two. But apparently Arie van Bennekum (incidentally, the only non-US co-signer of the Agile Manifesto) and Kent Beck “saw” something I didn’t see, yet, and with them 15 more co-signers of the Agile Manifesto in 2001. And so the umbrella term “Agile” was born, love it or hate it.

Working in an Agile manner has tremendously benefitted me personally, and I have become convinced of the positive impact it had on so many projects I was involved in (both inside as well as outside of IT). But unfortunately, I also see how “abuse” of the term, and poor application (often lack of comprehension) has hurt the Agile movement. As I see Agile evolving, and software developers around the globe continuing to try and find inroads to enhance productivity, “new” ways of trying to do –what appears to me– much the same thing, keep coming up.

Although maybe not “formally” considered part of Agile, I think Lean Startup, Specification by Example, Software Craftsmanship, DevOps, and several other “new” ideas that keep springing up, are examples of this. In the corporate world, Agile often gets applied as the silver bullet that will magically improve productivity (someone needs to hide those magazines in airport lounges – quick!). If redesigning your office space, open plans, using JIRA (yuck), or pick-your-poison could do the trick, well, then it appears you think the people you manage must be pretty dumb. Or else they would have figured this out themselves, no? To me all of that sounds like a cheap way to get your fix of snake oil. Of course, the results often (mostly?) don’t follow, and disillusionment sets in. “Oh, crap, that didn’t work, either!”

I was delighted to see Margaret Hamilton receive a Medal of Freedom from President Obama. When I listen to the stories of how they pulled that project through (in-flight software for the Apollo), it sounds pretty damn “Agile” to me. Did they care how to call their method? Didn’t sound like that to me. What’s new? What’s in a name? Why start some religious war? Why don’t we forget the labels, and “just” focus on the work that needs to get done? The key, and hard part, imho is to use your influencing skills to help and lead your colleagues to a shorter path to value. Then all of a sudden nobody cares how it is called, but everyone loves results and success! What’s new?