For readers unfamiliar with the agile methodology, consider the following points. While the agile methodology was created for software development, it is now being applied more widely. For example, the legal industry – long known for its regulation and focus on tradition – has started to adopt agile. LegalTrek, for example, uses the agile approach to produce services for its customers.
Broadly speaking, the agile approach to IT development emphasizes speed and close communication. Achieving the best results with agile requires a well-connected team. For many organizations, the best way to obtain agile benefits lies in locating staff in the same location to reduce communication friction.
Mark Arntz, a consultant with ASPE, has become an advocate for the agile methodology to achieve better results. ASPE is a North American training company specializing in all aspects of the software development life cycle (SDLC).
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Getting a prototype product into a customer’s hands early is a key benefit to agile. His perspective on agile is informed by a challenging project he worked on in the early 2000s. At that time, Arntz was managing a project that worked around the clock with an offshore team. Accessing lower-cost staff from abroad was a key driver for the project. However, Antz’s U.S. team found that it spent considerable team on documentation and rework to maintain quality standards.
In contrast, Arntz has seen significant productivity gains using agile and in person teams. “Given a six-month project, it could be three months to see any kind of prototype with a waterfall approach. In agile, it would be less than a month to see a prototype. In waterfall, the change process is often very difficult to navigate. In agile, we say change is good and we recognize opportunity cost incurred by change,” says Arntz.
The agile emphasis on face-to-face interaction and cooperation makes a difference to productivity. “With in-person communications, we can write a diagram in a meeting room. We can then start working on developing the product immediately afterwards. It is also easier and faster to do problem solving. Managing a growing volume of documentation means less time to work on the product,” says Antz.
“With increased distance between project team members, I see an increased need for documentation. More time spent on documentation means less time on software production,” he says. The cost of increased documentation and other formal communication is an important variable to consider as you plan your next technology project.
Face-to-face interaction helps productivity. Unfortunately, it is not always possible. What if your organization has developers, engineers and project managers based around the country or further afield Making that arrangement work effectively is challenging. Agile can still be helpful with a supportive culture.
“Success with agile methodology is 5 percent due to the tools used and 95 percent due to the culture,” says Scott Rose, senior director of product management at Collab.net. Collab helps organizations develop enterprise-scale software with collaboration technologies. To support Collab staff located around the world, Rose periodically has early morning and late evening meetings. “It is important that we rotate the schedule – we don’t want one time to feel that they are always the ones who have to stay up late,” Rose says.
Collab’s customers include major organizations such as HP, Intel, Sun Microsystems, the Project Management Institute and Siemens. Cultural adoption of agile is driven by several factors including training and a willingness to try new approaches.
“Our agile approach starts with feedback,” Rose says. “We take in customer requests for enhancements, bug reports and internal suggestions and add that to our backlog.” Collab.net uses Salesforce to collect and manage customer feedback and deliver customer service. Collecting and managing customer feedback in a systematic way means complaints and requests are rarely lost in the shuffle.
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“With agile, we can slice scope into small easy to manage pieces and put those into production,” Rose says. “By delivering new features and enhancements in sprints, we can keep momentum and be responsive to customers.” Delivering small features gradually makes it easier to adjust and take a new approach. In contrast, the traditional approach emphasizes change management and extensive controls. Risk adverse organizations may prefer that approach. If your organization puts a priority on innovation, adopting agile is well worth the effort.
Before you promote the agile methodology at your organization, take the time to do your research. Without a background on the philosophy, agile may be misunderstood as the latest in a long line of management fads. Here are a few specific points to explore as you plan your goals (and productivity improvement efforts) for the New Year: