Agile and Scrum in project delivery – what does it really mean for the client
At Future Processing, the Agile methodology has helped us work more efficiently and also made the way that we work much more enjoyable too!
The Agile Manifesto outlines four universal values that are highly desirable these days in software development:
- Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
- Working software over comprehensive documentation
- Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
- Responding to changes over following a plan
However, even though everyone wants to be Agile and everyone talks about being Agile – not many companies actually are, leaving their clients unable to truly experience all the differences and the benefits that are associated with this methodology. That’s why there seems to be a bit of skepticism surrounding the topic at times.
So we are always prepared to do everything we can to remove any lingering doubts that our clients may have, so that we can turn them into Agile-enthusiasts. What does this really mean to our clients?
Benefits of working in an Agile environment
Increased flexibility = quicker reactions to changes
We are able to work with flexibility, always ready to scale our teams up or down, learn new technologies, and adapt quickly to changes, etc. This means that whenever our clients make any modifications to their initial requirements, we are able to react swiftly in accordance with their needs.
Better productivity = faster delivery
The more efficiently we work, the faster and more flawlessly we can deliver. This makes us more predictable for our customers, which also helps them appear more reliable to their stakeholders.
Increased work satisfaction = better quality of collaboration
The quality of any collaborative experience increases in proportion to the satisfaction of the people involved. The Agile methodology makes the process of software delivery more enjoyable for everyone, so people are automatically more engaged in every aspect of the project.
Focus on innovation = better outcomes
The Agile methodology pushes the development team to always look for the best and most up-to-date solutions. They don’t shy away from innovation, as long as it is to the benefit of the client. This approach leads to better, and more future-oriented outcomes.
Better communication = reduced misunderstandings
Communication is king. Maintaining constant contact with clients, along with placing a strong emphasis on sharing a mutual understanding of each and every concept that we deal with, results in little to no confusion at all.
The Agile environment at Future Processing
At Future Processing, we put both our clients and our employees at the centre of attention, and our strategy is built around this approach. We follow several strategic steps to achieve the most desirable results:
- We share an understanding of what Agile means within the organisation. From the executive level to the junior specialists.
- We focus on: communication, reliability, predictability and teamwork.
- We define individual roles and responsibilities, and monitor progress.
- We stay flexible enough to adjust to any changes that appear.
- We maintain smooth communication and put an emphasis on educating people. This includes introducing the Agile concept to our customers as well, so that they have a chance to familiarise themselves with all the related benefits and changes.
- We never stop improving our Agile development – we listen to feedback from both our employees and customers.
- We measure our results.
We do all this to inscribe Agile values within our company’s DNA.
Scrum roles and processes
The roles below benefit both sides of the project by facilitating workflow and communication, and helping the team make the most of any task:
- Product Owner – represents the needs of the stakeholders and is responsible for making the outcome of the work as valuable as possible.
- Scrum Master – responsible for the team’s effectiveness during sprints.
- Team Leader – acts like a link between the team and management, making technical decisions and assigning tasks.
- Development Team – a team whose members possess expertise in the desired fields, responsible for task execution in accordance with the plan, keeping things moving towards a sprint goal.
It’s hard to avoid noticing that all of these roles focus on the client and their expectations. Once they all start to work together as a well-oiled machine, their productivity and engagement levels get a big boost, which positively influences the collaboration between both parties.
Scrum processes also work to the client’s satisfaction, because they add structure to the entire cooperation – making it more time-framed and predictable:
- Daily stand-up meetings – for tracking the progress of each and every member of the development team.
- Sprint planning – for determining what should be done during the sprint and how to do it.
- Sprint retrospectives – for identifying what went well during the sprint and what should be improved in the sprints to come.
These processes are based on the assumption that the development team aims to constantly optimise the way they work and learn from their previous experiences, so that they can be as productive as possible.
Wrap-up
When engaging Agile and Scrum in development, every assumption, role and process is designed to benefit both the client and the software development team. And when you look at it a little more closely, you will notice that everything boils down to putting people first, and this attitude always pays off. If you want to see what this looks like in practice within our own company, and how you and your clients can benefit from Agile and Scrum – feel free to contact us any time.