Learning Agile: Understanding Scrum, XP, Lean, and Kanban

by Andrew Stellman, Jennifer Greene

Overview

Learning Agile is a comprehensive guide to the most popular agile methods, written in a light and engaging style that makes it easy for you to learn.

Agile has revolutionized the way teams approach software development, but with dozens of agile methodologies to choose from, the decision to "go agile" can be tricky. This practical book helps you sort it out, first by grounding you in agile's underlying principles, then by describing four specific—and well-used—agile methods: Scrum, extreme programming (XP), Lean, and Kanban.

Each method focuses on a different area of development, but they all aim to change your team's mindset—from individuals who simply follow a plan to a cohesive group that makes decisions together. Whether you're considering agile for the first time, or trying it again, you'll learn how to choose a method that best fits your team and your company.

• Understand the purpose behind agile's core values and principles
• Learn Scrum's emphasis on project management, self-organization, and collective commitment
• Focus on software design and architecture with XP practices such as test-first and pair programming
• Use Lean thinking to empower your team, eliminate waste, and deliver software fast
• Learn how Kanban's practices help you deliver great software by managing flow
• Adopt agile practices and principles with an agile coach

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781449331924
Publisher:	O'Reilly Media, Incorporated
Publication date:	11/30/2014
Pages:	417
Sales rank:	1,093,392
Product dimensions:	6.90(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Andrew Stellman is a developer, architect, speaker, agile coach, project manager, and expert in building better software. He has over two decades of professional experience building software, and has architected large-scale real-time back end systems, managed large international software teams, been a Vice President at a major investment bank, and consulted for companies, schools, and corporations, including Microsoft, the National Bureau of Economic Research, Bank of America, Notre Dame, and MIT. He's had the privilege of working with some pretty amazing programmers during that time, and likes to think that he's learned a few things from them.

Jennifer Greene is an agile coach, development manager, business analyst, project manager, tester, speaker, and authority on software engineering practices and principles. She's been building software for over twenty years in many different domains including media, finance, and IT consulting. She's worked with teams of excellent developers and testers to tackle tough technical problems and focused her career on finding and fixing the habitual process issues that crop up along the way.

Table of Contents

Foreword xiii

Preface xv

1 Learning Agile 1

What Is Agile? 2

Who Should Read This Book 7

Our Goals for This Book 8

Getting Agile into Your Brain by Any Means Necessary 8

How This Book Is Structured 12

2 Understanding Agile Values 15

A Team Lead, Architect, and Project Manager Walk into a Bar… 16

No Silver Bullet 19

Agile to the Rescue! (Right?) 22

A Fractured Perspective 26

The Agile Manifesto Helps Teams See the Purpose Behind Each Practice 33

Understanding the Elephant 39

Where to Start with a New Methodology 45

3 The Agile Principles 51

The 12 Principles of Agile Software 52

The Customer Is Always Right…Right? 53

Delivering the Project 55

Communicating and Working Together 64

Project Execution-Moving the Project Along 74

Constantly Improving the Project and the Team 78

The Agile Project: Bringing All the Principles Together 81

4 Scrum and Self-Organizing Teams 87

The Rules of Scrum 89

Act I I Can Haz Scrum? 92

Everyone on a Scrum Team Owns the Project 94

Act II Status Updates Are for Social Networks! 109

The Whole Team Uses the Daily Scrum 110

Act III Sprinting into a Wall 119

Sprints, Planning, and Retrospectives 120

Act IV Dog Catches Car 129

5 Scrum Planning and Collective Commitment 137

Act V Not Quite Expecting the Unexpected 138

User Stories, Velocity, and Generally Accepted Scrum Practices 140

Act VI Victory Lap 159

Scrum Values Revisited 160

6 XP and Embracing Change 175

Act I Going into Overtime 176

The Primary Practices of XP 178

Act II The Game Plan Changed, but Were Still Losing 187

The XP Values Help the Team Change Their Mindset 189

An Effective Mindset Starts with the XP Values 195

Act III The Momentum Shifts 200

Understanding the XP Principles Helps You Embrace Change 201

7 XP, Simplicity, and Incremental Design 219

Act IV Going into Overtime, Part 2: Second Overtime 220

Code and Design 222

Make Code and Design Decisions at the Last Responsible Moment 237

Incremental Design and the Holistic XP Practices 245

Act V Final Score 260

8 Lean, Eliminating Waste, and Seeing the Whole 269

Lean Thinking 270

Act I Just One More Thing… 279

Creating Heroes and Magical Thinking 280

Eliminate Waste 283

Gain a Deeper Understanding of the Product 288

Deliver As Fast As Possible 295

9 Kanban, Flow, and Constantly Improving 315

Act II Playing Catch-Up 317

The Principles of Kanban 318

Improving Your Process with Kanban 325

Measure and Manage Flow 339

Emergent Behavior with Kanban 358

10 The Agile Coach 369

Act III Just One More Thing (Again?!)… 371

Coaches Understand Why People Don't Always Want to Change 371

Coaches Understand How People Learn 376

Coaches Understand What Makes a Methodology Work 380

The Principles of Coaching 382

Index 387