I have stated before that Agile Scrum is akin to training wheels in terms of workflows.
This is not an insult to Scrum. Training wheels are vital. They are best applied to large groups that lack organization and structure, or teams that are in need of metrics and methodologies to encourage cross-collaboration and shared goals. Without them, a disorganized team will fall over.
But the goal of riding a bike isn't to stay on training wheels forever. The goal is to ride.
The Ceiling of Strict Structure
Once systems form and mature—once goals and interactions are understood—the rigid ceremonies of Scrum (Daily Standups, Sprint Planning, Retrospectives) can shift from "guardrails" to "blockers."
It is at this stage that leadership must start identifying the unique strengths of their teams and craft systems that work for them, rather than forcing the team to work for the system.
This evolution often manifests in ways that scare dogmatic managers:
- Async Workflows: Moving status updates to Slack/Docs to save synchronous time for deep work.
- Intentional Communication: Replacing the "autopilot" of scheduled recurring meetings with meetings that happen only when necessary.
- Deadlines Over Increments: Focusing on the delivery date of the feature, rather than arbitrarily chopping it into two-week blocks.
The Cycle of Maturity
Scaling is not a linear process where you simply add more process as you get bigger. In the end, true maturity can look like returning to the original state of small, lean teams.
However, there is a critical difference between the "Chaos" of a Day 1 startup and the "Autonomy" of a mature organization.
- Day 1: We move fast because we don't know the risks.
- Day 1000 (Mature): We move fast because we have built the guardrails, the observability, and the trust to do so safely.
Attracting the Best Talent
This evolution is critical for hiring. Highly talented, experienced engineers often chafe under rigid Scrum. They don't need a 15-minute meeting to tell you what they did yesterday.
When you refine your process to allow for autonomy and flexibility, onboarding these high-performers becomes effortless. They are rapidly rewarded by a system that respects their expertise.
As an organization matures, it must learn how to be leaner and more flexible—like it was early on—but armed with the knowledge of why and how to do it well.