[BurningFrog]

This reminds me why the agile "customer" concept is so important.

As a customer, you get to decide what you want to buy, and you get to be happy or unhappy with the delivered product.

But you don't get to control or even monitor the work in the factory/kitchen/etc.

That's instead the job of a boss! Of course, an agile team also has a boss. But it's not the customer.

[einpoklum]

Isn't it the case the most places "doing agile" don't actually involve the eventual customer in the process, just junior and higher management?

[tootie]

That's the point of this article, but honestly it seems to be neither here nor there. Being disconnected from business goals happens with or without agile. Agile can only solve delivery problems, not defects in business strategy.

[BurningFrog]

If you can find an end customer that's willing to do the work, you're very lucky.

But usually some proxy for the customer in your organization has to take on that role.

[jay_kyburz]

It's not that customers don't "get to". It's more that customers don't "have to" because they can see working software coming out of the team, and they are confident that things are progressing.

There are no "rules" in agile that says who can do what, just teams of people negotiating what works best for them. "Individuals and interactions" over process.

[BurningFrog]

Well, I'm saying that the team needs to insist on those boundaries, to keep the relationships healthy.

Not claiming it's inscribed on some sacred tablet.