Bill Of Rights

Robert C. Martin, in the book Clean Agile, explains the origin of Agile as one of the founders of the manifesto and its intention. The book reviews the basics of agile, common misconceptions, and how to fix them. But it also examines the concept of ethics and professionalism.

Robert C. Martin proposes two bills of rights to regulate the profession, one for customers, and the other for the professional.

The Customer Bill Of Rights

According Robert C. Martin, these are the rights that the customer have, and the professional must observe:

• You have the right to an overall plan and to know what can be accomplished when and at what cost.
• You have the right to get the most possible value out of every iteration.
• You have the right to see progress in a running system, proven to work by passing repeatable tests that you specify.
• You have the right to change your mind, to substitute functionality, and to change priorities without paying exorbitant costs.
• You have the right to be informed of schedule and estimate changes, in time to choose how to reduce the scope to meet a required date. You can cancel at any time and be left with a useful working system reflecting investment to date.

The Professional Bill Of Rights

Robert C. Martin shows the customer's rights for the professional. The professional should not submit his will to the customer; the professional knows the product internals, and like a doctor, he is ultimately responsible for its success. These are the rights that professionals have to ensure their job quality and keep their reputation untouched:

• You have the right to know what is needed with clear declarations of priority.
• You have the right to produce high-quality work at all times.
• You have the right to ask for and receive help from peers, managers, and customers.
• You have the right to make and update your own estimates.
• You have the right to accept your responsibilities instead of having them assigned to you.