The Agile Mindset

Rob Sanchez

In Agile practices, the mindset matters most. Processes followed without said mindset can provide an illusion of Agility even if they increase the value created by teams. When the mindset is embraced, value created can be optimized. But what is the Agile mindset? Let’s dig into things to see how we can all work to become more Agile in our teams and organizations, why it matters, and how to stay on the path.

The overall goal of the Agile mindset is to deliver quick, consistent, and effortless value to customers. Sounds great right? It’s a way to get work done. Any work can be done with Agility, but complex work tends to benefit from it the most like software development, which is where many of the tools and additional frameworks of Agile have evolved like Scrum. Agile work is best carried out by small self-organizing teams. These teams work together in an iterative process called a sprint. These cycles of two weeks are used to complete small and deliverable increments of value for customers. These “increments of value” can be new features, bug fixes, system updates, etc. Team size should follow the “Two Pizza Rule” where everyone on the team could be fed by two standard pizzas, ~8-10 people. The organizational approach to Agile includes creating a network of these teams.

The Agile mindset includes 4 values and 12 principles.

Values
- Individuals and Interactions over processes and tools
- Working software over comprehensive documentation
- Customer Collaboration over contract negotiation
- Responding to Change over following a plan

The Agile Manifesto expands on the values above to explain that there is value to be found in the items on the right, just not as much as those on the left. The people and the teams are the most important piece of Agile as they create the second most important element, working software. Customer collaboration allows the product to improve while improving client and community relationships. Responding to change is critical in Agile as each sprint provides an opportunity to reflect and respond to change. An ongoing inspection and adaptation process allows individuals, teams and organizations to continue to improve in any direction they like.

Principles
1. Customer satisfaction through the continuous delivery of value is the highest priority.
2. Change is welcome, expected and desired.
3. Deliver working software as fast and frequently as possible.
4. Create complete teams including all of the roles needed for the work.
5. Give motivated individuals the environment to thrive and trust them to get the job done.
6. Keep team meetings face to face when possible (on-site or remote).
7. Progress should be measured through working software.
8. Produce value at a sustainable pace for the team and stakeholders.
9. Pay attention to technical craftsmanship and good design in all actions.
10. Keep it simple. Maximize the work not done.
11. Self-organizing teams should be responsible for architecture, requirements and designs.
12. Inspect and adapt processes regularly as a team to become more effective.

These principles could each be an article of their own, but you can see Agile isn’t messing around in assigning value and specifying what’s important. This is done early and should be revisited often to keep teams and organizations moving in the right direction. Every level of an organization should embrace these for the whole thing to work.

Values and Principles are great and all, but what about that central human element, the individual and the team? That’s where the mindset brings it all together. Mindsets are a way of being, guidelines for how we view the world and act within it both in and out of the office. There’s a gross oversimplification of mindsets that categorizes two types, the fixed mindset and the growth mindset. While there are many more ways of thinking about mindset, this generalization helps to think about Agile because we're after that growth mindset while optimizing customer value! Embracing challenges, learning, working and failing forward is the objective. Building teams where this is encouraged is valuable not only for the product and the work being done but also for the individuals themselves.

Psychological Safety on teams was found to be the most important factors for success in Google’s project Aristotle. This is the belief that one can speak up without any risks. An Agile mindset brings this psychological safety into the work where it can build from an individual to a team and even impact the culture of the company. This Agility leads to rapid changes and improvement that can create unplanned competitive advantages for individuals and companies. No amount of planning will perfectly prepare or predict every outcome. Agility however can allow you to adapt to any situation or change when needed while taking care of your people.

For individuals, the Agility mindset can help to accomplish small goals or tackle major life obstacles. For teams and organizations in the workplace, Agility can guide and shape culture while creating constant value. Like everything else it requires practice! Think about your actions this next week and the problems you or your teams are facing. Are you embracing Agility and building the mindset required?

For more articles on Agile, see future Apt 113 posts. If you’re interested in working on Agile or Scrum teams, reach out for career or certification advice.