The course is part of these learning paths
AGILE has become the de facto framework for innovation at scale, and knowing AGILE processes are a baseline skill for any organization looking to leverage the speed and flexibility of cloud services. The Introduction to AGILE course covers a broad spectrum of topics from how to hold an AGILE meeting to deconstructing its key concepts, techniques and best practices.
In this short course, made up of 10 lectures, we introduce you to the key concepts, roles, and techniques of the AGILE methodology so you will be able to recognize and explain the AGILE process in work situations.
Intended Audience
This course will suit anyone interested in learning what AGILE is and how AGILE techniques are used in development projects.
Learning Objectives
- Recognize and explain the AGILE methodology
- Recognize and apply AGILE principles and how they relate to software projects
- Recognize and apply the AGILE roles and responsibilities
Prerequisites
- Anyone interested in understanding what AGILE is and how the AGILE methodology can be used in software projects
- AGILE is technology independent - you don’t need a technical background to learn how to practice AGILE in business projects
- This is a beginner level course, so no previous experience of AGILE is required
I like to think of Agile as the quickest way to get software to do useful stuff. Agile is more than just this, as we'll discover in this course. However, I like to focus on this benefit as I think the speed and efficiency of execution are the best things you stand to gain from using Agile. Plus it's a fun, collaborative way to work. So let's get started with learning all about it.
Let's start by deconstructing this concept of Agile a bit, so we can start to understand what it means to us and how we can start to use it. Now Agile is a movement that evolved from a sense that the traditional approach to projects and development process wasn't working well enough. So a group of developers got together and between 2001 and 2005, defined and refined the manifesto for Agile software development. The Agile method is based on Lean thinking, which I recommend you explore if that's of interest. Now there are more authoritative guides on the history of Agile than I will ever do justice to. For example, the guide to Agile practices maintained by the Agile Alliance is a great way to start. So I'm not going to give you a definitive history lesson on Agile. I'm more interested in the practical applications of getting you started using it.
Agile to me is us taking small steps together, rather than one of us taking one big leap and hoping to end up where the other drew a target. So Agile involves breaking a project down into a series of small steps called user stories which are delivered continuously in short, two-week cycles called iterations. By starting with a user story and breaking components down to the fundamental parts, we naturally find ourselves breaking tasks down into the things that matter. This is a natural deconstruction, which in my opinion gives Agile a lot of its success. The other aspect I love is feedback. When you iterate often and show results at the end of a two-week sprint, you build based on that feedback. The customer is more involved and testing is part of the process from the word go, rather than being the last thing that gets done at the end, if there's time.
Andrew is fanatical about helping business teams gain the maximum ROI possible from adopting, using, and optimizing Public Cloud Services. Having built 70+ Cloud Academy courses, Andrew has helped over 50,000 students master cloud computing by sharing the skills and experiences he gained during 20+ years leading digital teams in code and consulting. Before joining Cloud Academy, Andrew worked for AWS and for AWS technology partners Ooyala and Adobe.