A time for reflection

Adopting agile practices in an organization can really be frustrating. Our general resistance to change seems to be at the core issue.

As an Agile practitioner I can see the benefits of adopting the agile practices. I must always remember that these practices are really the best practices for doing good product development. A case in point is that the Scrum agile framework can be adopted to any industry that has to deliver products to its customers. How you implement the details of product development in the framework should just reflect the best practices for your profession.

I would make a slight change to the Agile manifesto:

1. Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
2. Working product over comprehensive documentation
3. Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
4. Responding to change over following a plan

Any product that is under development can benefit from the Agile manifesto.

Any business that values the individual worker will thrive. An organization that creates an environment where the workers are creative and enthusiastic will go a long way to producing great products. Remember you employees are not a interchangeable resource but creative individual who are responsible for making you successful.

Having a tangible prototype in the customer hands early help manage the expectations and requirements given to the team. An unpolished quickly released product that demonstrates the core functionality early goes an long way in creating confidence in the working relationship between the customer and the product development team.

You guarantee a successful product when your customer is involved during all phases of product development. We always run into obstacles and challenges when developing a product. Having the customer involved will help us understand what requirements are critical and how we can manage the requirements that cannot be meet.

We are in an ever changing world. While developing a product we must expect change. Unless we can create and release a solution instantly, there is going to be change. We must embrace change and learn how to best manage it.

It is always good to reflect on the basics. Sometimes we get so caught up in the day to day challenges that we forget the why of what we are doing.