Agile, explained in plain words
Five short guides for teams starting out with Scrum or Kanban, and for teams tidying up how they already work. Free to read, no sign-up.
- About 45 minutes in all
- Written in our own words
- Updated
One path through the basics
Read the guides in this order. Each one ends with a link to the next.New to Agile? Read the guides in this order. Each one ends with a link to the next, so you never have to come back here.
- 17 minWhat is Agile7 min · The idea, the four values, Agile vs Waterfall, and Scrum and Kanban.
- 29 minThe Product Operating Model9 min · Empowered teams solving problems, judged by outcomes, not features shipped.
- 310 minWriting a good story10 min · Story format, acceptance criteria, and how they differ from the Definition of Done.
- 48 minThe 12 Agile Principles8 min · The principles behind the Manifesto, in plain words, each with an example.
- 59 minAgile roles9 min · Product Owner, Scrum Master, Developers, Stakeholders, and where other roles fit.
Pick a topic
Already know the basics? Jump straight to the guide you need.
- TOPIC 01
What is Agile
What Agile means, why teams use it, how it differs from Waterfall, and the two common ways of working: Scrum and Kanban.
- The four values in one minute
- Agile and Waterfall side by side
- Scrum or Kanban: how to choose
7 min read - TOPIC 02
The Product Operating Model
How strong product companies work: small teams given problems to solve and judged by outcomes, not by features shipped.
- Feature teams vs empowered product teams
- Strategy, discovery and delivery
- Where Scrum’s roles fit
9 min read - TOPIC 03
Writing a good story
The story format, a useful description, acceptance criteria, and how they differ from the team’s Definition of Done.
- Given / When / Then, and checklists
- Acceptance criteria vs Definition of Done
- A worked example and common mistakes
10 min read - TOPIC 04
The 12 Agile Principles
The twelve principles behind the Agile Manifesto, each rewritten in plain words with an example from a real sprint.
- The four values, credited
- Twelve principles, one example each
- A link to the original wording
8 min read - TOPIC 05
Agile roles
What the Product Owner, Scrum Master and Developers are each accountable for, what they are not, and where other roles fit.
- Scrum’s three accountabilities
- Stakeholders, Tech Leads, QA and coaches
- One table to compare them all
9 min read - SOURCES
Where these ideas come from
Every guide is written in our own words. Read the originals here:
- Manifesto for Agile Software Development The four values and twelve principles, 2001
- The Scrum Guide Ken Schwaber and Jeff Sutherland, 2020 · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Silicon Valley Product Group Marty Cagan, Transformed, 2024
Put it into practice with your team
ScrumTeam gives you Scrum and Kanban boards, a Product Goal on the backlog, sprint planning with capacity, and, on Starter and up, retrospectives whose action items are not forgotten.