Agile methodology has been a huge revolution in the software development process on account of promoting flexibility collaboration and continuous improvement. To put it in contrast, Agile is not a traditional model such as Waterfall, where the project is developed in one complete iteration, but rather it involves iterative development, where teams can deliver smaller, but functional components of a project in the form of iterations and sprints. The result has been to speed delivery and react more quickly to changing customer needs.
Collaboration is one of Agile’s strong sides. As the project goes on, developers, testers and business stakeholders work closely together in cross functional teams. Transparency and overall collective accountability is achieved through the use of daily stand up meetings and regular sprint reviews that keep everyone aligned on our goals and progress. This direct power of a unified effort increases productivity and output quality.
Because agile is iterative, giving constant feedback and course correction from the start is necessary. Rather than waiting until the end of a project to realize there are issues, teams collate input on a sprint by sprint basis from users and stakeholders. Fast bug identification and resolution allows for increased reliability and higher end user happiness with the final product. The built-in feature is adaptability.
In addition, Agile has also changed the way of project management in software development. Managers are still around, though they’re less like the dominators in a meeting and more like the facilitators (Project managers). The switch to a self driven model promotes increased autonomy, more motivation and a much more dynamic work environment. Agile engenders innovation by trusting teams to experiment and enthusiasm with their solutions.
Continuous integration and delivery is also supported by agile which shortens time to market. Testing and deployment pipelines are automated so code changes are tested and deployed effectively. By taking this streamlined approach, you save time and more importantly, you reduce risk; smaller changes are easier to test, track and roll back if issues arise.
Conclusion
As a final conclusion, Agile methodology has turned software development into a more able, collaborative and effective process. As it's not about completing a task, but rather breaking them down to smaller pieces that are more manageable and easier to complete, over time; and providing continuous feedback from users and overall expectations of the business, Agile means that teams can develop better software more quickly, without abandoning their ideology or attempts to reach business goals.
