The Scary Figures of Agility
In the dynamic world of software development and beyond, agility has established itself as a
defining approach.
However, behind the promise of flexibility, customer orientation, and continuous improvement, pitfalls sometimes lurk. Calls are increasing to declare agility as ineffective or even ‘dead’. The real reasons for this growing scepticism, however, rarely lie in the agile principles themselves, but rather in their creeping or even deliberate misinterpretation and application.
In the following, we shed light on some of these concise anti-patterns that slow down teams and can counteract the intended benefits of agile ways of working. A special focus is placed on identifying these pitfalls and possible ways to overcome them successfully.
Zombie Scrum – Agility Without Signs of Life
One of the most unsettling phenomena in agile practice is so-called Zombie Scrum. This term describes teams that formally follow the Scrum process but have lost any vitality and the central focus on customer value.
The Scrum rituals are carried out mechanically and without any critical reflection on the added value. Teams merely imitate the external structure of Scrum without internalizing and applying the fundamental principles such as self-organization, transparency, and continuous adaptation to customer needs.
Without these essential principles, however, Scrum loses its core advantages in terms of continuous improvement, adaptability, and a strong customer orientation.
A typical and frequently encountered example of Zombie Scrum manifests itself in the execution of the Daily Scrum. Instead of serving as a synchronizing meeting in which the development team aligns itself with the sprint goal, openly addresses impediments, and identifies topics for further discussion, the Daily often degenerates into a pure status report.
Each team member reports in isolation what they did the previous day, what they will do today, and whether there are any obstacles, without any real discussion or joint planning of further action arising from it.
As a result, valuable information about potential problems and actual progress remains unused, and the team loses its common focus on the sprint goal, as well as the crucial opportunity to improve collaboration efficiently and react flexibly to changes. The actual goal of the Daily, namely aligning with the sprint goal and identifying blockages, thus becomes obsolete. But we also encounter this pattern away from the Daily Scrum.
Further symptoms of Zombie Scrum are diverse
- Scrum rituals are performed purely mechanically without questioning the benefit.
- The team does not make real decisions and acts more as an executing body.
- The team lacks the necessary autonomy to organize its work independently.
- Retrospectives do not lead to concrete and verifiable improvements in the process or collaboration.
- There is a lack of a clear understanding of goals within the team, and the motivation behind the work is unclear.
- Scrum events become empty ceremonies that are more reminiscent of status meetings than valuable discussions.
- There is little or no stakeholder engagement, so important feedback from users or other stakeholders is missing.
- Sprint Reviews are predictable and merely present status updates instead of genuine innovation or new insights.
As a consequence of the meaninglessness and lack of opportunities for influence, burnout or apathy within the team is not uncommon.
Furthermore, it is problematic insofar as it paralyzes the entire Scrum process. The purely mechanical execution of rituals can significantly reduce the engagement of team members and lead to frustration.
The original goal of Scrum – adaptation and continuous improvement – is neglected, and the noticeable added value of the agile way of working is lost. What remains are time-consuming and empty meetings.
To combat Zombie Scrum, consistent measures are needed
○ Build, refresh, and question Scrum knowledge: In the daily routine of our Scrum team, we mainly focus on the implementation of Scrum. This is natural because the events are intended to support commitments and strengthen responsibilities. However, if their background is unclear, the events degenerate int mere measures – their actual goal is lost. It is therefore helpful for teams to clarify basic questions, for example:
- What responsibilities and accountabilities do we bear?
- Whom should which event help and how can this be achieved?
- What is a ‘valuable increment’ for us?
- How do we use our events specifically to achieve our commitments (product goal, sprint goal, Definition of Done)?
○ Retrospectives with concrete measures: Retrospectives must lead to actual changes – otherwise, they lose their meaning. However, motivation often turns into overcommitment, and too many action items are taken on simultaneously instead of focusing on a few, implementable measures.
Less is often more here: if a team cannot anchor its improvements in practice, they remain mere declarations of intent – just like empty Scrum events. It becomes particularly problematic when measures from the retrospective regularly fizzle out. Then not only the implementation power suffers, but also the trust in the meaning of the retrospective itself. Teams should therefore consciously prioritize:
- Which one measure will take us furthest in the next sprint?
- How do we ensure that it is actually implemented?
This keeps the retrospective a valuable tool for continuous improvement
○ Focus on customer value: Teams should regularly reflect on how their work provides added value to the customer. If sprints are only about processing tickets without a clear understanding of customer value, Scrum loses its actual raison d’être.
Teams should therefore consciously reflect on how each developed feature or improvement
contributes specifically to solving a customer problem. A simple way is to ask the following
question in every Sprint Planning:
- How does this increment help the user?
○ Sprint Reviews: Should not only be status reports but actively solicit feedback from stakeholders and users to continuously validate the added value. The already mentioned sprint goal, coupled with the product goal, is again the basis for discussion here. Together with stakeholders, the Review can clarify:
- Have we achieved the sprint goal?
