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Agile Manifesto Published

11 February 2001 to 13 February 2001.Software.Paradigm shift.Date precision, exact.Evidence grade, primary.1 primary source

Drivers:

User demandCost reduction

Frustration with heavyweight methodologies drove practitioners to seek alternatives. Internet-era speed required faster iteration. Developers sought more autonomy and customer contact.

In 2001, a group of software developers created the Agile Manifesto. They believed software should be built in small steps with frequent feedback, rather than following rigid long-term plans. Agile methods like Scrum break work into short 'sprints' of a few weeks, delivering working software frequently and adapting to changes.

Agile Manifesto Published event plate

Structured atlas record showing date, domain, evidence grade, source count, and predecessor and successor links.

Event plate: Agile Manifesto Published Convergence-divergence layout. The central hero card carries the event year, type, title, evidence grade, domain and era band. 0 predecessor cards on the left feed in with red arrows labelled "absorbs". 0 successor cards on the right derive with red arrows labelled "spawns". Key terms below the hero pin the vocabulary the event introduced. EVENT PLATE Source: https://agilemanifesto.org/ 2001 - PARADIGM SHIFT Agile Manifesto Published primary evidence Domain: AI and machine learning Era band: E6 AI-scale systems KEY TERMS - VOCABULARY THE EVENT INTRODUCED Agile Scrum XP sprint Convergence-divergence: predecessors absorbed, successors spawned Hero card carries year, evidence and domain. 0 predecessors flow in from the left; 0 successors flow out to the right. Key termsbelow pin the vocabulary the event introduced.

Forecasts and counterfactuals stay labelled as opinion in the event data. Source: Computer History Museum.

Before

Heavyweight methodologies (waterfall, RUP) dominated enterprise software. Documentation often valued over working software. Customer feedback came too late. Developers felt constrained by rigid processes.

What changed

Seventeen software developers met in Snowbird, Utah and published the Manifesto for Agile Software Development. It prioritised individuals, working software, customer collaboration, and responding to change. Agile became the dominant software development philosophy.

How it happened

Representatives of XP, Scrum, DSDM, Crystal, and other lightweight methodologies gathered to find common ground. They agreed on four values and twelve principles. The manifesto deliberately avoided prescribing specific practices, instead articulating shared values.

Outcomes

  • Shifted industry toward iterative development
  • Popularised Scrum, XP, and other agile methods
  • Changed relationship between developers and business
  • Influenced DevOps and continuous delivery

Limitations

  • Often misapplied as 'no documentation'
  • Scrum certification became commercialised
  • 'Agile' label applied to non-agile practices
  • Some contexts need more structure

Lessons learnt

  • Values matter more than processes
  • Short feedback loops reduce risk
  • Working software is best progress measure
  • Manifestos can be co-opted

Stakeholders and artefacts

Organisations

  • Agile Allianceprofessional_bodyFormed to promote manifesto

Individuals

  • Kent BeckSignatory, First Class SoftwareXP creator, manifesto signatory
  • Martin FowlerSignatory, ThoughtWorksManifesto signatory, influential author
  • Ken SchwaberSignatory, IndependentScrum co-creator, manifesto signatory
  • Jeff SutherlandSignatory, IndependentScrum co-creator, manifesto signatory

Artefacts

  • Agile ManifestoframeworkFour values and twelve principles for software development
  • ScrummethodologyIterative framework with sprints and roles
  • Extreme Programming (XP)methodologyPractices including TDD, pair programming, CI

Key terms

AgileScrumXPsprintiterationmanifesto

Causality

Preceded by: Design Patterns Book Published (Gang of Four).

Made possible: DevOps Movement Emerges.

On this course

Read in the path Software Development: Waterfall to DevOps.

Sources

1Kent Beck, Mike Beedle, Arie van Bennekum, Alistair Cockburn, Ward Cunningham, Martin Fowler, James Grenning, Jim Highsmith, Andrew Hunt, Ron Jeffries, Jon Kern, Brian Marick, Robert C. Martin, Steve Mellor, Ken Schwaber, Jeff Sutherland, Dave Thomas. "Manifesto for Agile Software Development". Agile Alliance, 2001-02.authoritativeagilemanifesto.org/