The Art of Agile Development, 2nd Edition

Management

AUDIENCE

Managers

We help our teams excel.

Stakeholder demos and roadmaps allow managers to see what their teams are producing. But managers need more. They need to know whether their teams are working effectively and how they can help them succeed.

Unlike the other practices in this book, which are aimed at team members, this practice is for managers. It’s primarily for team-level managers, but the ideas can be applied by middle and senior managers as well. In an environment where teams decide for themselves how work will be done (see “SELF-ORGANIZING TEAMS”), what do managers do, and how do they help their teams excel?

Most organizations use measurement-based management: gathering metrics, asking for reports, and designing rewards to incentivize the right behavior. It’s a time-honored approach to management that stretches back to the invention of the assembly line.

There’s just one problem. It doesn’t work.

MAXIMUM ACCELERATION

“According to this book,” the engineering VP says, holding up a copy of Accelerate,⁵ “high-performance organizations have automated tests. From this point forward, any code you check in must have at least 90% test coverage. This is a mandatory requirement. Anybody who disagrees is free to find another job.”

In the silence, somebody coughs. It’s a long, drawn-out cough that sounds suspiciously like, “Correlation isn’t causation.” The VP glares in your direction.

“Did you have to do that while you were standing next to me, Nelia?” you complain ...