update lean doctorate (the hard way...)

content/about.md

@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ disableComments: true
 
 * I'm a [fountain pen addict](/post/fountain-pens-first-look/) and avid [<svg class='icon icon-text'><use xlink:href='#book'></use></svg>journaler](/post/journaling-in-practice/). I love jotting down stuff.
 * [This blog](/post) is the ideal place to write down my _freshly baked thoughts_ about virtually anything, primarily intended to amuse myself, and hopefully also others.
-* Oh, and as said, I've published a book on [the science of sourdough bread](https://redzuurdesem.be/het-boek) and occasionally take part in [National Novel Writing Months](https://nanowrimo.org) - withing varying results.
+* Oh, and as said, I've published a book on [the science of sourdough bread](https://redzuurdesem.be/het-boek) and occasionally take part in [National Novel Writing Months](https://nanowrimo.org) - with varying results.
 
 ## ... Teacher
 

content/post/2018/10/lean-doctorate.md

@@ -8,16 +8,24 @@ aliases:
 tags:
   - phd
   - tools
+  - academia
   - agile
 categories:
     - education
 published: true
 ---
 
+
 At the start of my doctoral study, things are a bit _woozy_. The use of that word "bit" may be the inverse of exaggeration: shaping an abstract idea into a malleable and well-defined project is a process that can easily take up months. After that you still have to "start" actually doing stuff in context of your invented project! Most doctorates are classical examples of a **waterfall** process: come up with an abstract, do your (and a lot of) literature study, reach certain milestones. It's clearly visible in the [Arenberg Doctoral School Roadmap](https://set.kuleuven.be/phd/roadmap.htm).
 
 As an _agile_ software engineer, that uncertainty leaves me with an unpleasant feeling as I struggle to define clear goals on a weekly basis. Sprints of 2 or 3 weeks are out of the question... Are they? Why should they be? A quick "_agile doctorate_" lookup in Google Scholar nets me academic papers like [An Agile Approach to the Doctoral Dissertation Process](http://csis.pace.edu/~ctappert/srd2015/2015PDF/d4.pdf) and [The Conclusion](http://csis.pace.edu/~ctappert/srd2016/2016PDF/a3.pdf). The only problem with these papers is that they propose to change the formula all together in an experimental context. There is - surprisingly - next to nothing academically published about someone's PhD process in an iterative or _agile_ way! 
 
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+
+**Update, 30 Jan. 2021**: I'm about 2.5 years in, and due to [the way academia works](/post/2020/02/agile-academia/), I've had to thoroughly readjust the way I'm used to working. _"Early feedback"_ (see below) and all that is great, provided it is possible. I learned the hard way that it [is not](/post/2020/02/agile-academia/). Frustratingly enough, that means that my work also resembles a waterfall process, even though I try to keep it from becoming like the Niagara Falls. 
+
+---
+
 ### How to be an Agile Academic
 
 Maybe we should ask [Jeff Sutherland](https://www.scrumalliance.org/community/profile/jsutherland) on how to achieve this, but I doubt the SCRUM Alliance principles were in his head when he did his doctorate. Katy Peplin wrote a nice article about [being an agile academic](https://www.katypeplin.com/blog/2017/10/25/be-an-agile-academic) that advocates for principles like getting feedback, fast(er) and using Test Driven Design. As some wise men once said,

content/post/2020/02/agile-academia.md

@@ -122,7 +122,7 @@ And that could not be more wrong. Yes, academics regularly work together, and ye
 
 Even in the industry, HR experts declare that research work is mostly carried out alone, depicting the lone researcher in a white coat, tucked away in his lab, experimenting with perhaps chemical flasks? The stereotype of the programmer sitting in a basement typing like a maniac, all by himself, has been replaced by the lone researcher. Nowadays, programmers program in teams. Sure, researchers are part of a research group, and sure, they proudly self-declare they're part of a team. But that team does not know what effectively working together is, they merely collaborate now and then. This claim will no doubt upset people, unable to understand the difference, until also worked for a few years in the industry. 
 
-# So, what do I do about it?
+## So, what do I do about it?
 
 Not much, honestly. With enough critical mass, a company culture can be turned around. But given the sheer size of something like a University, do not get your hopes up. Instead, try do work with what you've got/can find. That does not mean you should blindly accept all reasons why agile and academia don't go together. Here are a few tips for each reason: