I heard it many times from teams: “We are not following the process.” That as a Scrum Master I should be the guardian of the process. And every time, for me it felt wrong.
Somewhere along the way, Agile transformed, from a mindset built to embrace change into a mechanism of processes that creates the illusion of clarity and discipline. What was meant to help teams deliver value faster has, in many cases, turned into a rigid system where products slowly suffocate.
And that’s the paradox: the more strictly we “follow Agile,” the less agile we often become.
Processes are not the goal. They are meant to support these values. Yet today, what many people call Agile no longer reflects this mindset.
The Illusion of Control
In many teams, Agile is:
- Following all the ceremonies
- Updating tickets in Jira
- Completing sprints “by the book”
Once everything is followed by the book, we expect things to work. After all, we did everything right, didn’t we? So why does frustration still appear along the way? Why do teams feel stressed when requirements change after a demo? Why does it feel like a failure when the product evolves beyond the original idea?
Because underneath all the process, we’re still behaving as if change is a problem, when responding to change is the very reason Agile exists.
Scrum was never about predicting the future
Scrum, as defined in the Scrum Guide, is built on empiricism: transparency, inspection, and adaptation.
It assumes that: we don’t know everything upfront, ideas will evolve, learning happens through delivery and feedback. Scrum does not promise certainty. It offers fast feedback so teams can learn what actually matters.
If we treat scope as fixed, plans as sacred, and change as disruption, then we’re not practicing Scrum- we’re using Scrum terminology to run a traditional process.
Value over implementation
A critical question often goes unasked: Are we building what truly matters to the customer?
If we see a potential improvement today, should we wait until everything is implemented to test it? How much value or time do we lose by delaying feedback?
Agile was invented to shorten this gap. To help teams validate assumptions early. To deliver value, not just features. Implementation without impact is not success.
Ceremonies are not the point
We don’t meet in Daily Scrums just because the process says so. We meet to:
- Surface blockers
- Improve transparency
- Align as a team
To follow something without understanding the reason behind - it’s wrong and in the end - inefficient. So here is the missing piece of the puzzle: mindset. And the real problem is not that teams are “not agile enough.” The problem is that many teams are doing Agile while forgetting to be agile.
Processes are outcomes of a mindset- not the mindset itself.
Many teams say, “We are agile,” yet still expect:
- Fixed scope
- Fully defined plans
- Minimal change
That contradiction is where frustration is born.
From process-driven to value-driven
The real shift happens when teams change their vector:
- From process-driven to value-driven
- From predicting to learning
- From protecting the plan to serving the customer
Scrum events, artifacts, and roles are tools to support this shift…not the destination.
When process becomes the goal, agility dies. When value becomes the goal, process naturally adapts.
That’s not just Agile theory. That’s Agile as it was intended.
Build for Change, Not Certainty
Rigid roadmaps create comfort, not value. Have a conversation about how your product and engineering teams can stay truly agile.