Values, Principles and Essence of the Agile Manifesto

What does the “The Manifesto for Agile Software Development” contain ?

The Manifesto for Agile Software Development also called as the Agile Manifesto contains 4 Values and 12 Principles.

What are the Values from the Agile Manifesto ?

The four Values from the Manifesto for Agile Software Development are as follows –

“We are uncovering better ways of developing software by doing it and helping others do it.

Through this work we have come to value: 

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools 
Working software over comprehensive documentation 
Customer collaboration over contract negotiation 
Responding to change over following a plan 

That is, while there is value in the items on the right, we value the items on the left more.”

What are the Principles from the Agile Manifesto ?

The Principles behind the Agile Manifesto are as follows –

“We follow these principles:

Our highest priority is to satisfy the customer through early and continuous delivery of valuable software.

Welcome changing requirements, even late in development. Agile processes harness change for the customer’s competitive advantage.

Deliver working software frequently, from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, with a preference to the shorter timescale.

Business people and developers must work together daily throughout the project.

Build projects around motivated individuals. Give them the environment and support they need, and trust them to get the job done.

The most efficient and effective method of conveying information to and within a development team is face-to-face conversation.

Working software is the primary measure of progress.

Agile processes promote sustainable development. The sponsors, developers, and users should be able to maintain a constant pace indefinitely. 

Continuous attention to technical excellence and good design enhances agility.

Simplicity–the art of maximizing the amount of work not done–is essential.

The best architectures, requirements, and designs emerge from self-organizing teams.At regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behaviour accordingly.”

What is the essence of Agile Manifesto ?

The Agile Manifesto contains values, principles and ideas that lead to effective teams delivering software products and solutions better.

The Agile Manifesto’s four values help agile teams get into the right mindset.

What do you understand by –“Individual and Interactions over Processes and Tools” ?

Process heavy methodologies for example – Waterfall laid a lot of importance on following Processes and Tools. However Agile brings a different approach.

Within Agile Framework it means the team should focus more on the people in the team and how they collaborate, work and communicate together than on the tools they have and the practices they use.

Also, it is important the team has processes and tools however it is far more important to have a set of motivated and skilled developers working together effectively.