- Were we able to solve the customer’s problem a bit with the sprint goal?
- Does the result meet the expectations of our stakeholders?
- Has this sprint brought us closer to our product goal?
- What do we learn from the feedback to work even more specifically on the product goal in the next sprint?
○ Restoration (and use) of a clear goal for each sprint: Ensure that each sprint pursues a
value-oriented and understandable goal and that this goal is used consistently.
○ Bring the Scrum ceremonies to life: Scrum events should serve as a platform for genuine
exchange and valuable discussions, not as empty rituals performed “because Scrum.” Their real purpose is to create transparency, promote collaboration, and enable continuous improvements.
Bring Scrum ceremonies to life
If Scrum events fulfil their actual purpose again, Scrum will not only become more vibrant but also more effective.
1. Sprint Planning
The Planning is more than just distributing tasks for the next X weeks. It should create a common understanding of why this sprint is important and what value it should deliver. Instead of focusing exclusively on story points or individual tasks, the team should actively discuss:
- What is our goal for this sprint – and why is it relevant?
- How do the planned items contribute to achieving this goal?
- Are there dependencies or risks that we should clarify in advance?
2. Daily Scrum
The Daily should be a dynamic coordination for achieving the goal, not an isolated status report. Teams should talk less about what they have done and more about what needs to be done to achieve the sprint goal in the best possible way.
- What do we need to do to achieve our sprint goal in the best possible way?
- What obstacles are in our way – and how can we solve them together?
3. Sprint Review
Reviews must enable genuine dialogues with stakeholders, not pure
presentations for managers. Furthermore, such dialogues make these events more
tangible for stakeholders. Suddenly, they are no longer passive participants but have the responsibility of co-creation. Instead of presenting processed Jira tickets, it helps to actively ask for feedback:
- Does the increment deliver the desired added value?
- Does it meet the expectations of the stakeholders – or what is still missing?
- What insights do we take with us for the next sprint?
4. Retrospective
Retrospectives should be used as safe spaces for critical reflection and genuine improvements. So that they do not degenerate into mere routine exercises, their output must be concrete, implementable, and verifiable.
Strengthening teams through autonomy
Scrum teams need the authority to make decisions and achieve results. Only when teams have clear decision-making powers – be it in the choice of technical implementation, the prioritization of tasks, or the adaptation of processes – can they unleash their full potential.
To reflect on their own autonomy, teams should ask themselves the following questions:
- What responsibilities are we currently responsible for?
- Can we really do justice to these responsibilities in our role? If not, what do we need to
successfully carry this responsibility? - What overlaps or blockages prevent us from having more autonomy?
Only through an honest examination of these questions can teams regain their decision-making power and actively work towards continuous improvement.
Regular reflection on meetings
The purpose and benefit of each Scrum Event should be regularly questioned and adapted if necessary. If meetings become a habit and no one thinks about their benefit anymore, they lose their original power. If meetings do not have the desired effect, they must be adapted – be it through changed formats, such as more frequent but shorter durations or a clearer objective. Scrum thrives on continuous improvement – this should also apply to the process itself.
Therefore, teams should regularly reflect on their own processes:
- Is our Daily really helpful or just a formality?
- Do we use the retrospectives meaningfully?
- Are our Sprint Reviews interactive enough?
Dark Agile – The Dark Side of Agility
Another worrying phenomenon in agile practice is “Dark Agile.” This term describes the conscious or unconscious misapplication of agile principles, where control and pressure are exerted instead of trust and self-organization. Dark Agile uses agile methods to strengthen hierarchies and micromanage instead of empowering teams and promoting their self-responsibility. This distorted application leads to a toxic work environment that contradicts the actual values of agility.
A typical example of Dark Agile is the misuse of terms like “Accountability.” Instead of promoting the self-responsibility and commitment of team members, this term is used by anagers to exert more control and centralize decisions. Behind this appearance often lies a “Hidden Agenda” that has nothing to do with the real goals of agile methods but rather serves to maintain an old power structure.
The symptoms of Dark Agile are diverse and often subtle
- Redefinition of agile terms: Agile terms such as “Accountability,” “Autonomy,” or “Transparency” are deliberately redefined to legitimize micromanagement.
- In Dark Agile, accountability is used to demand responsibility without giving team members the necessary freedom to act independently. Instead of fostering a culture of trust, it is misused as a tool for micromanagement and control. For example, a team member is constantly asked about the progress of their work without having the freedom to make decisions. Instead of receiving support, the person feels monitored and under pressure, which undermines self-responsibility.
