Moving from a plan driven culture to agile development

ABSTRACT

Plan driven cultures are characterized by a strong belief in the plannability and predictability of software development projects. The SEI-CMM, software process improvement initiatives, and software metrics programs are some of the hallmarks of this school of thought. The more recent trend towards agile development places the emphasis on constantly adapting to a project's changing goals rather than on detailed upfront planning. The majority of reports from pracitioners of agile development are positive and confirm the advantages of this approach. However, moving from a plan driven culture to agile development is not easy. Making the transition requires changes to many established practices and may even touch core values held by stakeholders. Areas affected are requirements and change management, user involvement, willingness to take on responsibility, contract management, and the ability to live with many uncertainties. This talk looks at what it takes to make the transition and presents lessons learned from organizations and projects which have successfully completed the switch to agile development.

INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  D. Software
  D.2 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING
      D.2.9 Management
          Subjects: Life cycle

Additional Classification:
  D. Software
  D.2 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING
      D.2.9 Management
          Subjects: Software process models (e.g., CMM, ISO, PSP); Programming teams

General Terms:
Human Factors, Management

Keywords:
agile development methods, human factors in changing development practices