"IT is not just a cost center—it’s the engine that powers the business."
When I landed my first agile role, a friend who was an experienced software developer and worked for several corporations, recommended The Phoenix Project. One of the companies he previously was with had gone through a major transformation, and leadership made it required reading. He figured I would find it as an interesting read, years later as I progressed in my agile roles I finally picked it up for a read.
The book follows Bill, an IT manager suddenly thrown into chaos as his company’s critical project (Phoenix) spirals out of control. There was constant outages, endless firefighting, and a completely overwhelmed team he had been given the reigns to lead.
Bill initially reluctant to dip his feet in the chaos, was helped by senior member of the company who became a mentor he can look for advice and guidance. He learns about The Three Ways: optimizing flow, amplifying feedback loops, and fostering a culture of continuous learning. Step by step, he applies lean, agile, and DevOps principles—limiting work-in-progress, automating repetitive tasks, and aligning IT with business goals.
What really stuck with me was how familiar the challenges felt—last-minute urgent work, misalignment, and the same few people always being the bottleneck. But seeing these problems play out as a story made the solutions relatable in a way that dry business books at times may miss the mark. If you prefer learning through storytelling, like “Who Moved My Cheese?” this book is a must-read for anyone navigating IT, agile, or DevOps.