The Agile Manifesto reloaded, Part 1

Around a quarter of a century after its publication, the “Manifesto for Agile Software Development” is something of a sacred text for the agile scene and New Work. The four pairs of values in the manifesto are like statements of law. As a reminder:

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools

Working software over comprehensive documentation

Customer collaboration over contract negotiation

Responding to change over following a plan

Yes, instead of “working software,” we now talk about “functioning products.” Nevertheless, this usually refers to products that at least contain software or are dependent on software.

Are the four pairs of values in the manifesto still valid with this modification?

Not really. New Work is undergoing radical change with the integration of AI into work processes, becoming New AI-enhanced Work. Code is written by AI, and legacy code is refined by AI. Searching large data sets for patterns? Upgrading codebases and databases? Sure, AI does that. In short, everything that is machine-readable will be read and processed by machines.

Documentation over coding is the new reality. Because AI lacks the context that humans possess, everything must be provided through documentation. With AI, comprehensive documentation is required to create a (software-related) product.

Human expertise will still be needed for strategies, architectures, weighing systemic relationships, etc.—supported by AI. A crucial step in this process will be the evaluation and curation of artificial intelligence services.

During the first twenty years after the publication of the Manifesto, everything revolved around a few questions

1. What does the customer want?
2. How can the customer get what they want as quickly as possible?
3. How can we, as a company, determine as quickly as possible how satisfied our customers are with what they have received from us?
4. What improvements do we need to make right away to ensure customer satisfaction in the future?

Design Thinking and the concept of the MVP have been very important answers to these questions. The latter is particularly important in the context of these considerations.

A minimum viable product (MVP) is a maximally simple initial version of a product that already has the key functions but no additional features. Get the MVP out, test it, and you can always make improvements later. With this approach, products that have been developed without considering customer wishes well enough often end up in the trash. And whatever works in the first round is pursued further, continuously improved, and expanded.

In principle, there is nothing wrong with this. However… The MVP concept implies: better to try something quickly than study it for a long time—in a metaphorical sense. This rapid release of new ideas as trial balloons for customers has the connotation of being sporadic, transient, and erratic.

In short: in the age of AI and the possibility of extensively testing MVPs as theoretical constructs even before deployment, sustainability in production takes on a new meaning based on fresh opportunities.

The perspectives outlined above are largely present today

The technical conditions are already in place, as 90% of companies use Microsoft products. This means Copilot is widely utilized in businesses around the globe, with AI integrated into common Office applications and solutions.

Adaptomos, therefore, takes the liberty of proposing a “Manifesto for Adaptive Organizations 2025”

Through our work with teams, organizations, and AI, we have learned to appreciate the following values:

Sustainable outcomes over rapid outputs
(Delivering continuous value that lasts is more important than quickly producing the next MVP.)

Collective intelligence over individual heroics
(Harnessing human–AI collaboration and diverse teams beats relying on lone experts.)

Transparency and trust over control and compliance
(Shared clarity and accountability matter more than rigid rules and micromanagement.)

Adaptable systems over fixed frameworks
(Evolving ways of working continuously is more important than adhering strictly to one method.)

With all due respect, our “Manifesto for Adaptive Organizations 2025” should be understood as a hypothesis. The extent to which this hypothesis holds remains to be seen.

Let’s talk about the twelve principles of the “Manifesto for Agile Software Development” and their evaluation in the context of AI today in another post.