Israel is recognized as the architect of the agile transformation at BMC Software. He holds a PhD in computer sciences from the Israeli Institute of Technology and an MBA from Clark University.

You have been practicing Agile in some form for a while, but I see you are also tracking a lot of new ideas and developments in Agile practice. What are your favorite recent developments in Agile?

I am very excited about three developments:

1. The coming of age of technical debt techniques: The ability to monetize technical debt establishes a clear tie between the output of the software process (the code) and the business outcome (the real value of the code). For example, something is not quite working if a technical debt amounting to $5M has been accrued against a net present value of $10M.
2. The use of Statistical Process Control (SPC) techniques in governing software processes: The enormity of the opportunity to apply the full richness of the SPC research that had been accumulating since the 1920’s to software development is breath taking.
3. DevOps: The expansion of Agile to IT Operations amplifies the value of the Agile initiative. To quote you, it is (software) delivery over development.

The mutual interaction between technical debt, SPC and DevOps is most promising. It facilitates progress from enterprises practicing Agile to agile enterprises.

What advice do you have for executives who are contemplating or in the middle of an Agile transition? What would you focus on first?

I would start with a simple software governance framework that the executive team accepts and commits to. Such a framework governs the software process through the outputs it produces and the outcomes it enables. It elevates the playing fields from the nuts and bolts of Agile (or any other software method) to the business of software – investment, risk, return, etc. By so doing, the foci for Agile become very clear: the teams focus on Agile proficiency; the exec on what Agile means in business terms. To succeed you need both: proficiency in Agile as well as effective governance.

From my experience Agile adoptions suffer when there is not alignment from the executives down and from the engineers up. (Frankly any methodology will suffer) You have published a lot of advice for executives in this regard, what advice do you have for the people on the frontline who are trying to get some executive understanding and support?

Identifying the pain(s) one tries to address through the Agile initiative and securing broad agreement about the criticality of this pain is the most important element in aligning the executive team with the folks in the trenches. Any Agile initiative of scale will sooner or later have to report what has been accomplished by the initiative. Accomplishments to themselves are not too meaningful unless the loop all the way back to the driving pain is closed.

Since you were at Agile Roots last year, what was your favorite thing from last year and what would you say to someone who is considering attending this year?

There was something special in the air in Agile Roots 2009. The experience was most gratifying to me and every participant I spoke with. You can certainly get a glimpse of Agile Roots 2010 by reading about it after the conference has been held, but there is no substitute to savoring it in person in Salt Lake City…

Israel’s e-book, ‘The Concise Executive Guide to Agile‘ has just been issued by the IEEE Computer Society. In addition to regularly publishing with the IEEE Computer Society and the Cutter Consortium, he posts frequently at his blog The Agile Executive and tweets as @agile_exec.

Register Now

The principles articulated in the Agile Manifesto make a lot of sense to the software craftsman who dreams in code. They can, however, be quite puzzling to executives who consider Agile software in the context of their company’s established norms and patterns. Assumptions embedded in a business design with respect to customer relationship, competitive differentiation and value capture are not necessarily aligned with the principles advocated in the manifesto. Moreover, the core culture of a corporation might not be hospitable to Agile principles. Corporate culture basically specifies “how we do things around here in order to succeed.” Agile Principles challenge these norms.

The path an Agile roll-out should follow depends on the core culture of the corporation: control, competence, collaboration or cultivation. Irrespective of the specific culture, the Agile roll-out invariably tests cultural integration, wholeness and balance. In particular, it exposes inconsistencies between approach with customers versus approach toward other constituents of the corporation such as partners and employees. Consequently, corporate reactions to Agile often express the disappointment of an organization when it is forced to take a good look in the mirror.

Grass roots Agile initiatives can propel a company a long way. However, the creation and capture of long-term value is invariably linked to successful business design and coherent corporate culture. To succeed on a large scale, bottom-up Agile initiative must be complemented by top-down commitment to learn, change and keep a living company. It is the combination of the two, the willingness to apply Agile practices in an indivisible manner that will fulfill the premise of the manifesto.

Israel Gat is probably the most reflective executive I have personally had the pleasure of exchanging ideas with. If you don’t believe me, you can simply google his name and start reading to convince yourself from his interviews and writing. Or you can save time, and go straight to his blog. I recommend you start with ‘The Agile Leader‘ (and specfically ‘A Social Contract‘), because that is really what Israel embodies to me. Even with Israel’s accomplishments he remains extremely humble, approachable and willing to share.

Israel Gat is a Senior Consultant with Cutter Consortium’s Agile Product & Project Management practice. He is recognized as the architect of the Agile transformation at BMC Software. Under his leadership, BMC Software development increased Scrum users from zero to 1,000 in four years. Dr. Gat’s executive career spans top technology companies, including IBM, Microsoft, Digital and EMC. He has led the development of products such as BMC Performance Manager and Microsoft Operations Manager, enabling the two companies to move toward next-generation system management technology.