Philosophy Behind Agile Project Culture And Compl

VersionOne, a vendor of tools used to help manage projects which use agile methodologies, has published its State of Agile Report for eleven years. Among the questions included in the survey used to create the report is one that asks respondents to identify causes of failure for agile projects. In Version One’s 11thState of Agile Report, the leading cause (identified by 63% of respondents) is “company philosophy or culture at odds with core agile values”. This was the same leading cause cited in the 10th report, but only 46% of respondents listed it. The increase to 63% is significant, and should raise additional concerns about having a culture which supports agile approaches.

In this exercise, students will leverage the knowledge about the philosophy behind agile project management, its principles, best practices and methodologies gained from their experience in the class to consider aspects of organizational culture which would serve as “driving forces” aiding the adoption of agile approaches and those which would serve as “restraining forces” hindering it.

Part 1

Students should obtain and read the case study Jharna Software: The Move To Agile Methods. Consider organizational cultural factors which would they deem likely to help drive the adoption of agile approaches at Jharna Software or restrain it. These forces will be discussed in an online forum environment designated for each team. These should be based on content included in the case study, but if a student has a relevant point to make based on their own experience or other readings included in the course, feel free to address it in the forum.

We will use this analysis to create a “force-field analysis” diagram. The instructor will create the diagram on the basis of the group discussion and will post it on this forum. On the left side of the diagram, the driving forces identified will be listed. The restraining forces will be identified on the right side. This list will be the basis for an individual executive summary assignment, as described below.

The criteria the instructor will use to evaluate student performance with respect to the forum discussion designated for Module 4 of the course is outlined below:

An exemplary score (95 to 100 points) will reflect a collection of forum posts and responses which in the aggregate provide more than three driving or restraining forces for agile adoption at Jharna Software, offers context for each force and more than one direct, meaningful response to either another student’s post or a response by the instructor. Offering context means providing a description or example from personal experience, or from a book, article or website. Forum post content should be clear and understandable to the instructor and other students. A meaningful response to a post is one which either analyzes a post, asks a pointed question or provides a supporting example or counterexample.

An effective score (80 to 94 points) will reflect a collection of forum posts and responses which in the aggregate provide two to three driving or restraining forces for agile adoption at Jharna Software, with context offered for each expectation and one meaningful response to another fellow team member’s post or a response to a comment from either the instructor or another student. The instructor may deduct points if a post is not clear and is not clarified by a follow-up response to either the instructor or another student.

An ineffective score (0 to 79 points) will reflect forum posts which in the aggregate provide no more than a single driving or restraining force for agile adoption at Jharna Software, cannot be understood by the instructor or other students, do not offer context for the expectations provided or do not provide a single response to a fellow team member’s post or a response to a comment made by another student or the instructor.

Part 2

Write a one to two page follow-up written report, which each student will submit as an individual written assignment using the assignment template. [The assignment is labeled as “Culture and Compliance Discussion Summary” on the Assignments page.] Describe the driving and restraining cultural forces which you found to be most meaningful, and explain why you think these forces are worth mentioning, based on the content included in the case study. You may select forces which you introduced into the discussion, or choose ones mentioned by other students. You are also permitted select a relevant work situation of your own experience, or even a project described in a source you select from a trade journal, newspaper or magazine article, book or web-based source to support your arguments. If you do reference a third-party source, please be sure to list its name and provide a link to it if it is available on the Internet or in the Bobst Library’s digital archives.