What is Agile Development?

With the push for faster software development, it only makes sense that processes have strayed from the traditional sense. In the past, software development was an extremely drawn-out project that required an extensive timeline to complete. As technology has improved, the need for a more flexible development operation has increased. In response, the agile software development process was created.

The agile software development methods are explained as a concise timeline for a project with specific phases that must be completed before moving onto the next. These phases are often called “sprints,” as the phase ends just as quickly as it begins. Even if some people disagree on how complete the phase is, once the time ends out for the sprint, the team must move on to the next phase.

While this might sound detrimental to the project overall, it forces the development team to produce the highest quality work, collaborates effectively with others, and follow along with a strict schedule – making it very difficult to overrun the timeline.

Agile software development is a solution for projects that need flexible solutions. As team members come up against problems during a particular phase, they are much more likely to ask for help or advice in a collaborative sense in this method than a traditional one. The agile framework encourages simple and automated solutions wherever possible to keep the project streamlined and on task.

Instead of having a disconnect between developers and the business side of a project, they often are required to work hand in hand within agile software development. Teams using this method are extremely self-organized and motivated to provide quality work. Although the method stresses individual responsibility, it also requires a lot of face to face communication (often through daily brainstorming meetings) to get everyone on the same page throughout the timeline.

Where the traditional method would focus on a centralized center of authority that makes the most decisions, in agile software development the majority of decisions are made by the team throughout the project. Because they aren’t focused on following the red tape of a traditional process, agile software development gives teams more responsibility and freedom for their part in the project. This also means that most members of an agile team will be cross-functional and able to pick up on the different requirements of the project themselves.

In a rapidly changing technological world, getting your software developed quickly is crucial to staying ahead of your competitors. When you are ready to shed your traditional development method for an agile one, get in contact with the Charter Global team!