Even the Best Get Stuck: Transitioning to Agile Developement

For some organizations Agile methodologies like XP, Scrum, and Crystal work well off-the-shelf. However, many companies struggle with these practices and find that lightweight methodologies leave them without support for key aspects of their business. Most end up adopting a hybrid of multiple methodologies mixed in with some old practices. This is risky business. Cherry-picking your favorite parts of Agile methodologies can leave you without enough process and in danger of a code-and-fix mentality that relies on heroics to ship software. Alex Pukinskis looks at different paths taken by organizations as they transition to Agile. He discusses key "process smells" that indicate that a project has gone past agility and is slipping into chaos. Alex offers suggestions to get your foundering Agile transition back on track.

• Patterns for adopting Agile practices
• What happens when the transition to Agile practices gets stuck
• How to customize Agile techniques to fit your context