Let me tell you a short story about how I become familiar with agile methodology. About 5 years ago I was a mobile developer in a small office (less than 10 people) and I was NOT happy because of some simple annoying things which happened in our office as a routine.
I had a manager who had not any technical background and we all had a hard time when it came to communication. We had very restricted rules about the working hours which was 8~17, not one minute more or less. I always wondered how to manage to be creative in this exact time, due to my movie addiction habit, most of the time I was awake till 2AM and so I was not effective early in the morning.
“Can I come late but stay more? I promise to deliver what planned for me at the right time.”, but the answer was always “NO, this is the rule and it is for everyone”. Another thing which made me crazy was the “ad hoc” project which came to our manager mind and we had to stop our work (even if we were in the middle of code) and made some prototype for him and wish for the life of project because most of the time they failed at the early steps of agreement. This concept switch and not having a defined plan for my next day was always a real pain in ass so I quite.
I was looking for a job and by chance one of my friends helped me for a job interview in a big company -Working there is like a dream for many- and this was the first time I heard the word Agile methodology. The interviewer asked me about how much I know about agile, I told the truth: “Nothing“. That night I spent hours searching and reading about this working methodology, “WOW!” was the only word that came to my mind after every sentence. In this type of working I had not to be at the office at an exact time or being punished for being late at work. I could work whenever I want and I am just responsible for what I commit. No one can cancel my work when I am in the middle of that and at least for one sprint (iteration) I can plan for myself. “Could I be more happy?“
When I started to work at that office, I was only worried about one thing: “If there be no rule to limit and monitor developer’s works, how can the office be sure that all the people perform their best?” But day after day I figure out as much as I have more autonomy, I can perform better, be more effective and this situation leads to “Love my job“, and I do anything for my love!!!
That is the story of how I became familiar with agility and started to search and read more about this gift for all the workers. I hope the business owners also figure the importance and effect of this working methodology soon. So, here I am, an agile coach in a big office with about 100 staff and I can see the change we made day by day and this blog is the place I want to share all the experiences we had and their effects.