This article illustrates distinctions between Common Agile Approaches and Frameworks, incl. when and how to use them.
What is an Agile Framework?
- An Agile framework is a project management method that promotes the Agile mindset when developing software and other products.
- Every Agile framework’s primary goal is incorporating client feedback into various stages of the development cycle to allow for changes as the project progresses.
- Agile frameworks promote frequent input, immediate feedback, and a focus on quality.
Common Agile Methodologies:
| Scrum | Kanban | Lean |
| Scrum emphasises teamwork in tiny portions at a time, with continuous improvement and feedback loops. | Kanban is a visual agile approach that focuses on optimising workflow in a continuous delivery model. | Lean methodology enables teams to produce things more efficiently and effectively by eliminating unnecessary work. |
| Workflow is iterative as the sprint cycle lasts between 1 and 4 weeks. | Kanban works in a continuous flow where tasks are pulled based on capacity and priority. | Lean also works on continuous workflow. |
| Work is timeboxed, such as sprints, daily scrum, sprint planning, sprint retrospective and sprint review. | Except for the daily standup, there are no time constraints. Demos can occur at any time. | No mandatory or customary rituals exist, but daily standups, retrospectives, and reviews are encouraged. |
| Scrum master, product owner, development teams. | No roles are defined. | No roles are defined. |
| When a sprint has started, nothing should be dropped or added. | Priorities can change at any time. | Priorities only alter if they are in line with the customer’s input. |
| Transparency, adaptation, and Inspection. | Effective, efficient, and Predictable. | Build, measure, learn |
| Artefacts for Scrum are product backlog, sprint backlog, sprint retrospective and Burndown chart. | Artefacts for Kanban are Kanban board, Kanban card, WIP Limits and swim lanes. | Value stream mapping, continuous improvement, and the 5S system are examples of Lean artefacts. |
| Scrum can be used when a cross-functional team is developing a product requiring frequent input and testing. | Kanban can be used when the requirements change frequently and must be delivered quickly. | Lean is a business strategy that promotes the flow of value to customers by upholding a culture of constant improvement and respect for individuals. |
Scaling of Agile:
Scaling Frameworks are used in organisations where multiple teams work on numerous interconnected projects. This strategy entails breaking down large and complex projects into smaller and more manageable components, allowing for more efficient coordination and delivery of software that meets client requirements while lowering complexity.
Before expanding Agile, assess the company’s current Agile maturity level to identify existing Agile practices, barriers, and areas for improvement. This assessment will help you adjust the scaling approach to your company’s needs.
The table below depicts the four possible teams and product configurations. Notably, just one of them calls for scalability.
| Number of Teams | Number of Products | Scenario |
| 1 | 1 | A single team develops a single product. Scaling is not required. |
| 1 | More than 1 | A project manager has two options: establish numerous teams, each focusing on a distinct product, or accumulate a backlog of products and work on each one at a time. A single team develops several items. Scaling is unnecessary. |
| More than 1 | More than 1 | Teams and Products both have an equal number. Scaling is unnecessary. |
| More than 1 | 1 | When several teams work together to deliver a significant product solution, a project manager should employ a scaled Agile methodology. |
Pros and Cons of Agile Scaling:
| Pros | Cons |
| Improved effectiveness and productivity | High Cost |
| Reduced time to market | Communication challenges |
| Better adherence to consumer needs | Complex planning |
Common Scaled Agile Framework:
Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) | Large-Scale Scrum (LeSS) | Disciplined Agile (DA) |
| Scaled agile enables businesses to quickly produce high-quality software that satisfies consumer and market demands. | “Large-Scale Scrum” refers to a framework that is larger than usual and enables you to deploy the key components and guiding principles of Scrum across several teams. | Disciplined Agile (DA) is a toolset that gives organisations clear instructions on simplifying their procedures context-sensitively, laying the groundwork for business agility. |
| Applicable to large-scale Projects that have at least 50-125 team members. | LeSS for two to eight teams (10-50 people) LeSS Huge for more than eight teams (50-6000+ people). | Applicable to team volumes of 12-50. |
| Used in businesses where employees will operate in a variety of teams. | Applied where the team would like to keep the agile principles intact. | Both small projects with a single team and huge business projects with several teams can use this framework. |
| Has specific roles, ceremonies, and artefacts. | Focuses on the fundamental scrum principles while adapting to large-scale development. | Adaptable, allowing the organisation to tweak and customise its approach to individual demands. |
| SAFe provides a hierarchical structure with portfolio, program, and team levels. | LeSS promotes a single product backlog all teams share, enabling collaboration and mutual ownership. | DA offers recommendations for scaling agile practice while allowing for several products within a single organisation. |
| It deals with complicated and highly interdependent solutions that include several teams from various domains. | Focuses on the scalability of complicated product development with few dependencies and simple organisational structures. | Provides a customisable framework that can be tailored to fit the complexity of the solution being developed. |
| Reduce time to market by coordinating and synchronising work across all organisational levels. | Reduces coordination overhead, allowing teams to maintain a sustainable pace and promoting faster market time. | Focuses on offering a realistic strategy that balances speed and quality to provide timely value. |
| SAFe is more rigid and appropriate for large businesses with sophisticated solutions. | LeSS offers more flexibility and simplicity. | DA provides more flexibility and simplicity. |
As the table below explains, several factors determine the proper agile framework to use.
In Conclusion:
- Agile is the future, as more and more firms move towards it, and it is not limited to a specific industry.
- The Agile Method is a popular project management style in the software development industry and beyond. Its adaptability and flexibility make it the ideal project management methodology for the 21st
- The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of adaptability in the face of uncertainty, and the future no longer appears certain. Despite its potential downsides, the related benefits of Agile Methodology are vast when implemented appropriately by a team prepared to commit to its principles.
- By embracing agile, the principal team may provide more value to consumers, improve collaboration and communication, and raise project success rates.
- Agile demands a culture transformation and investments in training and resources, but it has the potential to increase project management performance and overall company agility significantly.
At On Device Solutions (ODS), you will find certified enterprise and solution architects and consultants with decades of agile delivery expertise. Please contact our dedicated ODS team to discover how we can help you accomplish your enterprise goals.
