Individuals and Interactions over Processes and Tools

Part 1 of a four-part series on the values of the Agile Manifesto, first published on LinkedIn.

The first statement of the Agile Manifesto is interesting, and counter-intuitive: individuals and interactions should be valued more than processes and tools. In short, people over processes. When people and processes conflict, choose people. Spend more energy on people and less on processes.

It’s counter-intuitive because many of the biggest organisations rely on processes more than people, and with good reason. Processes are rigid, reliable and predictable. People make mistakes. That’s what makes putting people first so revolutionary.

Two ways to ship the same product

Picture a 10-person startup building a product. At the top level, there are two ways to get it released.

Option one: let the team work as it wishes. The CEO focuses on keeping morale high. Everyone knows the motivation behind the product, and the team makes the decisions while brainstorming the specifications, which makes them more attached to the product and more accountable for it. The CEO doesn’t interfere with the processes the team follows or the tools it uses.

Option two: define everything up front. The CEO sets out a clear specification document and timelines. Their energy goes into the right specifications, the right processes and clear communication. The tools and processes are predefined, and the team becomes less relevant than the process. The sense of belonging drops.

Which is better?

The second option is probably more reliable. Accountability and control sit with the CEO, which makes sense, since the CEO carries the most risk. An experienced product owner may produce a more feasible product, and the team only has to focus on delivering its own chunk of work.

The first option is risky at best. There’s little precedent to follow, control sits with the team, so hiring and guiding the right people becomes critical, and the CEO has to be a people person more than a process person. And people make mistakes: there’s no guarantee the product ever ships.

So why does the Manifesto choose people?

A process is finite in its capabilities. People are not. Innovation doesn’t come from safe and reliable processes; it comes from unpredictable people and uncertain products.

A process is reliable precisely because you know what it will deliver and when. It can’t be faster or slower than planned, and it can’t deliver something nobody planned for. With people, nobody can predict the what and the when, and that unpredictability is the stepping stone to innovation.

Innovation is what propelled the growth of human civilisation, and for any business it is the route to long-term growth. That’s a big part of why so many large organisations are trying to become agile, and why startups keep beating big corporates at their own game: they put people over processes and let people take ownership and deliver.

What’s in it for the people?

People in agile organisations tend to be happier. They feel a sense of belonging and ownership, they have freedom, and they have a bigger purpose to contribute to. Agility is a win-win for people and organisations.

People-first teams also end up with better processes: lean ones, built by the team for the team. People stick to processes they made themselves. It’s a more democratic approach to process.