Why Agile Is The Best Alternate Methodology To Waterfall?

– Blog | Asahi Technologies

Posted on: 18 Feb 2016

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Why Agile Is The Best Alternate Methodology To Waterfall?

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Choosing the right project management methodology is crucial for the success of a
project. But when you have so many planning methodologies to choose from, how do
you know which one will yield better results? At Asahi Technologies, staying true to

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Why Agile Is The Best Alternate Methodology To Waterfall? – Blog | Asahi Technologies

our values, we keep you – our clients – informed about the pros and cons of using
different project management methodologies, to help you decide. Today, the methods
that will be scrutinized in detail are agile software methodology and waterfall
methodology – the two much-talked-about approaches in software development. Let’s
understand each of these methodologies better and evaluate which one is a better
choice, when it comes to delivering superior software products.

Waterfall – The Pioneer of SDLC Processes

Waterfall method exemplifies a typical sequential model, where the software

development lifecycle is divided into different phases, each phase having its own tasks
and objectives. Often called the first most-widely used project management
methodology in the software industry, waterfall was initially used in the
manufacturing and construction industry. So it won’t be wrong to understand this
model in the context of a manufacturing line. Just as it is in the case of a typical
assembly line in manufacturing, the output of one phase in the waterfall software
development model becomes the input of second phase. It is mandatory that the first
phase is completed with perfection before you move on the next phase because
overlapping is typically impossible in this methodology. This means, if you wish to
make a change in the proposed product feature much later in the implementation
phase, there is a lot of rework required. While waterfall certainly qualifies as a precise
and well-defined method, with a need to think through and describe all the
requirements upfront, this in fact is a major drawback of the methodology. Reason
being, it is simply impossible for someone to define all requirements upfront. This is
probably why, after the big Visual Studio doom, even Microsoft decided to do away
with their waterfall-like development methodology.

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Why Agile Is The Best Alternate Methodology To Waterfall? – Blog | Asahi Technologies

Why Waterfall Methodology Led Most of Us Down?

Aside from the inherent inability to accommodate change requests without a

significant increase in project cost, there are several other drawbacks which make
waterfall project management methodology not-so-ideal.

 Moving back to the previous phase is a challenge. This means, if a set of change requests

are introduced into the product while it is undergoing testing, pausing the testing phase to

do development is extremely cumbersome and expensive.

 It is not suitable for big and complicated projects, where requirements may change

frequently.

 Since testing is one of the last stages in waterfall methodology, identifying risks and

challenges in the earlier stages, and preparing a risk mitigation strategy, becomes

challenging.

Agile Software methodology – The Iterative Approach

Agile is a development method that is quick and responds swiftly to change. It is an

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Why Agile Is The Best Alternate Methodology To Waterfall? – Blog | Asahi Technologies

iterative approach to software development where variables like requirements,

designing, building, testing etc. run parallel to each other, in smaller timeframes called
Sprints. In Agile software development methodology, project requirements are not
defined upfront, but evolve naturally through collaboration with clients.

With the Agile method, the project is broken into small tasks that do not require a lot
of planning. The time frame for iterations is also small, typically between one and four
weeks. At the end of each iteration, the product is presented to the clients. As a result,
the risk is minimum and the project can adapt to any change in requirements quickly.
The feedback loop is very short. As a result, any issues can be addressed immediately.
The lines of communication between clients, the development team and the testing
team are open, which leads to increased efficiency.

Why Your Enterprise Needs Agile Methodology in the year 2016?

CHAOS RESOLUTION BY AGILE VERSUS WATERFALL

SIZE METHOD SUCCESSFUL CHALLENGED FAILED

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Why Agile Is The Best Alternate Methodology To Waterfall? – Blog | Asahi Technologies

All Size Projects Agile 39% 52% 9%

Waterfall 11% 60% 29%

Large Size Projects Agile 18% 59% 23%

Waterfall 3% 55% 42%

Medium Size Projects Agile 27% 62% 11%

Waterfall 7% 68% 25%

Small Size Projects Agile 58% 38% 4%

Waterfall 44% 45% 11%

If you are looking for a project management methodology, which has an easy learning
curve and can help your team improve and grow in a collaborative environment, Agile
is the answer. As more and more enterprises work towards deploying cloud based
services to render the best IT experience, and the focus shifts to quality and
productivity, adopting agile methodology for software development is certainly a step
in the right direction. According to the 2015 CHAOS Report by Standish Group, the
success rate of Agile projects was 39% as compared to only 11% in case of Waterfall.
While introducing Agile into your organization might seem challenging in the initial
stages, but the effort is totally worth it. Practicing Agile introduces elements like
continuous quality improvement and cost-effectiveness into your system, which
making it a perfect alternative to the traditional waterfall methodology.

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Why Agile Is The Best Alternate Methodology To Waterfall? – Blog | Asahi Technologies

Agile as an Alternative to Waterfall

When compared with the Waterfall methodology, Agile offers numerous advantages
especially when you’re working on large and complicated projects. Some of the main
advantages, and also the key reasons why enterprises are switching over to Agile, are:

 It has short planning cycles, so changes can be easily accommodated at any phase as per

evolving requirements of clients

 The stakeholder i.e. the client, is continuously involved with the product development

and this results in a solution that meets his expectations and satisfies him

 As an organization practicing Agile methodology, with the kind of interaction involved,

you can be sure of achieving a higher level of team cohesiveness.

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Why Agile Is The Best Alternate Methodology To Waterfall? – Blog | Asahi Technologies

Recently, Gartner did research which revealed how CIOs are looking at agile
development as a way to adjust new ways of doing business. And according to
Gartner,adopting agile is the need of the hour for IT leaders and executives, just like
Microsoft recently did under the supervision Senior Knowledge Manager, Michele
Eichhorn.

Agile – The Go-To Methodology for Asahi

Hopefully, this article answers some of your queries about how Agile methodology
scores over the traditional Waterfall methodology. We at Asahi Technologies
acknowledge these advantages and stay firm at developing solutions using Agile
approach.

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