The ultimate goal of software development is to deliver value to the customer by developing software in a flexible, iterative, and collaborative manner.

Naturally, this is a very high-level definition, and as we know the devil is in the details.

Who determines value to the customer?  How flexible is flexible? What constitutes an iteration and why should we work that way? And perhaps most importantly: what does it mean to collaborate?

Although many try to "avoid politics at work," one definition of politics says it involves making decisions that apply to members of a group, the distribution and transfer of power in decision-making, and the methods and tactics used to formulate and apply policy.