(Originally published on my LinkedIn.)
The layoff lists from the past few weeks here in Brazil confirmed something that's been on my mind for a while. Agile Coach, Scrum Master, and similar roles are dying.
It was about time!
Do I think agilists don't bring value? Well... :)
If I just wanted to be provocative, I'd say they don't bring any value at all, but that would be too simplistic. The truth is that I think most of the value they bring no longer justifies, TODAY, a full-time job.
Comparing it to startups and products, an agilist feels like a feature, not a product. It's a role to be played within a software team, not a job title.
So, knowing that at Plataformatec (acquired by Nubank), my previous company, I used to sell agilists as part of project teams, what do I recommend to my agilist friends?
Simple! The skills — technical, business, and soft skills — that every agilist needs are very welcome in two other roles: Product Manager and Engineering Manager.
For Product Manager: every agilist already knows how to question the business value of demands, how to follow the decision-making process, and already has an interest in understanding how the end customer sees the product.
For Engineering Manager: agilists already deal with team management and personal development of developers/engineers, even if informally. It's a relatively new role, but I think it encompasses many of the agilist's responsibilities, with the autonomy they already deserved. And most agilists have a technical background that allows them to make technical decisions alongside the team to support the product and the organization.
To my agilist friends, I hope you make one of these transitions soon.
Am I way off on this idea?
