Here we've reproduced the Manifesto for Agile Software Development in its entirety -- it is as relevant today as it was revolutionary in 2001 and serves as the foundation for all of the practices in this playbook. Below are our reflections on the Manifesto's four values. You'll see these values, and the principles behind them, referenced throughout the playbook.
Organizations are made of people---and, we must enable those people to communicate and collaborate without friction. Processes and tools will always have their place, but they should only be used to solve specific communication challenges.
We learn the most by putting working product in the hands of users and getting feedback. Some level of documentation may always be necessary, but we must also understand its purpose and value. Extensive documentation can weigh us down and box us in, so we seek to deliver the minimal amount of content that still meets the need.
Contracts are often a necessity, but we should strive to make contracts that optimize for collaboration and discovery through regular delivery. Build in high-level program objectives along with the expectation of shared collaboration and commitment. For agile delivery to work, we must all work together.
Change generally happens for a reason: requirements change because the mission changed. Acceptance criteria change because we got feedback from our users. The priorities change because we learned something about our competitors. If we are to rise to meet those needs, we have to accept that change is to be expected and embraced.
Plans are important: they help us to know where we think we are going and what we think we need to take us there. But, they are not mystical future-tellers that describe our destiny. We should plan, plan, and re-plan, and we should build plans that are flexible and adaptable.
We are uncovering better ways of developing software by doing it and helping others do it. Through this work, we have come to value:
Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
Working software over comprehensive documentation
Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
Responding to change over following a plan
That is, while there is value in the items on the right, we value the items on the left more.
Kent Beck, Mike Beedle, Arie van Bennekum, Alistair Cockburn, Ward Cunningham, Martin Fowler, James Grenning, Jim Highsmith, Andrew Hunt, Ron Jeffries, Jon Kern, Brian Marick, Robert C. Martin, Steve Mellor, Ken Schwaber, Jeff Sutherland, Dave Thomas
We follow these principles:
Our highest priority is to satisfy the customer through early and continuous delivery of valuable software.
Welcome changing requirements, even late in development. Agile processes harness change for the customer's competitive advantage.
Deliver working software frequently, from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, with a preference for the shorter timescale.
Business people and developers must work together daily throughout the project.
Build projects around motivated individuals. Give them the environment and support they need, and trust them to get the job done.
The most efficient and effective method of conveying information to and within a development team is face-to-face conversation.
Working software/solutions is the primary measure of progress.
Agile processes promote sustainable development. The sponsors, developers, and users should be able to maintain a constant pace indefinitely.
Continuous attention to technical excellence and good design enhances agility.
Simplicity----the art of maximizing the amount of work not done----is essential.
The best architectures, requirements, and designs emerge from self-organizing teams.
At regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behavior accordingly.