3 Tips for Effective Leadership in Agile Software Development Teams
Photo by Steve Johnson on Unsplash
The Secret Developer has had some run-ins with advocates for Agile practices. They believe that people pay lip service for the methodology while simultaneously throw sand into the gears.
So, after reading a single paper about what makes effective leadership, The Secret Developer has come up with 3 tips for leaders in Agile.
Background
Agile is all about change. Not only change in the software artefacts that are produced but in how methodologies are implemented in companies. These days it seems to be the go-to for those who want to deliver projects in tech.
“It’s time we faced the truth. Agile isn’t a ‘solution’ for leadership. I know some people who have relegated the basics of project delivery and term it the ‘old way’ but guess what? It’s not time to retire our leaders, it’s time to give them a makeover.”
The Agile Leadership Makeover
Shared Leadership — pair programming, but for leaders
“I’ve advocated for pair programming, it’s truly great. What about if instead of passing leadership responsibility around an Agile team like a hot potato, we shared the responsibility?
Of course, you’d need people who took on responsibility. But that’s an argument for another day.”
A Sense of Belonging
“TBH our whole lives should be based around belonging and purpose. So, our Agile teams should be much the same, a quirky family where everyone’s opinion matters.
Leadership should develop a team environment where we are all invested in project success. You know, engagement?”
Balancing
“Agile should relieve us of the problems that waterfall brought. However, it sometimes feels like we are performing a git merge on two entirely different codebases.
Agile leaders need to be able to navigate and combine approaches and resolve conflict. That is their role.”
Conclusion
So, what does this all mean for us, the foot soldiers in the trenches of software development? Leadership in Agile isn’t about a title or a designated role. It’s a team property, a collective effort where everyone’s pulling their weight. It’s about identifying with the team, taking responsibility, and being sensitive to the cultural dynamics at play.
“This should be a wake-up call for us all. Agile should be better than it is. Leadership isn’t dead, it just has a different look these days. It’s time we recognized that Agile means change, and it is time to change our leadership at the same time.”