Scrum is one of the biggest process invention but it does not guarantee success. Even creators of Scrum accept that more than half of the Scrum implementation does not go well. Why is that? Scrum is critical but what is more critical than Scrum? Moving from waterfall model to Scrum is a welcoming change that makes people think in the right direction. So what is the right direction?
If a person with ongoing back pain visits the doctor then doctor certainly suggests to do exercises or yoga to make body agile enough to get rid of pains. If that person is wise like me then he starts doing exercises and pain disappears. Exercises don't cure pain overnight. It requires a regular routine. Isn't it common to see pain appear again when exercises are stopped?
In this example "routine is Scrum" and "exercises are agility". A healthy person needs routine as well as exercises. Similarly, a good projects or organizations need both Scrum as well Agility.
Let's extend our example little further and review the root cause of the pain. Main reason behind this person's pain is routine of sitting in a chair with bad posture for a long time. Similarly, root cause for failed Scrum project is routine of not practicing agility for a long time.
In a nutshell, Scrum forces people to think in the right direction i.e. agility. As you can understand, routine is important but exercises are critical. Hence, Agility is more critical than Scrum. The following video depicts relationship of Scrum and Agility in great details with an creative analogy.Here are the key learning objectives:
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What makes Scrum successful?
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Are you failing because you are overdoing Scrum?
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When not to use Scrum?
Presentation slides are available
here
in the pdf format.
In 1930s, automobile industry introduced agile in the form of lean manufacturing. With its growing popularity, other industry segments started realizing that agile principles are not limited to any industry segment or functional group. Over the past decade, software industry has also adopted agile principles and it has become a popular product development methodology. Core of agile is to structure organizations in such a way that they can embrace change and adapt quickly to service the customers in their ever changing needs. However, taking a big bang approach to agile is not a viable option for many organizations, as most successful adoptions of agile are tailored to the strengths and limitations of the specific organization.
It is easy to deviate from the goals we set. If you are on a agile journey then take a step back and try to validate if you are going on a right track. May be you are too busy in implementing a process that is not really agile. It doesn't hurt to validate. Do you know types of agility? What are agility drills? How can agility drills help you in successfully implementing strategy?
Over the last decade, Agile has emerged as a charming leader and a shining star. More and more teams are interested in Agile but they are not sure how to get there. Taking a big bang approach to Agile is not a viable option for most of the organizations. Most successful partnerships with Agile are tailored to the strengths and limitations of the organization. This article is aimed at providing an innovative approach for Agile partnering with real life story.