- Autonomy means the ability and freedom to make decisions independently. In an agile environment, autonomy promotes the self-organization of teams, whereby each team member takes responsibility for their own tasks and decisions without being constantly controlled from the outside. Autonomy strengthens trust within the team and helps to foster innovation and initiative. In the case of Dark Agile, however, this state is thwarted. A team is referred to as “autonomous,” but all important decisions must be approved by the management level. This creates the impression that the team is working independently, while the actual decision-making is strongly controlled and restricted.
- Transparency in an agile environment means that information is made open and accessible to everyone. It is about clearly communicating both successes and challenges so that all team members and stakeholders have the same information base to make informed decisions. Transparency fosters a culture of trust and collaboration. Misguided Interpretation in Dark Agile: In Dark Agile, “transparency” is often misused as a tool for monitoring and control. Instead of openly sharing information or using metrics to support, team members are forced to document and report their work progress. This “transparency” is used for verification and control, not to promote collaboration. This supposed transparency also often leads to relevant information that needs transparency being withheld. Thus, only selected information is shared from all sides, while other information is held back.
- Responsibility without freedom to decide: Teams are held accountable for results but
have no or insufficient freedom to decide how to influence these results. - Continuous pressure: Instead of focusing on continuous improvement, there is constant pressure to deliver results without room for adjustments and reflection.
- Lack of a culture of trust: Agility is applied superficially without creating a culture of
trust and openness. - Forced introduction of agility: Agility is forcibly introduced without providing the
necessary resources or adequate training. - Misuse of metrics: Metrics are used to control teams instead of supporting their work and identifying potential for improvement.
- Resistance to change: The necessary adaptability is lacking, and resistance to change is noticeable while still adhering to outdated processes.
The Consequences of Dark Agile
Dark Agile undermines the fundamental principles of agile methods by promoting control and hierarchy instead of transparency and collaboration. The result is a toxic work environment that stifles innovation and creativity. Teams feel overwhelmed and unable to work independently, which can lead to frustration and even a loss of motivation.
If Scrum Masters and/or managers are misguided, they move away from their task of acting as supporters and enablers and instead become guardians of micromanagement and unnecessary bureaucracy, destroying the agile principle of self-organization.
Measures Against Dark Agile
To successfully combat Dark Agile, organizations must take fundamental measures that refocus on agile values:
- Establish trust-based leadership: Managers must trust the teams and transfer responsibility for decisions to them. Trust forms the basis of agile ways of working, and
managers play a key role in establishing a culture of respect, openness, and transparency. They play a key role here by acting as role models and actively living agile behavior, which also includes the clear and transparent communication of decisions.
Instead of exerting control, they act as enablers and encourage the team to make
decisions independently. At the same time, they bear great responsibility in the agile way of working. Through clear orientation and transparency, they can ensure that the teams work in accordance with the overarching corporate goals and values. Furthermore, they are crucial for the development of self-organization. As mentors, they accompany the team through challenges without unnecessary intervention, thus promoting the development of self-responsibility and initiative. - Implement transparent feedback loops: Teams need the opportunity to receive and give feedback regularly. It is important to create an open communication culture in which teams can address their needs and challenges without fear of consequences.
- Offer comprehensive training: To ensure that agile principles are correctly understood
and applied, training courses and workshops should be mandatory for all team members and managers. The correct understanding of agility is crucial to avoid misuse and implement the principles correctly. - Use metrics meaningfully: Metrics should not be used as instruments of control but as tools to measure progress and identify potential for improvement. They must be designed in such a way that they support the team and do not put pressure on them.
- Promote adaptability: Agility requires continuous adjustments. It is important to create an environment in which changes are not only allowed but actively encouraged. Teams should be encouraged to try out new ideas and learn continuously instead of getting stuck in old processes.
Conclusion: The Return to the True Values of Agility
Dark Agile shows how agile thinking can be misused to build control and pressure. It undermines the purpose of agile methods and leads to a toxic work environment. To overcome Dark Agile, organizations must put the principles of trust, transparency, and continuous improvement back at the center. Managers and Scrum Masters play a key role in this by leading by example and actively supporting the team.
The true strength of agility lies in the self-organization of the teams and the ability to continuously improve. Only when these principles are consistently lived can agility unleash its full potential and lead to real, sustainable change. The misunderstandings and misapplications of agile methods, as seen in the concepts of “Zombie Scrum” and “Dark Agile,” illustrate that agility is far more than just a process – it is a culture based on trust, transparency, and self-organization. If these principles are disregarded, agile methods lose their true benefit and lead to a toxic work environment that inhibits innovation and continuous improvement.
To avoid this trap, organizations must revive the core values of agility and anchor them in their daily work processes. Managers and Scrum Masters are crucial here, as they act as role models and must promote the self-responsibility and autonomy of their teams. Agility thrives on continuous reflection, improvement, and the willingness to learn from mistakes. The goal should be to establish an agile culture that not only optimizes processes but also empowers employees to act independently. Only in this way can agility unleash its full potential and promote long-term innovation and sustainable success.
