Agile considered harmful

Agile considered harmfulAgile considered harmful@sleepyfox, 2013@sleepyfox, 2013

Anti-patternsAnti-patterns

Who am I?

• Nigel Runnels-Moss• @sleepyfox (github, twitter etc.)• Agile Coach• Software Craftsman• 35 years programming stuff• Working in ‘Agile’ since ~1996

The Future of Agile

Structure

• Agile today• What went wrong• Development of methodologies• Reveal: The Next Big ThingTM

Agile today

Agile has crossed the chasm

Exh

ibit

AE

xhib

it A

Exh

ibit

BE

xhib

it B

Exh

ibit

CE

xhib

it C

Exh

ibit

DE

xhib

it D

Exh

ibit

EE

xhib

it E

We're all Agile!We're all Agile!

Poll: Agile Failures

How many people in the room have:• Seen: bad customer reactions to

talk/mentions of Agile/Scrum/. . .?• Heard: We tried Agile/Scrum/ . . . and it

didn't work• Experienced organisations that had

policies against Agile practices?

Agile

• Agile Testing• Agile Modelling• Agile Project Management• Agile Transformation• Agile Business Intelligence• Agile Portfolio Management• Agile Government• 2390 books on Agile on amazon.com

What does Agile mean?

• 'Fast'• 'Good'• 'Better'• 'Cheaper'• 'Reactive'• 'Responsive to change'?• 'Lightweight'?•

Agile?

People conflate concepts . . .• Agile methodologies• Agile principles or values• Agile tools or techniques• Linguistic meanings of 'agile'

Wide-scale backlash

• “75% of organisations do not get the benefits they expect.”

– Ken Schwaber, founder of Scrum

Wide-scale backlash

• 60% of CSM 'graduates' felt bad about certification – Scott Ambler survey

• “Only 1% of lean initiatives meet their goals.” - Jeffrey Liker, author of The Toyota Way

• “Agile development is an evangelical fad ill-suited to government IT.” - corporate IT lawyer Alistair Maughan, Computer Weekly

• “Agile Software is a cop-out.” - Mike Gualtieri, Forrester Research

Why is Agile failing?Why is Agile failing?

Olympic training diet Agile

'Lazy' Agile

Cargo Cult Agile

Timeline of Methodologies

321

The Next Big ThingTM!

Adoption curve

• Everett Moore, Diffusion of Innovation, 1962

Development of Religious Movements

Vision

Disciples

Scripture

Dogma

Heresy

Reformation

He's not the Messiah!

What Agile really means . . .

• Individuals and Interactions

• Working Software

• Customer Collaboration

• Responding to Change

• Processes and Tools

• Comprehensive Documentation

• Contract Negotiation

• Following a Plan

Philosophy, not methodology

• Learn Principles

• Learn Context

• Learn Values

• Forget Processes

• Forget Methodology

• Forget Dogma

Metaprogramming

Metaprogramming

Metaprogramming

The Tao of Programming

My New Book

The Next Big ThingThe Next Big ThingTMTM!!

The sleeper must awaken

Thank youThank you@sleepyfox on twitteragile-environment.com

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