Agile refers to a set of principles, values, and methods for managing work—originally developed for software development but now broadly applied across management, product development, and organisational change. Agile emphasises flexibility, iterative delivery, collaborative teamwork, and rapid response to change over rigid planning or hierarchical control.
Agile is grounded in the four central values of the Agile Manifesto:
- Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
- Working solutions over comprehensive documentation
- Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
- Responding to change over following a set plan
Projects are broken down into small, manageable phases—commonly called iterations or sprints. Each iteration involves planning, execution, feedback, and adaptation, enabling continuous improvement and ensuring work remains aligned with customer needs and shifting priorities. Agile teams are typically cross-functional and self-organising, empowered to adjust their approach in real time based on ongoing feedback and new information.
Agile Today: Hype, Critique, and Adoption
As Agile principles have spread far beyond software development—into operations, HR, marketing, and enterprise strategy—the term itself has entered the popular business lexicon. It has become associated with pursuing “dynamic” or “adaptive” organisations in the face of volatility and complexity.
This broad adoption has brought Agile through the so-called hype cycle:
- Innovation: Early adoption within software development produced dramatic improvements in speed and customer alignment.
- Hype and Overextension: Organisations rushed to “become agile,” sometimes reducing it to rigid rituals or over-standardised frameworks, losing sight of its core values.
- Disillusionment: Some encountered diminishing returns or “agile theatre”—where process and jargon replaced genuine adaptability. Critics question whether Agile can be universally applied or whether it loses impact when applied formulaically or at scale.
- Mature Use: Today, Agile is moving into a more mature stage. Leading organisations focus less on prescriptive frameworks and more on fostering genuine agile mindsets—prioritising rapid learning, empowerment, and value delivery over box-ticking adherence to process. Agile remains a fundamental strategy for organisations facing uncertainty and complexity, but is most powerful when adapted thoughtfully rather than applied as a one-size-fits-all solution.
Agile Methodologies and Beyond
While frameworks such as Scrum, Kanban, and Lean Agile provide structure, the essence of Agile is flexibility and the relentless pursuit of rapid value delivery and continuous improvement. Its principles inform not just project management, but also how leadership, governance, and organisational culture are shaped.
Leading Strategy Theorist: Jeff Sutherland
Jeff Sutherland is a central figure in the history and modern practice of Agile, particularly through his role in creating the Scrum framework—now one of the most widespread and influential Agile methodologies.
Relationship to Agile
A former US Air Force pilot, software engineer, and management scientist, Sutherland co-created Scrum in the early 1990s as a practical response to the limitations of traditional, linear development processes. Alongside Ken Schwaber, he presented Scrum as a flexible, adaptive framework that allowed teams to focus on rapid delivery and continuous improvement through short sprints, daily stand-ups, and iterative review.
Sutherland was one of the original 17 signatories of the Agile Manifesto in 2001, meaningfully shaping Agile as a global movement. His practical, systems-thinking approach kept the focus on small, empowered teams, feedback loops, and an unrelenting drive towards business value—features that continue to anchor Agile practice in diverse fields.
Biography
- Education: Sutherland holds a Bachelor’s degree from West Point, a Doctorate from the University of Colorado Medical School, and further advanced education in statistics and computer science.
- Career: He served as a fighter pilot in Vietnam, then transitioned to healthcare and software engineering, where his frustration with unresponsive, slow project approaches led to his innovation of Scrum.
- Contributions: Author of Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time (2014), Sutherland has taught, consulted, and led transformations in technology, finance, government, and healthcare worldwide.
Jeff Sutherland’s legacy is his relentless pursuit of speed, adaptability, and learning in dynamic environments. Through his thought leadership and practice, he has anchored Agile not as a dogma, but as a living philosophy—best used as a means to real effectiveness, transparency, and value creation in today’s complex world.
