Adopting agile methods: Can goal-oriented social modeling help?

The heavy reliance on the human factor in agile methods poses new challenges for organizations intent on adopting them. Improper role assignment, neglected team dependencies, and overlooked required skills have all been reported as reasons for failures during the introduction of an agile method. Current process modelling languages are not designed for describing or analyzing such human-related issues, and thus, provide little assistance to organizations in the process of adopting an agile method. This paper advocates the use of goal-oriented modeling techniques for depicting social aspects of agile methods. These social models can be used to identify the key factors that contribute to the success or failure of an agile method, thus providing guidance early during the introduction of the method in an organization. The approach is illustrated using the Scrum process.