Why Agile Still Matters In An AI-First World

Stephen Clark, Senior Program Manager at The Vanguard Group, Inc.

​Recently, I saw a post on X that read, “Remember scrum masters? Wild times.” It made me laugh. It also made me think about how quickly the conversation around software development has changed. Are scrum masters really becoming extinct?

I understand the frustration with the role. I’ve seen Scrum implemented poorly, where daily standups become status meetings, retrospectives become calendar obligations and teams measure success by how many tickets they close. I’ve also seen teams complete sprint after sprint while delivering very little meaningful business value.

I’ve experienced this from several perspectives. Before I started leading engineering teams, I worked as an Agile coach. Along the way, I’ve worked with plenty of scrum masters and seen teams operate with dramatically different levels of effectiveness.

That experience has shaped my view of where Scrum belongs. As roles continue to evolve, the discipline behind Agile delivery is becoming more important. AI is a big reason why.

AI has changed the economics of building software.

AI has made software development dramatically faster. Engineers can generate code, write tests, troubleshoot defects and prototype ideas in a fraction of the time it once took. Product managers can explore concepts and create working prototypes with ease.

It also creates a problem that technology leaders should take seriously. When it becomes easier to build something, organizations become capable of building far more things. That doesn’t mean those things are worth building, though.

I’ve seen engineers and product managers get excited about a new AI capability and quickly move toward building something with it. The technology is interesting, and the prototype looks impressive. Everyone can see the possibilities. The harder questions come afterward. Who needs this? What problem does it solve? What value does it create? Will anyone actually use it?