What is agile?

Agile, Scrum, and Kanban are popular methodologies used in software development and project management. Each approach has unique characteristics, but all share a common goal: to make the development process more efficient and effective.

Agile methodology is a flexible and iterative approach to software development. It emphasizes collaboration, continuous improvement, and customer satisfaction. The Agile Manifesto states that working software is more important than comprehensive documentation and that responding to change is more valuable than following a plan.

Scrum is a framework within the Agile methodology. It emphasizes teamwork, accountability, and frequent progress checks. An organisation that employs Scrum knows the following roles: a Product Owner, a Scrum Master, and a Development Team member. Teams are autonomous and consist of 7 members (5 min, 9 max). The teams work in time-boxed iterations called sprints, with the goal of delivering a potentially shippable product increment at the end of each sprint. The scrum master guards the process, and the Product Owner decides what goes into a sprint and guides the teams in implementing his/her product vision.

Kanban is another framework within the Agile methodology, it stems from Lean and the Toyota Production System (TPS). It emphasizes visualization, workflow optimization, and continuous delivery. Kanban teams use a board with columns that represent different stages of work. Each task is represented by a card that moves from one column to the next as it progresses through the workflow. instead of sprint retrospectives like the ‘scrum-folk’ have: Kanban teams use Kaizen ('Good Change' from Japanese) sessions to reflect and improve on the process and outcomes.

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In conclusion, Agile, Scrum, and Kanban are popular methodologies that are used in software development and project management. Agile is a flexible and iterative approach to software development, Scrum is a framework within the Agile methodology that emphasizes teamwork and accountability, and Kanban is another framework within the Agile methodology that emphasizes visualization and workflow optimization. These methodologies can be used separately or together depending on the project's needs. When the teams are working agile, measuring key metrics like productivity changes, our next article shows you how to get insights into key metrics in an agile software development environment.