9 Common Types Of Agile Methodologies In The Workplace

When looking to improve efficiency within software development teams, organizations frequently use agile methodologies. Agile software development methodologies help improve team effectiveness across the spectrum of the development process. From creating more effective preliminary planning to ensuring timely or even early delivery of the end product, different agile methodologies can assist teams each step of the way.

In this article, we explain what agile methodologies are, the many benefits they can provide and nine of the most important and commonly used methodologies.

What are agile methodologies?

Agile methodologies are systems of self-organization used by software development organizations to improve efficiency and encourage cooperation with the customer or intended software user. Software development teams often encounter issues they can fix by using these methodologies. These methodologies build teams of multi-disciplinary individuals to better meet deadlines and encourage continual improvement of the software.

The original developers of agile software development, the authors of the 2001 Manifesto for Agile Software Development, laid out the founding principles or values of agile methodologies. These values involve the valuing of individuals over standard processes, the importance of developing software that works properly for the client, constant collaboration with the customer, and rapid adaptability to overcome problems. These founding principles seek to improve not only the workplace and process of software development but to improve the software itself as well.

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Benefits of agile methodologies

Agile software development methodologies provide a variety of benefits to organizations that decide to use them. Although each method provides different benefits or varying degrees of those benefits, these are the overarching benefits of implementing agile methodologies:

• Reduced the need for editing completed work as it involved the customer in the development

• Improved employee satisfaction as they built teams to create a better workplace and make employees feel valued

• It increased shorter turnover of assigned projects as efficiency increased through team building and customer collaboration

• Improved client feedback as they feel their needs are better met through continual communication

9 common agile methodologies

Here are nine of the most commonly used agile methodologies:

1. Kanban

Kanban is a visual content management system used to implement constant delivery of developing work to clients. This method of workplace organization allows team members and clients to keep track of all aspects of the development process. This allows them to know where there are efficiency issues and actively provide solutions to ensure the team meets overall delivery timelines and customer satisfaction. Despite this improvement of efficiency, Kanban doesn’t use individual timelines for each step of the project, so without proper oversight, there can be issues with project punctuality.

2. Scrum

Scrum is a simple system of project organization that focuses on ownership of project items and due dates for each step of the process. Individual teams claim projects from a previously developed log of items that are necessary to complete. Priority items are labeled and completed first. Log items receive a “sprint” timeline designation which is a relatively short period during which they expect the team to complete their project. The team holds both daily and weekly meetings with a “scrum master” who handles general project oversight for the entire log.

3. Feature-driven development (FDD)

Feature-driven development works on a two-week project schedule. After breaking each facet of the development process into various features, teams work on developing these features separately. This requires higher levels of planning than some other agile methodologies. This method focuses on product features and seeks to ensure that teams create stable software to improve customer satisfaction.

4. Behavior-driven development (BDD)

Behavior-driven development is an agile methodology that emphasizes the inclusion of non-technical developers in the development process. This allows for a continual review of software functionality from a non-technical aspect that improves end-user function. By breaking down the walls of the highly technical software development process, BDD creates a workplace with increased collaboration and communication from a highly varied interdisciplinary team.

5. Lean development

Lean development began as the application of the principles of the “lean manufacturing” system to software development. An emphasis on simplicity and minimalism is the essence of the lean development agile method. This minimalism works to create extreme efficiency and fast completion of projects. What would be multiple-part tasks within other systems are broken down into simple components and then completed by individual specialized team members. This process depends upon a solid developmental system before creation and implementation.

6. Adaptive software development (ASD)

Adaptive software development, as its name might indicate, focuses on adaptation and change throughout the development process. During the development process, problems continually arise. Rather than forming a rigid framework for this process that may have a hard time overcoming unforeseen issues, ASD plans to continually change, learn and shift focus. This allows teams to collaborate and learn from each other and from the individual problems that arise to continually develop a better workflow system and to efficiently complete projects.

7. Crystal

Crystal is an umbrella term for a series of methodologies that encompasses varying team sizes. Crystal methodologies can work for teams of as small as eight to as large as 1,000 team members. The organization’s general team size outlines each method. An emphasis on communication seeks to improve efficiency and quality. The extensive collaboration and discussion among team members foster an improved workflow.

8. Extreme programming (XP)

Another customer satisfaction-centered methodology, extreme programming seeks to provide simple, properly working software that is continually reviewed by the client to ensure it meets their needs. XP fosters an environment that encourages developers to accept criticism and demands for the reworking of previously finished aspects of a program. Productivity lies at the heart of the XP system, with a large and well-framed hierarchy within teams and managers to improve efficiency.

9. Dynamic systems development method (DSDM)

The dynamic systems development method is an agile methodology that focuses on the business aspects of software development. With an emphasis on the rapid delivery of products, DSDM uses sprints to ensure timeliness. Like other methodologies, the DSDM plans on the continual editing of software throughout the development process. The DSDM seeks to improve customer satisfaction and development efficiency by working from a viewpoint that champions business principles rather than traditional software development principles.

I hope you find this article helpful.