Being Agile in a Waterfall World: A practical guide for complex organizations

by Joseph Flahiff

Every business in every industry today must be nimble/agile. Being Agile takes a critical look at what it means to be nimble/agile in any organization or context.
Joseph goes beyond simply applying a methodology or framework from software development and provides a perspective for being agile in any organization. In his critical analysis of the agile movement Joseph identifies the misuses of the word agile in the software industry that have contributed to confusion and misconceptions. He pushes deep into the principles that support agility in any organization.
Gain a solid foundation in the principles that make agile successful and learn how to apply them to your context.

Genres: Business

202 pages, Paperback

First published October 14, 2014

Reviews

[theory · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first chapter is quite good, a decent palliative against “Agile” the noun, highlighting the need for flexibility. “Agile” is an adjective, like “nimble,” not a noun. Having just finished “Why We Work,” which I loved, I found that much of the POV here resonated.

The rest of the book, however, is a mess. Poorly written, badly in need of copyediting, highly repetitive, and full of jargon impenetrable only to those well-versed in "Agile" the noun. There were some good points, especially in the final chapter, but precious few pointers.

So while I *think* I agree with the author’s main points, and learned a bit about agile practices, I think that most folks would be better off reading some other book that is better written and goes into more detail. Perhaps something that covers each of the five items of leadership briefly covered in the final chapter.

[Liza · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must-read for developing an Agile mindset.