{"id":942,"date":"2011-07-26T00:51:26","date_gmt":"2011-07-26T00:51:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/agilepartnership.com\/?p=603"},"modified":"2011-07-26T00:51:26","modified_gmt":"2011-07-26T00:51:26","slug":"is-commitment-dead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/agilepartnership.com\/fr\/is-commitment-dead\/","title":{"rendered":"Is commitment dead?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nThe rate of organizations moving from waterfall to Agile software development practices is staggering! Scrum being the most <\/span>popular Agile framework, development teams are suddenly being ask to commit to delivering a specific amount of functionality every 2 to 4 weeks. The pressure is immense and committing to something in software development, even for a short period, is risky at best. But Scrum was clear \u2013 the team has to commit at the beginning of a Sprint and many used this as the perfect tool to reward, punish and evaluate. Pressure is good. Too much pressure and the whole thing falls apart.<\/span><\/p>\n

Well a lot people will be going though a rough withdrawal period because in the latest Scrum Guide<\/a>, team commitment<\/em> has been replaced with…team forecasting<\/em>. <\/span><\/p>\n

Is commitment dead?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The concept of commitment as been used and abused by management, ScrumMasters and even Agile coaches. I should know! I’m one of them! I figured that by making the burndown highly visible and holding team members accountable to their Sprint planning commitment, that somehow it would get done. Worked for me when I was a developer! Oh ya…I also worked nights and week-ends to get it done. This didn’t only mess up the team’s true velocity but I also wasn’t necessarily getting better at what I do.<\/span><\/p>\n

Asking the team for a guaranteed functionality delivery commitment for a Sprint isn’t only futile but it can also be harmful to a team’s continuous improvement initiatives.
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So is commitment dead? Its misguided use might be coming to an end but the team still needs to commit, engage and take responsibility. It’ll simply be used for what it was intended to in the first place \u2013 that is committing to something deeper and more meaningful. <\/span><\/p>\n

So what can the team commit to? Here’s a hint : At the end of a Sprint Planning meeting, focus away from the specific Stories and tasks and ask the team if they can commit to being Agile!<\/span><\/p>\n

Can the team commit to…<\/span><\/p>\n