Does Agile Really Have Staying Power?
“Agile is here to stay.”
“Agile is a fad with an enthusiastic legion of followers who will dwindle over time.”
We’ve heard both arguments over the lifespan of this young, popular methodology. It’s crazy to think just how far we’ve come since the term agile was introduced into software development back in 2001, as it seems like just about every company is incorporating these faster, more collaborative techniques into development and testing teams.
But Steve Denning, a contributor at Forbes, continues to ask the all-important question: Is agile just another management fad? Will there be another sweeping change that occurs in the next five years that replaces it? In his most recent piece, Denning highlights the twentieth century’s trendy management theme of team spirit. The “we’re all in this together” notion was pervasive, but the actual results were less than extraordinary.
Can agile be different? In many ways, it already is. Team-building as a means to employee commitment hasn’t always produced results, but agile’s use of teams and collaboration is much more practical than what we’ve seen in the past. Instead of using hollow buzzwords, agile’s language is pragmatic and easily applicable to software lifecycles. “Sprints,” “standups,” and the concept of “done” are well-defined and lead to action.
Agile is also very versatile. Sure, it’s meant to be used for software development, but why can’t you take these same lessons and apply them to other industries? Whether you’re writing for an online news publication or selling furniture at a corner store, daily standup meetings and Scrum practices can benefit productivity.
No matter the industry, change isn’t always easy to cope with. If your team isn’t agile and you have no desire to adopt that structure, it can be easy to simply ignore the trend and even brush it off as, once again, a fad. However, by doing so, you might be missing a massive opportunity not only to understand the new direction of your industry, but to lead it.
The introduction of fresh, sweeping methodologies often disrupts an industry, and it’s during this formative period when you can decide what something like agile really means.
Is agile a fad? From everything we’ve seen thus far, dividing tasks into short phases and testing throughout the process seems to have proven both effective and sustainable. So instead of closing your business blinds and letting agile pass you by, now might just be the best time to adopt agile—and to define its future.
