LinkedIn recently became a bad place for all things related to „Agile.“ At least, this is what I see in my bubble. There might be other topics, but as my contacts are mainly from this industry, I just see th0se. And what do I mean when I call it a s*h*? I’m missing fundamental good discussions over there. The overuse of “ war terminology“ makes it even worse. Hei, people, when there are a lot of real wars going on in our world today we should stop using it. For the sake of our good mood. Thank You.
In my recent interviews, I was asked why and what I like about being an Agile Team Coach, and this just sums it up pretty well.In my recent interviews, I heard a lot about why companies are working in an „agile“ way. The most heard answer: „Responding quickly to change“
Jeixxx makes my inner self, when I hear this and I always ask: And, what else?
I think it is more than fair to release such a great comment out of the bubble there and publish it on the blog. It reflects what I love about my job and why I love working in an agile manner. I hope you don’t mind, Casandra Minichiella, that I gave your wise words a new home outside the LinkedIn platform!?
It shows the differences between classic project management and interactive ways of working –> „We put too much emphasis on the project or the work itself, we forget that people are the ones who do the work. In my experiences, project management is/was all about the work itself with little regard to the „human“ side of the equation and sometimes even without considering what an end user would want.“
starts here:
5 Reasons Why Agile is Not Project Management.
Here are 5 reasons why ‚Agile‘ is not a project management method, despite what your polyester-loving, Gantt chart, spreadsheet-obsessed manager <or other> might think:
Before you go any further, if your office is still filled with fax machines and people are still wearing beepers, this article is not for you.
1. Core Principles
Agile is built on a set of values and principles that prioritize collaboration, flexibility, and adaptability.
It’s not about ticking off tasks on a checklist—it’s about creating a culture where ‚continuous improvement‘ isn’t just a corporate buzzword, but something that actually happens.
If you’re still wondering if Agile is just project management, that’s like asking if an 8-Track is the same as Spotify playlist.
Sure, they both contain music, but that’s where the similarities end.
2. Team-Centric
Agile is all about the PEOPLE.
No, not ‚resources‘ or ‚human capital’—real, live people who have thoughts, feelings, and occasionally bring cake to the office.
Agile emphasizes cross-functional teams that are self-organized, which means there’s less micromanagement and more autonomy.
Give people the space and time to do their thing, please. I promise you they will go from “order takers” to high-performers in no time.
They might even pick a superhero-themed team name—because why not? Trust me, they don’t need capes, they just need autonomy, mastery, purpose and an occasional slice of cake.
3. Iterative Development
Agile’s approach to development is like upgrading from a rotary phone to a smartphone, you get quick, incremental updates instead of waiting forever for the next major change.
Unlike a 1970s-waterfall project management style that relies on a linear, sequential process, Agile embraces incremental delivery, adaptability and flexibility which are all necessary for speed and efficiency.
4. Customer Collaboration
Agile has this insane idea that customers should be the ones to describe what they want. Shocking, I know.
It’s not just about delivering what was asked for; it’s about engaging with customers often to ensure what is being delivered is what they actually want!
Traditional project management is more like a game of telephone—by the time you get to the final product, it’s miles away from what anyone wanted.
(Points to Ponder: It’s called a „User Story“ for a reason.)
5. Embracing Change
Agile embraces change like a cat embraces a scratching post (or your couch) —enthusiastically.
It acknowledges that requirements will evolve, because let’s face it, nothing stays the same for long (except mom’s hairstyle).
Meanwhile, traditional project management treats change like an uninvited ex to your wedding – awkward, disruptive and definitely not part of the plan.
But hey, if you’re into watching chaos unfold when things go sideways, or if you thrive on 24/7 war room marathons (shudder) to fix the unfixable, then by all means, stick with the old way.
Otherwise, welcome to reality (and 2024)!
If you’re interested in experiencing the benefits of Agile ways of working, I encourage you to explore Agile frameworks like Scrum, Kanban, or Lean – just to name a few.
I would also encourage taking a pragmatic approach to implementing change and please, engage an experienced Agile Coach (preferably one who can offer occasional wit, humor and sarcasm).
That’s it. No more words are necessary, right?
Further reading and totally related to this topic, here is an article about the qualities of a great coach. It is all about our own biases towards actions, learning and more. From Tanner Wortham:
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