Agile: It’s not about software (or scrum)

Agile is about empathy for a person in a certain situation, with a certain need. It is a desire to meet that need, when needed.

It is about putting your people, regardless of role, first. Before the customer, before financial gain. Agile is to care that you and everyone else are safe, feel safe and make others feel safe. It is about the team over the individual hero.

Heroes become heroes because someone leaves them alone, and force them to step up. Heroes need to feel safe too.

Heroes need to feel safe too.

Agile is to focus on the product or the service you provide, and enable your people to create and improve it as long as it exists. This means you no longer fund projects. You now fund people, and their ability to meet needs.

Agile is about doing the right thing, and doing it right. It is about embracing uncertainty, and admitting that you do not know. You do not know, but you do learn. You take small steps in each direction, so that taking a step back is not too difficult. You do not make assumptions. You try, and see what happens. Sometimes what happens, is not what you expected. That is okay. Yoda said There is no try. Yes there is.

Yoda said There is no try. Yes there is.

Agile is about delivery of value, early and often. It is about feedback that helps you understand how valuable your delivery was. How you can make it even more valuable in the future.

Agile is about building quality in. Agile is about building the ability to respond to change. Yes, change will happen. Yes, to you too.

It is all of the above and a whole lot more. Oh, and nothing about this is specific to software development.

You can not do any of this on the team level alone.

Finally, it is all relevant to you. Yes, even if you are a janitor. Yes, definitely if you are a CEO. Yes.

Also check out “I’m a manager, why should I care about agile software development?”

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