Agile
Adjective · Noun · Development · Origin: 2001
Definitions
Agile is a set of principles and practices for software development that emphasizes iterative delivery, collaboration, flexibility, and responding to change over following a rigid plan. The Agile Manifesto, published in 2001 by seventeen software practitioners, established four core values: individuals and interactions over processes and tools, working software over comprehensive documentation, customer collaboration over contract negotiation, and responding to change over following a plan. Agile is not a single methodology but an umbrella term covering frameworks like Scrum, Kanban, Extreme Programming (XP), and Lean. Common Agile practices include user stories, time-boxed iterations (sprints), daily standups, retrospectives, continuous integration, and pair programming. Agile teams work in small batches, delivering working software frequently (every one to four weeks) and incorporating stakeholder feedback to adjust priorities. This contrasts with the Waterfall model, where requirements, design, implementation, and testing happen in sequential phases. Agile has become the dominant approach to software development and has expanded beyond engineering to product management, marketing, and other disciplines.
In plain English: A way of building software in small, frequent steps rather than one big release — emphasizing flexibility and teamwork. Often talked about more than actually practiced.
Used as an adjective (lowercase) to describe any team or process that can adapt quickly to change, separate from the formal Agile methodology. Many teams are agile without practicing capital-A Agile, and many Agile-certified teams are anything but agile.
Example: 'Forget the ceremonies — I just want us to be agile. Ship small changes, get feedback, adjust. We don't need a Scrum Master for that.'
Source: general usage vs. methodology
Etymology
- 1990s
- Lightweight development methods (Scrum, XP, DSDM) emerge as alternatives to heavyweight waterfall processes.
- 2001
- Seventeen developers meet in Snowbird, Utah and publish the Agile Manifesto, unifying these approaches under one banner.
- 2010s
- Agile goes mainstream in enterprise software. Certifications (CSM, SAFe) proliferate, drawing criticism of 'Agile Industrial Complex.'
- 2020s
- Teams debate whether corporate Agile has drifted from the manifesto's original intent. Post-Agile and Shape Up emerge as alternatives.
Origin Story
Seventeen programmers in a ski lodge rewrote software culture
In February 2001, seventeen software developers met at a ski lodge in Snowbird, Utah. They were frustrated with heavyweight, document-driven development processes (especially the Waterfall model) that were failing spectacularly on real projects.
Over two days, this diverse group — including Kent Beck, Martin Fowler, Robert C. Martin, and Alistair Cockburn — drafted the Agile Manifesto. Its four values (individuals over processes, working software over documentation, customer collaboration over contracts, responding to change over following plans) fit on a single page.
The manifesto spread like wildfire. By the 2010s, 'Agile' had become the dominant approach to software development. Ironically, many of its original signatories have expressed discomfort with what 'Agile' became — a corporate industry of certifications, consultants, and rigid processes that contradicted the manifesto's emphasis on individuals and flexibility.
Coined by: Kent Beck, Martin Fowler, Robert C. Martin, and 14 others
Context: Snowbird ski resort, Utah, February 2001
Fun fact: Several Agile Manifesto signatories have publicly criticized 'Agile Industrial Complex' consultancies, saying they turned a philosophy into a product.