First, let’s answer the obvious and important question. Why use Agile in the first place? To start, Agile addresses many of the problems created by other design methodologies. Before agile, all the requirements were provided at the beginning of the project, the scope was defined, and then, the project was launched. It would then continue until it was completed (hopefully) or cancelled. When a business needs change or budget constraints became clear, traditional project methodologies didn’t provide a clear way to deal with those.

Today, things are even more complex and change is coming faster than ever. Agile is the methodology that allows project teams to be adaptable and ‘agile’ in the face of shifting business needs, regulations, even socioeconomic change.

Establish The Reason Your Team is Adopting Agile

It’s clear why Agile is such a desirable methodology. Now it’s time to get into specifics. If you want your team and members of the c-suite to embrace this, you’ll have to present some clear and convincing reasons to them. Specifically, you should identify a set of concrete business goals, then be prepared to show how Agile will help you accomplish those goals better than your current development methods.

For example, one of your stated goals could be that you want to be able to adjust project goals quickly based on changes within your industry and ongoing customer feedback. You could then educate team members about the iterative process of design that allows development projects to be adjusted based upon changing information and feedback.

Identifying Your First Agile Project Contender

The first thing to consider here is balance. Obviously, you want to kick off with something that will be successful. On the other hand, if you choose a project that is so small and so simple that success would be guaranteed no matter what, nobody is going to take your results seriously. You’ll want to choose a project with some complexity, but that isn’t too risky. There should also be a clear business benefit.

Assembling Your Team

If management support and funding are a bit of an issue, consider starting your project with a minimum viable team. This will be a small but capable team, that can take on smaller projects, complete them, and receive feedback quickly.

Otherwise, your team should consist of developers, architects, testers, and others. Ideally, your team will have some Agile evangelists, but also some skeptics. Remember that the idea is to win people over. This won’t happen if the people who need to be convinced are shut out of the process.

Creating and Managing Realistic Expectations

Your first project won’t meet expectations if those expectations don’t line up with reality. It’s important that everyone involved has a clear understanding.

To start, it’s important that business users understand the process and their role in it. They must understand that their participation and collaboration with product owners is absolutely necessary.

Company leadership must understand that all team members are likely new to this method. There are going to be false starts, and most teams will need to get a few sprints under their belts before they really begin to make forward progress.

Next is the scrum master, who may arguably have the toughest role. If possible, get them some formalized agile training. It will be difficult enough for them to provide direction to their team members if they are trying to close their own knowledge gap.

When it comes to the project owner focus on the need to constantly refine the project backlog. Then, emphasize the need to establish very clear metrics for success.

Finally, the development team will need a ‘101’. Walk them through the process so they understand everything in which they are expected to participate and the value of each step.

Choose Your Collaboration and Communication Tools

With Agile projects, there are a lot of people who must communicate clearly, consistently, and regularly for things to end successfully. If there are remote teams or users, this becomes even more complex. It’s imperative that everyone is on the same page when it comes to communication and collaboration tools, and that they understand how to use them. Here are some tools that work well with Agile projects, and are relatively easy to master:

• Dropbox – Ideal for document management and file maintenance
• Slack – An easy to use team chat app to keep everyone communicating
• Asana – To incorporate workflow management into your project
• TrustMyPaper – For tech writing and documentation services
• Skype – A universally used video conferencing tool

Ceremony Planning

Agile projects are full of ceremonies or events. These include:

• Sprint Planning Sessions
• Daily Scrum Meetings
• Retrospection
• Backlog Refinement or Grooming
• Sprint Demonstrations or Reviews
• Release Planning

In order for these events to be successful, and move projects towards success participants must understand what is expected, and what they will be delivering during each ceremony. Education is key so that team members understand when these ceremonies will take place, how long they will last, and have a breakdown of what each event entails.

Developing a Product Backlog

Essentially, a project backlog is a to-do list. It is a prioritized list of fixes to be made, desired features, even infrastructure changes. One of the best ways to understand how to create and use a product backlog is through example. Agile project team members can explore these, then select the best method for their needs.

Conclusion: The First Sprint

If all other preparation work has been done, the first sprint should meet expectations. The key is ensuring that everyone has the resources they need, that all the tools are in place, and that everyone has been adequately trained in the methodology. This isn’t to say that the first sprint won’t be problem free. Instead, encountering problems is something that absolutely should be expected. If the first sprint results in team members learning the process and being better prepared to execute the next round more successfully, that’s a clear success. The subsequent sprints can be used to improve the process.