Agile software development is all about taking an incremental approach. With a focus on rapid delivery, this approach is broken down into set Sprints or predetermined periods of time during which a specific task or activity must completed and then reviewed. It’s all about continuous improvement, flexibility, regular input from team members and from the customer or client. Imagine you were building your dream home. Chances are that you’d want to check in regularly with the architect and construction team to ensure that everything is being done how you want it to be done. You wouldn’t wait until the entire house was complete before alerting the architect that you actually require three bedrooms, not two.
Agile methodology is driven by regular interactions between the software developers and the client to ensure that that everyone is happy and that the project is heading in the right direction.
There are many benefits to the Agile software development. They include:
#1 Improved stakeholder engagement
With Agile software development, key stakeholders and team members are given multiple opportunities to have their say before, during and after each Sprint. By involving the client in each development step, there’s less chance that developers won’t deliver on the client’s needs and a greater chance that the client will be happy with the final outcome. This also gives the client greater peace of mind because they are witnessing the team’s ability to deliver high-quality working software first-hand.
#2 Greater predictability
Because Agile is such a collaborative approach, the entire team is working in unison. And with tasks being broken down into time-specific Sprints, cycles of work must be completed within a certain period. This makes predictability a key benefit Agile projects because everyone understands what will be delivered by what deadline. This also helps organisations to manage and predict costs because there is only so much work that can be completed by a team within fixed period of time.
#3 Enhanced transparency
When it comes to Agile, the client has to be involved in all aspects of the process. From prioritising specific features to planning and reviews, this development process offers high visibility and greater flexibility to change, which is highly important. Because the client is given sneak peeks into the product during the development life cycle they can refine any issues and be sure that the outcome meets their expectations.
#4 Boost business value
Often, software development teams are kept quite separate from their clients. As such, they don’t have a clear idea of the business’ goals and priorities. But when working together so closely, as is the case with Agile, they can gauge what features are top priorities to the business’ bottom line. This helps them to deliver features on the features that hold the greatest value to the business.
#5 Guaranteed quality
Testing is a part of the Agile software development cycle. These regular checkups give developers the chance to identify, and fix, any bugs or problems that they didn’t expect. And because these tests occur regularly, the development team can address issues while they’re still fresh. With everything thoroughly tested, it’s far simpler to guarantee that the software meets a very specific quality standard.
There’s no doubt that Agile is a powerful software development tool. Need help getting started on your Agile journey? Feel free to fill in your details below, we’d love to assist you.
