What Does an Agile Mindset Mean Now? Get Out of the Box

When I first encountered Agile, I didn’t like it. It represented change at a level I wasn’t willing to accept. But ever since, I’ve seen the agile mindset as a gift, and what it taught me matters more now than it ever has.

How I found the agile mindset

I didn’t get Agile because it suddenly made sense. I got it because I could see what I could do with it…help teams, and help customers get something they really wanted that was elusive.

Agile broke us out of the box of 18 months and $5 million before we saw any result, and a lot of those results were just wrong. Then over the years, it became more process-laden, more rules-based, more permission-focused. It put us back in the box. And it kind of sucked.

When the wheels came off the industry, I realized we hadn’t just lost the trust of the people paying us. I don’t think we ever had it. They were waiting for their moment to say, we understand what a project manager is. Go do that. Get back in the box.

Work changed, and people are pushing back

There’s been more change in the past 7 years than I can remember in my entire life. People are tired. Frustrated. Something feels wrong. I was there when desktop computers, the internet and cell phones changed work. But this is the first time I’ve seen people say enough is enough.

Look at return to office. I’ve employed people remotely for years, and there is no difference. I set an expectation, a deadline and a budget, and they hit it. I didn’t care if they worked evenings or weekends, 20 minutes at a time. But somebody decided that if you can’t see them, you can’t trust them, and the employer took back the dominant hand.

Then look at AI. A recruiter can use it to screen your resume, even interview you. But use it to tailor your resume when hundreds of people are competing for one job? Bad, bad employee. Back in the box you go. That’s made AI feel like it’s there to control the people, maybe even to screw them.

“You can’t put me in a box”

Last week I registered someone into Forge Genesis, and they said something I can’t shake. You can’t put me in a box.

That’s where people are. You’ll make this much and you won’t complain. You’ll fill this role description. Or you’re out on the street.