Agile Manifesto: the "Bible" of agility in product development

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So, how did the Agile Manifesto come about?
Formally, the Agile Manifesto began in 2001, but in reality, many of the techniques and principles have been in place and applied for many years. The most notable example is the “ Toyota Production System ”, which advocates the elimination of waste in order to increase customer value and organizational efficiency. This system is seen as the precursor to Lean thinking, which is the basis of the Agile movement.

Returning to Agile: It was in 2001 that seventeen experienced professionals in the area of ​​software development met at a ski resort in Utah , in the United States of America (during a weekend), with a common goal: "to revolutionize the way the world develops software”.

Despite having diverse backgrounds and defending different and sometimes kuwait whatsapp number database practices, there was something that united them: they were all dissatisfied with the way software development projects were managed at the time: excessive focus on project documentation and development processes that were too rigid, heavy and bureaucratic.

For two days, they discussed, debated and finally reached a consensus on what should be considered Agile software development . Thus emerged the " Manifesto for Agile Software Development " (the Holy Grail of the Agile movement).

This manifesto, although short and simple, contains the secrets of any successful Agile implementation. At first glance, it may seem vague and abstract, but only after its principles are truly understood and put into practice can we have a quality product developed, providing the greatest possible value to the customer, with highly productive and motivated teams.

Here is its content:

By developing and helping others develop software,

we have been discovering better ways to do it.

Through this process we began to value:

Individuals and interactions more than processes and tools

Software works, more than comprehensive documentation

Customer collaboration more than contract negotiation

Responding to change rather than following a plan

That is, although we recognize value in the items on the right,

we value the items on the left more.


Shedding some light on its contents:

• “ Individuals and interactions rather than processes and tools”

The most important thing is people and their relationships/needs/communication – whether at team level or in the relationship with the client.

It is much more productive and effective when the entire team is involved, for example, in the analysis and discussion of requirements and features, rather than just one person responsible (even if they are the world's leading expert on a given subject). All input, even from more junior members or from different areas, can and should contribute to a better product or solution.

We should prioritize the exchange of opinions and points of view as much as possible, because it is in teams that the best solutions always emerge. It is through interaction that difficulties are identified and overcome more easily.

The maxim "Two heads are better than one" also applies to software development . All variants of agile frameworks prioritize communication both within the team and outside it (the rest of the organization and customers).

• “ Working software over comprehensive documentation”

The only true measure of progress in a software development project is having working software. Only by having something working that can be demonstrated, evaluated and criticized can we say that we are making progress in the project.