Becoming Agile: A Grounded Theory of Agile Transitions in Practice

Abstract

Agile adoption is typically understood as a oneoff organizational process involving a staged selection of agile development practices. This view of agility fails to explain the differences in the pace and effectiveness of individual teams transitioning to agile development. Based on a Grounded Theory study of 31 agile practitioners drawn from 18 teams across five countries, we present a grounded theory of becoming agile as a network of on-going transitions across five dimensions: software development practices, team practices, management approach, reflective practices, and culture. The unique position of a software team through this network, and their pace of progress along the five dimensions, explains why individual agile teams present distinct manifestations of agility and unique transition experiences. The theory expands the current understanding of agility as a holistic and complex network of on-going multidimensional transitions, and will help software teams, their managers, and organizations better navigate their individual agile journeys.