Disruptive Thought http://disruptivethought.com Tony Ponton's Agile thoughts, I'll elucidate, you ruminate and then we'll debate! Wed, 18 Jan 2012 11:21:34 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 One Liner ~ Aug – 31 – 2011 http://disruptivethought.com/2011/08/one-liner-aug-%e2%80%93-31-%e2%80%93-2011/ http://disruptivethought.com/2011/08/one-liner-aug-%e2%80%93-31-%e2%80%93-2011/#comments Tue, 30 Aug 2011 12:06:25 +0000 Tony http://disruptivethought.com/?p=367 The best agile teams leave their job titles at the door. Instead of “I am a tester”, let’s say “I am a team member with testing skills” ~ Rowan Bunning ~ scrum trainer

]]> http://disruptivethought.com/2011/08/one-liner-aug-%e2%80%93-31-%e2%80%93-2011/feed/ 0 One Liner ~ Jul – 5 – 2011 http://disruptivethought.com/2011/07/one-liner-jul-%e2%80%93-5-%e2%80%93-2011/ http://disruptivethought.com/2011/07/one-liner-jul-%e2%80%93-5-%e2%80%93-2011/#comments Tue, 05 Jul 2011 02:25:20 +0000 Tony http://disruptivethought.com/?p=355 Self-organize… don’t wait to be told, be accountable and stride forward. Self correct! ~ Denise Caron

]]> http://disruptivethought.com/2011/07/one-liner-jul-%e2%80%93-5-%e2%80%93-2011/feed/ 0 One Liner ~ May – 11 – 2011 http://disruptivethought.com/2011/05/one-liner-may-%e2%80%93-11-%e2%80%93-2011/ http://disruptivethought.com/2011/05/one-liner-may-%e2%80%93-11-%e2%80%93-2011/#comments Wed, 11 May 2011 10:53:12 +0000 Tony http://disruptivethought.com/?p=349 People don’t stay in organisations because of leaders – they stay because of teams ~ Renee Troughton ~ Agile Coach

]]> http://disruptivethought.com/2011/05/one-liner-may-%e2%80%93-11-%e2%80%93-2011/feed/ 0 ‘A Rose by any other name’ http://disruptivethought.com/2011/04/%e2%80%98a-rose-by-any-other-name/ http://disruptivethought.com/2011/04/%e2%80%98a-rose-by-any-other-name/#comments Fri, 29 Apr 2011 12:11:51 +0000 Tony http://disruptivethought.com/?p=339 That’s not Agile!

You haven’t dotted the I’s, crossed the T’s and conformed to this checklist!  You’re not following dot point 27 of document three! Agile is only for software development! Every time I hear statements like this it perturbs me greatly, they are usually repeated with such conviction that I know I have to set about demystifying these rumours lest they continue to grow.

Agile is not an ISO standard or a checklist to be followed blindly for the sake of it.

It’s simply a framework, if you like an umbrella term for a set of values and principles that have been shown to improve efficiency, productivity, and quality. Agile is not just a software development methodology though, it’s a way of working that builds on a set of values and principles to deliver business value and manage risks.

Agile methods are adaptive; they have frequent checkpoints and feedback loops that are used to manage and reduce risk. It’s pragmatic; if something doesn’t work it can and should be adapted.

Agile can be used for all sorts of teams and environments as well as being able to be used at the governance level for portfolio management and at the project level for delivery. Its’ strengths lie in the core values and principles and we should take time to remember them.

The Values:

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools

Working software over comprehensive documentation

Customer collaboration over contract negotiation

Responding to change over following a plan

(Source: www.agilemanifesto.org)

Principles:

The full set as well as the values is clearly expressed for you in the Agile Manifesto (http://agilemanifesto.org). There are twelve of these, here are just a few.

  • The highest priority is to satisfy the customer through early and continuous delivery of valuable software.
  • Working software is the primary measure of progress.
  • Agile teams welcome changing requirements, even late in development. Agile processes harness change for the customer’s competitive advantage.
  • Deliver working software frequently, from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, with a preference to the shorter timescale.
  • Business people and developers must work together daily throughout the project.
  • Build projects around motivated individuals. Give them the environment and support they need, and trust them to get the job done.
  • At regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behaviour accordingly.

