Rebuilding the Agile Community: A Call to Action

The Importance of Communities of Practice

Communities of Practice (CoPs) have long served as the backbone of professional learning and innovation. They bring people together not to compete, but to connect. Members share insights, failures, and discoveries, all in the pursuit of better outcomes for everyone involved. However, over time, many of these communities have withered. The Agile community, once a shining example of peer-driven evolution, now stands as a cautionary tale of what happens when purpose is replaced by profit.

The Rise and Fall of Agile

Agile began as a rebellion. In 2001, a group of developers, frustrated by bloated processes, gathered to declare a better way of working. From this manifesto emerged a vibrant community of practitioners who experimented openly, challenged orthodoxy, and treated learning as a social activity. In its heyday, the Agile community thrived with meetups, conferences, blogs, and cross-industry dialogue. It was informal, messy, and deeply human.

Now, however, it has started to fade.

The decline wasn’t sudden, but it was steady. Over the years, Agile transformed from a movement into a market. Frameworks became products. Certifications became substitutes for real experience. Vendors and consultants carved the space into intellectual property silos. As early thought leaders moved on or burned out, few new stewards emerged to carry the torch. The community began to feel more like a trade show than a learning space. Instead of shared inquiry, there was brand positioning. Instead of growth, there was repetition. Instead of community, there was commerce. This pattern isn’t unique to Agile; other once-thriving CoPs—like those in design thinking, Lean manufacturing, or DevOps—have suffered similar fates.

A Path to Renewal

Yet hope remains. The Agile community already knows the path to renewal: open collaboration, practitioner-led storytelling, and a focus on culture over compliance. Other communities have shown that it’s possible. Mission-driven groups succeed by putting purpose before profit.

Strong communities don’t run on frameworks—they run on stewards. When a Community of Practice fades, it’s often because no one is actively holding the space for people to gather, share, and grow. Stewardship isn’t about authority or visibility; it’s about care. It means inviting others in, tending to the shared space, and continually asking, “What’s needed now?” Healthy communities are led by those who host, not command—those who make room for others to contribute and who lift up the next generation instead of clinging to the spotlight.

Reconnecting with Purpose

To rebuild a community of practice—whether in Agile or elsewhere—we must first reconnect with purpose. Why did this community come together in the first place? Who is it meant to serve? From there, we must lower the barriers to participation and open the doors to new voices. Knowledge should be shared openly, supported by community-driven models—not locked behind paywalls or dependent on exclusive access. Conversation should be messy, not scripted. The emphasis should return to experimentation, not evangelism.

The Role of Trust in Communities

Most importantly, we must resist the temptation to commercialize every interaction. Communities thrive on mutual trust, not transactions. The path forward isn’t paved with new products or frameworks. It’s forged through recommitment, relationship, and a willingness to sit in uncertainty together.

The Agile community is not defunct—it’s in anticipation. It’s not looking for another certification, fashionable framework, exclusive model, or a keynote speaker with slick presentations yet lacking substance. What it truly needs is stewards—individuals who cultivate trust, foster learning, and create opportunities for the upcoming generation. These individuals are not vendors; they are stewards.

Conclusion: A Call to Action

In conclusion, the Agile community stands at a crossroads. To revitalize it, we must embrace the principles that once made it great. We must prioritize purpose over profit, foster open collaboration, and nurture new voices. By doing so, we can ensure that the Agile community not only survives but thrives in the years to come.

Let’s come together to rebuild this vital community. It’s time to take action and create a future where learning and innovation flourish once more.

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Want to hear us talk more about communities of practice? Then give this episode of the ACN Podcast a listen.