#1 Adopt An Agile Approach: Scrum Methodology
Agile development methods are iterative, incremental and person-centered. Their application aims for a better customer satisfaction, as well as the realization of a software fully functional at every step of its manufacture.
Scrum was originally outlined in an article published by two Japanese researchers and was named after an analogy made with rugby.
It is the most used methodology among existing Agile methods. It favors the development of a product one can confront with the market as swiftly as possible.
What are the basic principle of the Scrum methodology in a nutshell?
It is a dynamic and participative approach, the basic principle of which is to be always ready to redirect the project as it progresses.
This methodology favors the development of products corresponding to the actual demand of the customer which is undeniably an advantage in the management of a project.
It also allows everyone to participate in the evolution of the project instead of having the Project Manager alone define the evolution of the project and the group work.
Why participate in this agile transition (before, now and in the future)?
At the beggining of Technology Partner, a more traditional project methodology was used. Its logic offered less flexibility to follow the evolution of the client needs. This can result in a discrepancy between the delivered product and the final need.
Thus, IT Team worked hand in hand to fully apply the foundations of Agility, and Scrum more specifically. Our goal is to ensure a close relationship with customers. This logic gives the project room to grow as well as the flexibility to adapt to the evolution of customer expectations. It also provides additional visibility on the progress of the project.
The agile methodologies used in IT since the early 2000s should be, in our opinion, a standard extended to every part of an organization.
What challenges did Technology Partner encounter during the implementation of this methodology?
The Agile methodology is easy to understand but difficult to implement. Thus, we chose a step by step approach. We started with Daily Scrums, followed with the addition of Sprint Planning, progressively added Sprint Reviews, and then the Sprint Retrospective.
This process requires time, patience and involves an in-depth change of the exisiting management system. Collaborative, iterative and constructive work are our essential ingredients to develop strong trust with the protagonists and make a lasting and efficient change.
What are the benefits of this methodology?
Agility brings a well-defined role and well-assigned tasks to each employee which allows efficient organization and better satisfaction of customer expectations.
In addition, the team spirit is put forward! Indeed, the whole team must feel involved and motivated because it is directly integrated into the management and evolution of the project.
The budget of the project will be respected which is not necessarily the case when one adopts other methodologies requiring budget supplements on specification changes.
Finally, this approach gives priority to the tasks performed daily in each of our projects.