When offering directions for someone to get somewhere often the factor having the most impact on success or failure is finding a common point of reference. For example, if someone who has only ever known South London were to ask how to get to Big Ben, of how much benefit would references to North London locations be?
Perhaps we make a similar mistake with offering directions on the journey to Agile adoption. Almost without exception a challenge about whether there’s any worth in changing to Agile is met with references to Waterfall. But if Waterfall were North London, most have rarely even taken a day trip! By far the majority come from a ‘South London’ of ad-hoc software development.
For such fast paced, tough skinned development teams a Waterfall reference has no bearing on the journey they take. The most significant impact of this bad habit we must unlearn is that it’s virtually impossible for those needing directions to see any value in even setting off.
Here are a few suggested more familiar ‘landmarks’ and possible directions:
| Familiar ‘Landmark’ | Possible Direction | Benefit |
|---|---|---|
| The single page hand-written spec | Granular user stories with acceptance criteria | Small units of work with an agreed outcome |
| The occasional unscheduled catch-up | Daily ‘stand up’ around a ‘story wall’ | Clear and scheduled communication |
| The “we need it now” delivery plan | Fixed length iterations with agreed content | Constantly improving planning & estimation |
| The “there’s no time for more testing” | Test driven development & continuous integration | Time reclaimed by stable & reliable releases |
| The regular heated moment | Structured & disciplined methodology | Managed expectations & improved communications |
So the next time someone asks “what’s the point of Agile” or “aren’t we already Agile enough”, remember to offer familiar points of reference and the accompanying feature and benefit. Thus improving the chances of them seeing the value of the Agile journey.
