Agile - there's no magic to it...

Agile - there’s no magic to it…@katie_attwood

‘I lead the best ever tech company and we will deliver the greatest things you have ever seen.’*

*allegedly

And then there’s me*.

*Well, it’s not quite that bad.

I’ve worked…...on great things and not so great things - and everything inbetween.

..in business operations, product management and business analysis.

..in the public sector, charity sector and currently the commercial sector.

..as the old blood and the new blood.

‘Once upon a time….’

Poor products were crashing and dying.

Something had to change.

I had an opportunity.

Glinda told me about ‘agile’.

The pull of the current culture, power bases and processes would be strong.

I focused on options - not commitments.

‘Our highest priority is to satisfy the

customerthrough early and

continuous deliveryof valuable software.’

I met a wide range of people.

We knew we should form a team.

‘Individuals and interactions over processes and tools.’

We started on our journey...Individuals & interactions over processes & tools

Won’t it mean I lose control?

Working software over comprehensive documentationWon’t it mean I won’t know what’s being built

Customer collaboration over contract negotiationWon’t it mean you’ll promise something we don’t want to deliver?

Responding to change over following a planWon’t it mean we’ll go live late?

We worked together to address blockers.

‘Build projects around motivated individuals.

Give them the environment and

support they need, and trust them to get the job

done.’

...we don’t have time to consider different ways of working

... we’ve (always) (nearly) (always) maintained (nearly) all the documentation*

...we haven’t agreed what we need.

...we need a long term plan.

‘The most efficient and effective method of conveying information to and within a (development) team is face-to-face conversation.’

But...

*delete as appropriate

You must do as I tell you.

We thought we were getting better.

The power of the old ways was present.

‘Working software over comprehensive documentation.’

And the winged monkeys still did not know what and why!

Usability study documentover 60 pages and over 100 recommendations

Proposed customer personas over 30 pages with many, many broad personas

Requirements and user flows 100s and 100s…

Strategic and business plans about 50 pages and counting.

We became a team.

‘The best architectures,

requirements, and designs emerge

from self- organizing teams.’

. We thought we were getting there...

Powerful gates were being protected.

We realised we weren’t being agile.

We started to understand how we were getting better.

‘At regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behavior accordingly.’

‘Simplicity, the art of maximizing the amount of work not done, is essential.’

The witch and her winged monkeys still existed.

We could only change a few parts at a time.

The changes were only connected in some places.

‘Business people and developers must work together daily throughout the project.’

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools

Working software over comprehensive documentation

Customer collaboration over contract negotiation

Responding to change over following a plan

The Witch is dead!

‘Responding to change over following a plan.’

‘Deliver working software frequently, from a couple of

weeks to a couple of months, with a preference to the shorter

timescale.’

We continued on our journey until...

Agile - there’s no magic to it...

‘Working software is the primary measure of progress.’

The power can be right under your

feet.

Though red shoes are optional.

Not quite the happy ending - yet.

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools

Working software over comprehensive documentation

Customer collaboration over contract negotiation

Responding to change over following a plan

I’m not there.

There’s no place like agile.

Agile Values taken from Scrum Alliance

Drawn images taken from ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’ by Baum, L. Frank (original copyright 1899)