Every industry is filled with buzzwords, and IT is no exception. We have plenty of catchy terms that resonate with both the public and our customers – some more valuable than others.

One such term is agile development, often linked to the specific agile framework known as Scrum. In this blog post, we provide a brief introduction to agile development and Scrum.

Agile Development vs. Traditional Project Management

When starting product development, specifications, design, and construction are often not fully in place, which can make it difficult to commit to processes. Therefore, agile development can be an advantageous method to use.

Agile development is described by four core values that directly oppose waterfall development:

• Individuals and collaboration over processes and tools

• Working software over comprehensive documentation

• Customer collaboration over contract negotiation

• Responding to change over following a plan

Scrum Enables Continuous Improvement

Scrum is a development method under the “agile” umbrella. Initially used in software development, it can, in principle, be applied to any project.

Scrum is a popular agile process because the approach yields good results, especially when it comes to achieving high project execution effectiveness and delivering valuable solutions for users and, ultimately, customers. The goal of Scrum is to maximize the value of the effort put in, allowing the team to continually grow and achieve constant improvements. This is also at the core of Mjølner’s way of working with business value for our customers.

When working with Scrum, teams work in sprints—iterations that typically last one to several weeks. An iteration is seen as a mini project cycle, where a team designs and develops elements based on a prioritized list of needs and requirements. These elements are tested and ready to be part of the final solution. Each sprint ends with a deliverable product.

Why Does Mjølner Work with Agile Processes (Including Scrum)?

In this interview with Solution Architect Toke Boisen, we dive into “agile development” and Scrum, and get an explanation of how Mjølner works with the demand for agility in development.

What are your thoughts on the term ‘agility’ within software development?

In agile methods, we don’t just develop aimlessly without addressing specific requirements and design choices. We develop, test, and release the product. Agility comes into play when we accept that our environment is changing, and therefore, we must change our software.

“I think we’re just in a time where changes happen more frequently, and we therefore have a greater need to work agile with these needs.”

Why Does Mjølner Work with the Agile Approach?

When we work agile, we accept that we know a lot about what is close to us, while we know less about things further away. It’s okay if there’s a bit of fog about the future. Environments and needs typically change so quickly that we cannot qualitatively predict the requirements we’ll face down the line. Of course, we must ensure we understand the requirements with due diligence to avoid having fog too close to us.

On the other hand, it’s also important that the level of agility varies according to need. We have many projects where we start with requirement specifications, analysis, and design phases before starting development. These projects are completed just as successfully as those with greater needs for agility. The key is that we can handle changes to requirements and design in an agile way. This is part of change management in a project, and we’re fortunate to have project managers who excel at this.

Agility is about adjusting according to current requirements. Our business and developers must communicate with each other—developers, project managers, architects, business experts, and the client (the business) itself. If we include everyone, we can begin to talk about true agility.

“True agility starts in the business, and it arises when we in the business begin to treat changes as a natural ‘driver’ for all business development. If there are no changes, we have no need to be agile. Then agile development just becomes a buzzword that’s smart to use right now. And in itself, that holds no value.”

How Does Mjølner Work with Agile Development?

In practice, this means that when we execute a project, we work agile according to the principles we’ve discussed today. It might be Scrum, but also many other processes. We choose methods and processes and always adjust according to the need.

What Are the Key Things to Remember When Talking About Agility in IT Projects?

“True agility lies in the business, not in the development process.”

If it’s just the development process, we’ve reduced it to nothing more than prioritizing requirements, managing risks, and adjusting the project organization. The most important discipline is change management at all levels.

At Mjølner, we want agility, but it’s crucial to understand that Scrum is no more agile than the business you’re working with. Agility is really about handling changes in business and letting those changes drive decisions.

Sources:

Interview with Toke Boisen

https://mpeople.dk/agil-udvikling-vs-klassisk-projektledelse/

https://danskprojektledelse.dk/community/introduktion-til-scrum/