Broken window theory indicates how the visible signs of misbehavior and disorder in an agile environment can lead a team towards further misbehavior and disorder. This would eventually end up where the team would make serious mistakes or crimes. The broken window theory was discovered back in the year 1982. It refers to the way how the windows are broken in the realistic world. A damage in a single window would quickly spread and it would eventually break all the windows. If we can fix the broken window, we will be able to save other windows from being damaged as well.
In an agile environment, broken windows refer to metaphor. It is important to have strict controls in an agile software development environment. This is where all the team members should strictly adhere to the agile principles. If the team is failing to do that, there is a freedom for even more misbehavior to take place in the future. This can result in major losses in the long run.
The main objective of broken window theory is to come up with more aggressive policies. In an agile environment, it is possible for the scrum master to make sure that all team members are adhering to the basics of agile developments. Along with that, it is also the responsibility of the scrum master to come up with zero-tolerance policing. Such policing strategies will ensure that strict rules are implemented on the agile team, which is allowing them to work accordingly. In other words, the team will not tend to deviate from adhering to the agile development guidelines. This will eventually make sure that the entire team will not run into more serious negative consequences in the long run. The scrum master will also be able to keep full control over the team.
— Slimane Zouggari