In this presentation we'll take a high level view of that messy thing most of us call a career in this ever evolving technological world. We'll more deeply explore how Agile fits into the the mix, whether for better or for worse, and drive out what we can do about it to help us achieve the goals we have set before us.

1. Your Messy Agile Career
@daniel_davis

2. Who I am?
Business/Process Improvement Consultant
Agile Practitioner/Developer
Innovator
Hacker
Maker
Cub Master
Professional Snowboard Instructor
Where I’ve been?
AAA Life
Delphi
General Motors
Blue Cross Blue Shield
Cengage Learning
Delta Dental
Gordon Food Service (GFS)
Cintas
Farm Bureau Insurance
Your Messy Agile Career

3. Outline -
Your Messy Agile Career
- Seeding a couple questions
- A bit of background on Agile
- Some key agile concepts
- What a healthy career might entail
- Career paths then and now
- What a messy career might entail
- Potential impacts/concerns
- What you can do about it

4. Are you currently “agile”?
&
Do you have a “messy” career?
Seeding a couple questions -
Your Messy Agile Career

5. A bit of background on Agile -
Your Messy Agile Career
Agile is a group of methods, processes and practices
based on iterative and incremental development, in which
requirements and solutions evolve through collaboration
between self-organizing, cross-functional teams.

6. A bit of background on Agile -
Your Messy Agile Career
It promotes adaptive planning, evolutionary development,
continuos delivery, a time-boxed iterative approach, and
encourages rapid and flexible response to change.

7. Your Messy Agile Career
Founded on the Agile Manifesto -
Individuals and Interactions over Processes and Tools
Working Software over Comprehensive Documentation
Customer Collaboration over Contract Negotiation
Responding to Change over Following a Plan
That is, while there is value in the items on the
right, we value the items on the left more.
A bit of background on Agile -

8. - Specializing generalist mindset
- Soliciting feedback early and often
- Self-reflecting and continuously improving
- Being resourceful with what’s at hand
- Striving to fail fast and pivot quickly
- Seeking new or “out of the box” solutions
- Focused on delivering business value
Some key agile concepts -
Your Messy Agile Career

9. Your Messy Agile Career
What a healthy career might entail -
A healthy career is one that is both challenging and
rewarding at the same time. It offers you the ability to
grow and learn, while not coming at a sacrifice of
personal needs or desires.
A healthy career is one that you enjoy, appreciate and
look forward to come Monday morning.

10. Your Messy Agile Career
Career paths then and now -
Way back when career’s looked like this…
One Job

11. Your Messy Agile Career
Career paths then and now -
Eventually things had changed to more like this…
No Job :(
Second JobFirst Job Third Job

12. Your Messy Agile Career
Career paths then and now -
Nowadays we actually see it similar to this…
No Job :(First Job
Third Job
Open Source Support
Second Job
Start-Up Support Start-Up
:(

13. Your Messy Agile Career
What a messy career might entail -
A messy career is still one that is both challenging and
rewarding at the same time. However it offers you the
ability to grow and learn more rapidly. While not
intending to, it may now come at a sacrifice to personal
needs or desires.

14. Your Messy Agile Career
What a messy career might entail -
A messy career is one that you still enjoy, appreciate
and look forward to come Monday morning, however
this may now also come with a higher set risks and
chance for failure.

15. A messy career might encompass multiple
interests or roles?
Which can actually be healthy, in a way, as it helps
to cross pollinate knowledge and share ideas.
Your Messy Agile Career
What a messy career might entail -

16. Changing roles and/or positions is good as well, as
it offers you the chance to learn new things and
grow new skills.
Your Messy Agile Career
What a messy career might entail -

17. Potential impacts/concerns -
Your Messy Agile Career
• How long have you been doing what you’re doing?
• When was the last time you learned a new
language or skill?
• What do you do when traditional retirement
options just are’t there anymore?
• Do you feel like your career is heading in a
positive direction?

18. What you can do about it -
Your Messy Agile Career
Being able to continuously learn has become a must
within our modern-day technical careers. If you
aren't growing, adapting, and evolving your skills as
technologies change, then you are stagnating.
Eventually you won't outgrow your job,
- it will outgrow you!
The key is not which language(s) you already know
or skills you already have, but how quickly you can
pickup and learn the new ones when needed.

19. Learn how to write good clean code, no matter
what’s the language you’re writing in. Learn how to
respect both yourself and the other members of
your team, by proving components that are easy to
understand and work with.
Your Messy Agile Career
What you can do about it -

20. Join local user groups and go to conferences. It’s
incredible how many things you learn when you
meet people from different organizations, cultures,
backgrounds and knowledge bases.
Your Messy Agile Career
What you can do about it -

21. Since the financial aspects of a messy career don’t
always support you as they have in the past. You’ll
want to find the mechanisms to support you beyond
your career as needed. The sooner you start the
better of course too.
Your Messy Agile Career
What you can do about it -

22. Take a “career as portfolio” view and start to grow
and expand on it. Over time however, it also means
we’ll need to grow your muscles for identifying and
avoiding conflicts.
These conflicts can come about whether they’re
internal role and/or team support efforts, as well as
with external aspects. Just be cognizant, open and
honest about it and it should avoid most the
problems for the most part.
Your Messy Agile Career
What you can do about it -

23. Ultimately, our professional story should be about
the skills and experiences we accumulate that
matter to us, not about the titles we hold.
The jobs we’ll hold are all just shorthand for what’s
important — what we know, what we can do, who
we know (and who knows us), and what we believe.
Your Messy Agile Career
What you can do about it -

24. Maybe you’re doing this agile thing well and maybe your
career is actually quite healthy?
But then again, maybe your career is already a mess –
or maybe it has the potential to be at a little messier –
and perhaps maybe that’s actually a good thing?
Your Messy Agile Career
What you can do about it -

25. http://founderdating.com/your-career-is-a-mess/
https://onlysoftware.wordpress.com/2014/02/07/my-advice-to-junior-
developers-about-their-career/
Your Messy Agile Career
Resources -

26. Q & A

27. Business Solutions Consultancy
For those who value... value.
Clients collaborate with us to solve
business problems.
The first step is figuring out how we can
either make or save them money.
BUSINESS AGILITY

28. Thank you!
Daniel Davis
ddavis@pillartechnology.com
daniel.davis.tech@gmail.com
@daniel_davis
linkedin.com/in/davisdaniel