Agile is gaining popularity as clients are constantly changing their needs. These are the best Agile practices that Agile methodology has to offer. This is what makes Agile so special.
Agile involves the customer in every step. The client is kept informed about the progress of the project and is included in the decision making process. Clients can be sure that the deliverables are as expected when they are in constant communication.
User Stories: These stories are used to gather user requirements. If they are too complicated, they are broken down into smaller user tales.
Product Backlog: This interesting concept allows users to update their product backlog. Then it is reviewed and broken down into smaller requirements. These are then prioritized by users, and the team decides how much effort is required to complete a task.
Iterative Development: This is the main advantage to Agile methodology, where user stories are created in feedback loops. The customer can see the results of the first iteration, which provides more value to them.
Time Boxed. Based on priority, effort, and impact on business, the team determines which user stories will be delivered in each sprint. The sprint timeframe does not change, and the work is determined based on the sprint schedule.
Visual Boards: This allows for all information to be easily visible, so that everyone can track the progress of each step. To track the progress of the project, burn down charts are used.
Daily Stand up’s: A meeting that keeps everyone updated about each step and any concerns or issues.
Show and Tell: After a sprint has been completed, a’show and tell’ meeting takes place to show the stakeholder the finished product. This meeting is very useful as the client can see the actual product and give feedback on any changes. This can be done in the next sprints.
Retrospectives: These are meetings that allow for an analysis of the sprint’s completion. These meetings allow for discussion of both the positive as well as the negative outcomes. The positive results can be used to determine the best methods for the sprint’s success. Conversely, the negative results can be used to help you understand what to do differently to avoid making the same mistakes again.
Emergent documentation: Agile doesn’t require extensive documentation at the beginning of a project. It emerges slowly over time. If the project is still in its initial stage, it will not be as clear. It is a waste of time to spend too much time on documentation if the final outcome is completely different from the original plan. It is better to have emerging documentation that needs to be updated as the project progresses.
Continuous integration and automated testing: Testing plays an important role in the software life-cycle. It allows for defects to be identified before the project is live. It must be continuous, not just at the end of implementation. Continuous integration is used by Agile to solve this problem. Regression testing is performed with every product change. This allows for early identification of issues and can be fixed quicker. This method also uses automated testing to cut down on the time required by the team for regular testing tasks.
Peer review and code review: These are two methods to find any flaws in the code. One is to submit the code for peer review. The other is pair programming, where two people are involved with the development of the code.
These are the best practices of Agile methodology. The above content is based on the book “Agile foundations” by BCS, The Chartered Institute of IT, as well as online content of Infosec Institute.
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