There are certain things about the Agile framework that I appreciate—most have to do with the values & principles at the heart of the methodologies. When I first started practicing Agile, I didn't fully understand why we did things the way we did but later, I not only learned to understand why but also found that the 'whys' mattered more than the 'whats' and 'hows.'
Have you ever been on a highly-functioning Agile team? It's amazing and there's just nothing like it. If you ever work on one or with one, I swear you'll never look back. Mature teams practice the Agile values & principles—that's what makes them so awesome.
Because I have an attachment to these values, I find myself enamored by those who share the same. When I read books, scan blogs, and attend talks, I listen for keywords, for passion, and for the same interpretations I have. I get inspired by these people and sometimes I even feel like a groupie.
So, how does this related to Agile 2013? Conference sessions can be hit-or-miss. The topic summary might sound interesting but the content itself isn't, isn't as relevant as you thought it would be, or the presenter is just bad. Sometimes you have to 'vote with your feet' and find something else. This happened to me in my second session, "Complex Projects Aren't Plannable but Controllable" so I left about 15 minutes into it. Luckily, I had scanned the schedule and marked back-up sessions to attend. #2 on my list? One of my Agile crushes: Mike Cohn.
The thing about attending session and lectures by my Agile crushes is that I've pretty much already heard what they have to say. Mike Cohn's presentation on "Agile Planning" wasn't new content to me but sometimes it's good to get back to the basics—play in the sandlot, if you will.
Curious who my crushes are?
- Kent Beck
- Jeff Patton
- Mike Cohn
- Ken Schwaber
- Dean Leffingwell
- Ron Jeffries
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