Say what you like about the iPad, but it’s got people talking, and thinking.
The effect on the world, to me, is almost more interesting than the device itself.
Whilst reading this well considered piece, I was immediately struck by the following statement (emphasis mine)
The Real Work is not formatting the margins, installing the printer driver, uploading the document, finishing the PowerPoint slides, running the software update or reinstalling the OS.
The Real Work is teaching the child, healing the patient, selling the house, logging the road defects, fixing the car at the roadside, capturing the table's order, designing the house and organising the party.
Fraser, whether intentionally or not, has spoken about the very heart of Agile itself, and at the same time described why so many individuals and organisations fail time and time again to “get it”.
The Product Backlog (just to use a commonly understood artefact) is not a requirements specification that speaks of formatting the margins; the Product Backlog is a list of all the “Real Work” that needs doing, and is yet to be done.
What does your backlog focus on?