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1. WHY AGILE
a. Why Are Organizations Adopting Agile Part 1 So, why are forward-thinking organizations rapidly adopting Agile? And why are we seeing that global professional bodies such as The Project Management Institute (PMI) in their PMBOK Guide and The International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA)’s BABOK Guide, have incorporated and highlighted the importance of Agile in project management, business analysis, and other product delivery activities? In an increasingly interconnected and competitive global marketplace, I am seeing Agile being leveraged by successful organizations across the globe to thrive in today’s digital age. Agile enables organizations to predictably deliver value in a world where we are constantly being challenged with Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity. Organizations that I have seen go through Agile transformation have benefited from the following: ● Faster time to market ● Early ROI ● Feedback from Real Customers b. Why Are Organizations Adopting Agile Part 2 Organizations that go through Agile transformation have also benefited from: ● Build the right products ● Early risk reduction ● Built-in quality ● Culture and morale c. Efficiency vs. Effectiveness Efficiency and effectiveness is a fine balancing act that Agile recommends. If you’re only focused on going fast, you prioritize efficiency. If you’re trying to focus on innovation, creativity, and making sure you’re working on the right thing, you need to focus on effectiveness.
This is often done at the cost of efficiency. Agile ensures a balanced approach whereby Agile Teams ensure there is a balance between speed and creativity. ● Agile transformations also benefit from: ● Customer Satisfaction ● Alignment ● Emergent Outcomes ● Predictability Organizations want to use Agile to get there by developing products better, faster, and cheaper.
2. HOW EXPERTS APPROACH AGILE a. Thinking About Agile Agile Is Based on a Systems Thinking Approach and a Growth Mindset ● Agilists adopt a practical and realistic approach to delivering the best value, and quality, in the shortest sustainable time. ● A Systems Thinking approach, reinforced by a Growth Mindset, helps Agile experts deliver optimal business value. ● Systems thinking takes a holistic approach in which the Agile Team looks at the way a system's components interrelate and influence each other and how these components come together within the context of larger systems to deliver a solution. ● In a growth mindset, individuals on a team have the mindset that their abilities can grow through dedication and hard work.
● Adapt and lead change in a productive and cost-effective manner with no compromise on quality The Agile Mindset When we talk about an Agile Mindset, we include: ● Respect ● Collaboration ● Continuous Improvement ● Iterative Learning Cycles ● Mastery and Ownership ● Focus on Delivering Value ● Adaptability to Change Doing Agile vs. Being Agile Some organizations and Agile Teams unfortunately just focus on Doing Agile. This equates to simply adopting the practices without committing to or exhibiting agile principles and values. Being Agile is the foundation that truly elevates individuals, teams, and organizations to unleash their latent potential to deliver monumental and focused value.
4. AGILE MANIFESTO a. What Is the Agile Manifesto? Up until the late 1990s, a majority of product development followed a waterfall-style project development life cycle that was based on adhering to strict processes. The whole product procedure was process-centric with the goal of delivering the product successfully rather than focusing on delivering a successful product. This is what lead 17 experts to get together and finalize the Agile Manifesto at a meeting in Utah back in 2001. The 4 Agile Core Values These were developed by 17 industry experts and finalized in 2001. They are:
● Individuals and interactions over processes and tools: Agile places more importance and emphasis on people and their interactions over processes and even tools. ● Working software over comprehensive documentation: Documentation requires a time and resource commitment that might be wasteful. ● Customer collaboration over contract negotiation: Agile promotes a collaborative outlook when product owners work with their customers in reaching an agreement on the details of the product delivery. ● Responding to changes over following a plan: Agile embraces the change that makes business sense. b. The Agile Manifesto Principles The Agile Manifesto’s 4 paired core values and its associated 12 guiding principles set a solid foundation for the various Agile Frameworks that are currently being practiced by successful organizations in today’s digital age. The Agile Manifesto’s 4 paired core values drive the 12 Agile Principles. Let's look at the principles in detail.
- Our highest priority is to satisfy the customer through early and continuous delivery of valuable software. The goal of product development is the development of successful products.
- Welcome changing requirements, even late in development. Agile processes harness change for the customer's competitive advantage. Due to the dynamic competitive landscape, requirements can and will change throughout product development.
- Deliver working software frequently, from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, with a preference to the shorter time scale. Frequent and iterative delivery of working products provides the business with practical feedback.
- Business people and developers must work together daily throughout the project. The Product Owner and the Agile Team adopt practices that ensure inclusive and joint practices.
5. AGILE AND WATERFALL
a. Comparing The waterfall model is a more stringent and process-driven style where the project is broken down into project activities through structured phases, with toll gates established to formally review progress. The focus is on the work to be done and not on delivering functional vertical slices.
Waterfall “fixes” the scope and estimates time & cost. Agile breaks this paradigm because Agile “fixes” time & cost and allows the scope to be flexible. b. The Stacey Diagram The Stacey Diagram is a popular method to select the appropriate project or product management style.
SUCCESS STRATEGY FOR SocialKare.gov ● Ensuring management commitment. Any successful Agile transformation initiative requires a serious management commitment. ● Provide the team autonomy by empowering them. A de-centralized decision-making model is needed in Agile environments. ● Incorporate Adaptive Planning with relevant buy-in. Adaptive Planning includes a Product Vision, a Product Roadmap, a Release Plan, an Iteration Plan, as well as daily updates at the Daily Stand Up.
