Blended Agile

Latest Whitepapers | Resource Centre | July 12, 2011

By Leanne Howard
Account Director, Planit Software Testing

ABSTRACT: One methodology, process, or practice does not fit all, adapting to the environment in which you find yourself is what is going to make your testing a success. A mix and match of practices is the best.

I have been reading a lot recently about people getting up in arms about the various Agile frameworks. I have to caveat what I am about to say with the fact that I take a very practical view to Testing and do not have a strong preference for any particular one. I also have a view that if some of the practices from Waterfall, V-model or any of the other methodologies or processes works for you, in the situation in which you find yourself, then use them. The old adage of “IT DEPENDS” I think applies in most instances. Who knows the details of the environment in which you find yourself better than you do?

As you have probably worked out, I am a “who cares?” kind of gal, always willing to buck the system if it proves to be a better way forward. What works for me, works for me. Having said that, please don’t think that I believe that one thing fits all, nor am I afraid to put my hand up and say I don’t know or I don’t understand. In my view, everyone should be learning something new every day if possible. If you don’t try it, you won’t know if it works. Also, if it worked well in one situation, that does not mean that it will work well for all projects or, come to that, work well for a similar project again. There are always some variables that change. I have found the risks or issues which, on first sight seem inconsequential, probably are the ones that you should watch as the big ones, after all, the whole project team is watching.


People over Process
Now I have set the scene, back to Agile specifically. I find it ironic that one of the main principles of Agile is all about collaboration and we find ourselves in the Agile community arguing over which framework is best and if you are not doing all the elements, then you are technically not following it.

Again is it “People over Process” if the people want to use part of a process from here and another from somewhere else, why shouldn’t they? At the end of the day, the team is supposed to be self-managing, so why shouldn’t they choose what is best to suit them? This is an adaptive process, so if the team finds that one of the elements is not working for them, in say their retrospective, then why not stop doing it or try something else? That is not to say that I advocate chopping and changing for change’s sake. Give each process a fair go. In my view, sticking to one process just because it says so in the book or an Agile ‘guru’ has said do it that way is just not right.

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