Scott Ambler's presentation critiques the use of frameworks in agile practices, outlining their limitations and advocating for a return to fundamental agile principles focused on practicality. He emphasizes the need for organizations to assess their unique situations, utilize guided continuous improvement, and avoid rigid best practices. The presentation suggests that improvement should be driven by personal observation, critical thinking, and iterative experimentation.

1. #NoFrameworks
How We Can Take Agile Back!
Scott Ambler | Vice President & Chief Scientist, Disciplined Agile
Project Management Institute
October 13, 2020
© Project Management Institute. All rights reserved.

2. Scott Ambler
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
2
pmi.org/disciplined-agile
• Co-creator of Disciplined Agile
• VP & Chief Scientist, Disciplined Agile at PMI
• Thought Leader behind Agile Modeling and Agile
Data methods
• Twitter: @scottwambler
• linkedin.com/in/sambler/

3. Agenda
1. What is a framework?
2. What is the problem with frameworks?
3. How effective are frameworks in practice?
4. What actually works?
5. How can we take agile back?
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 3

4. What is a
Framework?
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 4

5. What is a Framework?
Possible Definitions for a Prescriptive Framework:
Collins: A framework is a particular set of rules, ideas, or beliefs which you use in
order to deal with problems or to what to do.
Cambridge: A system of rules, ideas, or beliefs that is used to plan or decide
something.
MacMillan: A system of rules, laws, agreements, etcetera that establish the way that
something operations in business, politics, or society.
Possible Definition for a Flexible Framework:
MacMillan: A set of principles, ideas, etcetera that you use when you are forming your
decisions and judgments.
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 5

6. The Problem
With Frameworks
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 6

7. Frameworks Define
Principles, Rules and
Beliefs
But what if the rules aren’t applicable?
What happens when your situation
changes?
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
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8. Prescriptive
Frameworks Solve a
Specific Problem
But what if you don’t have that problem?
What happens once you’ve solved that
problem?
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
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9. Frameworks Box You In
But what if the language of the
framework’s limits your ability to discover
other ideas?
What if the framework’s “best practices”
aren’t?
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
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10. Frameworks Are Oversold
What if your organization or team is
already pretty good?
What if your problems aren’t so easy to
solve?
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
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11. Flexible Frameworks
Require You to Use
Judgement and Make
Decisions
But what if you don’t know what your
options are?
What if you don’t know how to
compare options?
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
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12. Frameworks Aren’t Magic
What if your leadership isn’t ready?
What if your staff aren’t sufficiently
skilled?
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
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13. How Effective
Are Frameworks
in Practice?@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 13

14. Adopting a Prescriptive Method/Framework Helps a Bit
Effectiveness
Time
Initial learning curve
Things get better
We hit the limits of the framework (we’re in method prison)
Source: Reifer, D.
Quantitative Analysis of Agile Methods
Survey (2017): Twelve Major Findings
1500+ agile teams at 150 orgs
Agile methods: 7-12% more productive on average
Agile scaling frameworks: 3-5% more productive on
average
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15. What Works in
Practice?
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
Look to the “apex
predators”
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16. Kaizen Loops:
Improve via
Experiments
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
Identify Problem
Identify Potential
Solution(s)
Try the
Solution(s)
Assess
Effectiveness
Adopt What
Works
Abandon What
Doesn’t Work
Share Learnings
Plan
Do
Study
Act
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17. Continuous Improvement via Kaizen Loops
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
Effectiveness
Time
17
17

18. Can we do better?
Actually, can we do a lot better?
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 18

19. Guided Continuous
Improvement (GCI)
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
Identify Problem
Identify Potential
Solution(s)
Try the
Solution(s)
Assess
Effectiveness
Adopt What
Works
Abandon What
Doesn’t Work
Share Learnings
Some experiments fail.
You learn something, but
it’s still a failure.
Failing fast is fine, but
succeeding early is
better.
If we get better at this,
we succeed more often
and we improve faster.
We can do this if we
have access to an
experienced agile coach,
but they’re expensive
and hard to find.
We can do this if we
have access to a process
knowledgebase, like the
Disciplined Agile (DA)
toolkit.
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20. Guided Continuous Improvement (GCI)
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
Effectiveness
Time
Continuous
Improvement
Guided
Continuous
Improvement (GCI)
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21. Let’s work through an example
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
Explore Scope
When producing a solution for our
stakeholders, how do we explore scope?
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22. What issues should we work through when
exploring scope?
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
Explore Scope
How will people use our solution?
What information should we collect?
What business process do it support?
How will people interact with it?
What quality aspects are important?
How will we work with stakeholders?
Do we need to document the requirements?
How will we embrace evolving requirements?
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23. People need potential answers to the
questions
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
Explore Scope Epics
Outcomes
Personas
Stories
Story map
Usage scenarios
Use cases
Use case diagram
Explore
Usage
How will people
use our solution?
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24. Sometimes we discover that some strategies
are better than others
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
Explore Scope
Overview
Light specification
Detailed specification
None
Level of Detail
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25. @scottwambler #NoFrameworks 25
With a simple map,
Disciplined Agile
(DA) makes it easier
to stand on the
shoulders of giants
We call this a
process-goal
diagram
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26. Taking Agile Back
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
How can we
take Agile
back?
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27. Respect
Yourself
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 27

28. Go Back to Fundamentals
Agile was originally about discovering what works in
practice for software development
Agile should be about discovering what works in practice for
our organization in the situation that we face
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29. Be Humble
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 29

30. Be Agnostic
Hint: If you use terms like
Sprint or Scrum Master
you’re not agnostic
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 30

31. #NoBestPractices
Wait…. that’s another presentation
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 31

32. Start Where You Are
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
Effectiveness
Time
Your current WoW
Guided
Continuous
Improvement (GCI)
Start where you are
Do the best that you can in the situation that you face
Improve in place
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33. @scottwambler #NoFrameworks
Observe
(deeply)
Think
(critically)
Experiment
(to learn)
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34. Optimize the Whole
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 34

35. Take Agile Back
Respect Yourself
Go Back to Fundamentals
Be Humble
Be Agnostic
#NoBestPractices
Start Where You Are
Observe, Think, Experiment
Optimize the Whole
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
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36. Thank you!
scott.ambler@pmi.org
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 36

37. About Project Management Institute (PMI)
Project Management Institute (PMI) is the world's leading association
for those who consider project, program or portfolio management their profession.
Founded in 1969, PMI delivers value for more than three million professionals working
in nearly every country in the world through global advocacy, collaboration, education
and research. We advance careers, improve organizational success and further
mature the project management profession through globally-recognized standards,
certifications, communities, resources, tools, academic research, publications,
professional development courses and networking opportunities.
As part of the PMI family, ProjectManagement.com creates online global communities
that deliver more resources, better tools, larger networks and broader perspectives.
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks
3737

38. About Project Management Institute (PMI)
Project Management Institute (PMI)
is the world's leading association for
those who consider project, program or
portfolio management their profession.
Founded in 1969, PMI delivers value
for more than three million professionals
working in nearly every country in the
world through global advocacy,
collaboration, education and research.
We advance careers, improve
organizational success and further
mature the project management
profession through globally-recognized
standards, certifications, communities,
resources, tools, academic research,
publications, professional development
courses and networking opportunities.
As part of the PMI family,
ProjectManagement.com creates online
global communities that deliver more
resources, better tools, larger networks
and broader perspectives.
@scottwambler #NoFrameworks 3838