Information Technology Dark Side

I have seen a great deal of more vigorous discussion lately along the lines of planning and discipline vs agile approaches. It would seem that the skeptics among us have recovered from the initial shock and awe of the Agile invasion and have begun to form their arguments to counter the variety of Agile points that have been espoused over the last several years.

So, here we are with the PiMPs and the Agilistas circling each other like squawling cats outside my bedroom window; ready to fight over which one of them gets to pee on my bushes.

If you belong to either of these camps, let me ask you a question. “Which tool is better for digging, a pick or a shovel?”

If you have not done much digging, you might immediately answer, “a shovel.” Ahh, yes. A good answer. Shovels are widely available and easily understood. Almost everybody already has one and basically knows how to use it. Nobody but a child or a raging lunatic would rather dig by hand than use a shovel.

How much digging with your shovel have you really done, though? Just for odd jobs around the yard? Or, are you a journeyman digger? Somebody who has dug holes in hundreds of places, in all kinds of dirt, is a journeyman digger. They make a living by knowing how to dig.

Journeyman diggers own more than a shovel. They own a pick, too. That is because they know that there are some digging jobs where shovels are terribly hard to use by themselves. For example, digging a trench in ground that is hard-baked clay is maddening difficult with just a shovel. If, however, you go through and swing into the clay with a pick, it will break apart. Of course, then you have to switch over to the shovel to lift the broken clay up and out. Remember, the pick was not designed for moving dirt, just breaking it up.

Switching tools a bit of a pain, but using both tools together is way better than trying to use either of them alone. The journeymen diggers know this. There are, in fact, many more digging tools than just a pick and a shovel, and for the journeymen, it is always very apparent which tool is right for which part of any digging job they need to do. You never hear experienced diggers say, “Picks are stupid. I always just use my shovel.” You also don’t hear experienced diggers say, “No, I’m not going to dig that; that type of digging requires a pick. I have a pick, but I don’t like to use it.”

Picks and shovels are two simple tools you can use to do the simple task of digging. In that context, the discussion makes perfect sense; it is obvious. But if that’s the case, why do I keep seeing experienced project managers saying similarly disparaging things about Agile?

Agile project management methods and traditional project management methods are two different sets of tools you can use to do the very complex task of managing a project. Which principles and practices are better depend on the project you’re faced with. I would not use burn down charts to plan/manage a wedding any more than I would use hedge timmers to mow my lawn. I would not use a gantt chart to plan/manage air traffic control any more than I would use a lawn mower to trim my bushes. Although, come to think of it, I do have some bushes which smell like cat pee and the lawn mower might work well for those…but I digress.

If you are a professional project manager, do not bury your head in the sand by telling yourself that Agile is stupid. And, if you’ve learned what Agile is, do not shy away from the projects where it fits. Where does it fit? It fits in projects where the customer is giving you “speculations” instead of “specifications”. It fits where a high degree of fluidity (or change) is required (or expected). It fits where a high degree of novelty exists or where “time to value” is critical or where fine-grained ROI is desirable. In other words, it fits in a lot of today’s projects. Do these kinds of projects require that you throw the PMBOK out the window? No. Remember that Agile came to life in the context of PMBOK and CMM and all manner of traditional project management tools and approaches. Agile assumes that you already know those tools.

Be a journeyman PM! Learn all the tools of your trade that are available to you. They are all effective to varying degrees. You just have to understand the contexts where they fit and how to use them properly. Agile is the pick to the traditionalists’ shovel. Once you know how to use both, you won’t be able to imagine going back to using just one or the other.

– Tate Stuntz

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