5 Awesome facts about Agile development

5 Awesome facts about Agile development

Agile software development is really just an umbrella term. The term is basically for a set of frameworks which are based on the values and principles put forth in the Manifesto for Agile Software Development

It is good to live by these values and principles when you are approaching software development in a certain way. Software developers also use them to help figure out the right things to do when you’re working with certain things.

There are things that Agile development can do

Agile development is different than other forms of development.  It revolves around the framework of developing things with a team, rather than by an individual. Agile development focuses on collaboration between individuals.  There are managers on the team, but people get to figure things out in small groups and report to the manager.   These teams are pretty much self-organizing; however, a manager makes sure that everyone they have on the team has a skill that they are in need of.

What are some things about Agile development?

1.       It is not software that waits until the end for a result – Agile software development describes an approach to software development that puts emphasis on incremental delivery, team collaboration, continual planning and learning, instead of attempting to make a delivery at the end of development.  It is all about maintaining short cycles, incremental delivery on certain due dates, getting appropriate feedback, quick fixes, delivering business value to customers, collaboration and interaction. Agile is about transparency, inspection and quick adaptation.  The development terms that fall under Agile technology is Scrum, Lean, Kanban, Dynamic Systems Development Method, Extreme Programming, Feature Driven Development and Crystal.  All of them adhere to the Agile development quick guidelines.

2.       Scrum is the main subset of Agile development - This process is distinguished from other agile processes because of its specific concepts and practices.  It is divided into the three special categories of Roles, Artifacts, and Time Boxes.  Scrum is meant to significantly increase productivity.  It is also meant to reduce the time to benefits when it comes to classic “waterfall” processes.  Scrum Increases the quality of the deliverables, helps companies to cope better with change and provides better estimates while spending less time creating them.  It also helps companies to be more in control of the project schedule and state of the project.

3.       There are awesome benefits to switching to Agile - The key to aligning business strategy with what's happening on the front lines of development is to clearly define themes, goals, and metrics through the use of Agile methodology.  Agile is what is recommended by developers for use by businesses.  This is because it creates a sense of organization and helps the business to get things done quickly.  It gives companies a competitive advantage over those that do not use Agile development by allowing them to produce things quicker and through the entire project, rather than at the end of the whole thing.

4.       More and more companies are using Agile techniques – Even if the company has not fully switched over to using Agile development, most companies have looked into its use.  They research what Agile development is and put a lot of its 12 principals to use.  These companies take whichever version of Agile they want, even several different types, and use it to their advantage.  Companies who are not using Agile technology are falling behind those companies that do.  This is because these companies have formed advantages over companies that are not using this type of technology due to the speed that they can produce their work in.

5.       Agile is more of a mindset than it is anything – Basically the fist line of the Agile Manifesto describes the whole point to Agile.  Paraphrased, it states that better ways of software are being discovered and that Agile is meant to help others employ this technology to their business.  The idea of Agile is to face uncertainty, try something that you think may work based on what members of the groups say, get feedback, and adjust accordingly.  Agile is the idea that a company should let their context guide which frameworks, practices, and techniques they use to get together with their team and deliver value to their customers.  More and more companies are beginning to use this mindset and as a result they are taking off.  The values of the Manifesto are to provide guidance on how companies should create projects and respond to change.  It also shows them how to deal with uncertainty.

Why should my company use Agile development?

If your company has questions about using Agile development, they should research it some more.  Agile development can help to make your company more organized and produce things for your customers faster.  Its ideas can help you to form the proper teams within your company that you might need to get your Agile development off the ground.

The next big thing

Agile development ideas are quickly becoming the next big thing in today's business market.  Companies that are not using these values and principals are quickly falling behind the companies that do.  In this fast paced, market driven World companies have to keep up with their customers demands and produce quality goods quickly.  Work is faster when completed in groups and turned in step by step rather than all in one shot.  Agile development is allowing companies the chance to edit through each process of the project, rather than turning in the completed project and having to edit everything their customer doesn’t like all at once.

Faster production means more money

Because Agile helps companies become so good at producing goods, consumers are using companies that are only employing this method.  This is also because these companies include their customers all the way through the process.  If they don’t like something, the company changes it for the customer.  If your company hasn’t already started using Agile development, then they may begin to fall behind other companies.  You may want to suggest that they make a switch today.

Posted by Gabe Nelson

Gabe Nelson

Gabe Nelson is a content specialist of over 7 years of experience, currently working for Endertech.com. Just out of high school he set off crab fishing on the bering sea in Alaska. From there he went back home to finish his college degree at the University of Montana. He has a passion and keen understanding when it comes to Marketing inside and out. He has written hundreds of content pieces in numerous niches. Currently, he lives in Missouri with his wife and kids enjoying the peaceful town of St. Joseph.

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