Conference Goals
Agile Software Development is an emerging and dynamic discipline. The overriding objective of the Agile Development 2003 Conference was to spread knowledge about the state-of-the-art in Agile Development practices and provide a forum for advancing the state of the art.

The conference objectives provided a forum for the following:

• Created a sense of community in the Agile Development movement
• Shared experiences and research across disciplines
• Welcomed new members to the world of Agile Development
• Consolidated data about Agile Development to aid future research and implementation

Conference Attendees
The conference was designed to benefit individuals with different experience levels and objectives.

• Beginners received value from tutorials
• Experts received value from sharing experiences and exploring new frontiers
• Practitioners received value by listening to other practitioners' experiences and learning the latest thinking in Agile Development
• Researchers and educators received value by exchanging ideas with other academics and hearing real-world practitioner experiences

In addition, an international perspective was represented by the diverse nationalities of the speakers and educators.

Conference Content
Conference content was organized into the following primary formats:

1. Tutorials
Tutorials provided entry into a topic for newcomers to a subject as well as individuals wishing to round out their knowledge in an area. Tutorials were presented in both lecture and hands-on workshop environments.

See Tutorials for more information.

2. Technical Exchange
The Technical Exchange format allowed experienced people to trade notes and learn from each other. An objective of the sessions was to gather many viewpoints on a given discipline in a short period of time.

Technical Exchange sessions were designed to be very interactive and encourage participation. Formats included goldfish bowls, debates, and problem-solving workshops.

See Technical Exchange for more information.

3. Experience Reports
Experience reports contained first-hand information and reflection: "We saw this, did that, and consider this-and-that about our experiences." If you were interested in adding to your research data or are a practitioner looking to avoid problems and focus on success, these presentations provided valuable knowledge gained through hands-on experience. Each report created a portal through which attendees caught a glimpse of what works, what doesn’t and why in employing agile methods in projects. Specialists in computer engineering, business analysis, programming, sociology and management as well as other essential disciplines rounded out the list of presenters.

See Experience Reports for more information.

4. Research Papers
Research papers reveal the aspirations and advance the framework of thought in the field. Questions and conclusions from the members of our diverse community were offered. Notes were traded and a discovery of where the thinkers were heading. We learned from those who were applying complex systems theory to organizations, reflective practitioners proposing new forms of agile development and dissidents who felt that "agile" was hot air.

See Research Papers for more information.

5. Executive Summit
The Agile Executive Summit brought agile development to executives and mangers. CIOs, CTOs, interested CEOs, and managers heard presentations from senior executives and had a chance to relate that information to their own experiences. Executive Summit participants discussed, and shared the challenges of understanding, justifying, and implementing agile methods in a small-group, collegial atmosphere.

See Executive Summit for more information.

6. Method Alley
Method Alley was our exhibitor area. You could find information about the latest tools and services for the Agile Development community.

7. Open Space
By popular request, the Agile Development conference hosted an “Open Space” workshop.

"Open Space" is a dynamically organized workshop format. In "Open Space" meetings, participants create and manage their own agenda of parallel working sessions around a central theme of strategic importance, such as: “What are the main challenges facing the propagation of Agile Development practices and how can they be overcome?”

"Open Space" was used at XP/Agile Universe in 2002 to provide a forum for putting relevant issues “on the table” and letting conference attendees dynamically organize to discuss the topics and create a new content source for the conference-goers.

See Open Space for more information.