There it is, nothing more, nothing less, then if that’s the case, why choose to use Agile?

I believe that we as Agilists choose to use it because:

  • We want to support teams as they learn to ‘do more with less’
  • We want to enable competitive advantage through innovative solutions
  • We want to improve the speed of delivery and the quality of deliverables
  • We want to deliver solutions our customers want
  • We want to be value added partners at the table
  • We want to work in a safe to fail environment
  • We want of celebrate our successes ,no matter the size

As Agilists we shouldn’t become swept up in the dogma of process (again remember the manifesto value: ‘Individuals and interactions over processes and tools’) and remain Agile pragmatists, not evangelists.

]]> http://disruptivethought.com/2011/04/%e2%80%98a-rose-by-any-other-name/feed/ 2 One Liner ~ Apr – 27 – 2011 http://disruptivethought.com/2011/04/great-agile-quote-deliver-fre/ http://disruptivethought.com/2011/04/great-agile-quote-deliver-fre/#comments Wed, 27 Apr 2011 02:37:18 +0000 Tony http://disruptivethought.com/2011/04/great-agile-quote-deliver-fre/ Deliver Frequent Releases, Empower Teamwork, Inspect and Adapt, Build Quality In ~ Karl Scotland

]]> http://disruptivethought.com/2011/04/great-agile-quote-deliver-fre/feed/ 0 One Liner ~ Apr – 01 – 2011 http://disruptivethought.com/2011/04/one-liner-apr-%e2%80%93-01-%e2%80%93-2011/ http://disruptivethought.com/2011/04/one-liner-apr-%e2%80%93-01-%e2%80%93-2011/#comments Fri, 01 Apr 2011 01:42:26 +0000 Tony http://disruptivethought.com/?p=308 “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication” ~ Leonardo da Vinci

]]> http://disruptivethought.com/2011/04/one-liner-apr-%e2%80%93-01-%e2%80%93-2011/feed/ 0 One Liner ~ Mar – 23 – 2011 http://disruptivethought.com/2011/03/one-liner-mar-%e2%80%93-23-%e2%80%93-2011/ http://disruptivethought.com/2011/03/one-liner-mar-%e2%80%93-23-%e2%80%93-2011/#comments Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:41:32 +0000 Tony http://disruptivethought.com/?p=298 “Be thankful for your problems. If they were less difficult, someone with less ability might have your job.”~Unknown

]]> http://disruptivethought.com/2011/03/one-liner-mar-%e2%80%93-23-%e2%80%93-2011/feed/ 0 One Liner ~ Mar – 22 – 2011 http://disruptivethought.com/2011/03/one-liner-mar-%e2%80%93-22-%e2%80%93-2011/ http://disruptivethought.com/2011/03/one-liner-mar-%e2%80%93-22-%e2%80%93-2011/#comments Mon, 21 Mar 2011 22:54:01 +0000 Tony http://disruptivethought.com/?p=292 “A short saying often contains much wisdom.” ~ Sophocles

]]> http://disruptivethought.com/2011/03/one-liner-mar-%e2%80%93-22-%e2%80%93-2011/feed/ 0 One Liner ~ Mar – 14 – 2011 http://disruptivethought.com/2011/03/one-liner-mar-14-2011/ http://disruptivethought.com/2011/03/one-liner-mar-14-2011/#comments Sun, 13 Mar 2011 23:30:00 +0000 Tony http://disruptivethought.com/?p=286 “We are all something but none of us is everything” ~  Blaise Pascal

]]> http://disruptivethought.com/2011/03/one-liner-mar-14-2011/feed/ 0 One Liner ~ Mar – 12 – 2011 http://disruptivethought.com/2011/03/one-liner-mar-12-2011/ http://disruptivethought.com/2011/03/one-liner-mar-12-2011/#comments Sat, 12 Mar 2011 12:44:02 +0000 Tony http://disruptivethought.com/?p=277 “Agile methods derive much of their agility by relying on the tacit knowledge embodied in the team, rather than writing the knowledge down in plans.” ~ Barry Boehm

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