What Is Agile and Scrum? Speed Up Your Software Projects

With traditional methods, 70% of software projects fail or are delivered late. Agile emerged to change this — and Scrum is Agile's most popular framework.

What Is Agile?

Agile is a philosophical framework that advocates building software through an iterative and incremental approach.

Agile Manifesto (2001):

1. Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
2. Working software over comprehensive documentation
3. Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
4. Responding to change over following a plan

Waterfall vs Agile

| Criteria | Waterfall | Agile | |----------|-----------|-------| | Approach | Sequential, linear | Iterative, cyclical | | Planning | Everything planned upfront | In short cycles | | Delivery | Single delivery at project end | Working product every sprint | | Change | Difficult and expensive | Expected and embraced | | Client involvement | Beginning and end | Continuous | | Risk | Discovered late | Early detection | | Feedback | At project end | Every 2-4 weeks |

What Is Scrum?

Scrum is the most widely used Agile framework. It works in 2-4 week cycles called sprints.

Scrum Roles:

Product Owner:

• Decides what to build
• Manages the product backlog
• Prioritizes by business value
• Bridge to the customer

Scrum Master:

• Removes team blockers
• Facilitates the Scrum process
• Protects and develops the team
• A coach, not a manager

Development Team:

• 3-9 people doing the work
• Self-organizing
• Cross-functional (design, code, test)
• Delivers work each sprint

Scrum Events:

1. Sprint Planning

• Determines what will be done in the sprint
• Selects items from product backlog to sprint backlog
• Sets the sprint goal

2. Daily Standup

• 15 minutes every day
• 3 questions: What did I do yesterday? What will I do today? Any blockers?
• Synchronization, not status reporting

3. Sprint Review

• Working product demo at sprint end
• Stakeholder feedback
• Backlog updates

4. Sprint Retrospective

• "What did we do well? What should we improve?"
• Process improvement
• Team dynamics

Scrum Artifacts:

Product Backlog: Prioritized list of all work to be done.

Sprint Backlog: Work selected for the current sprint.

Increment: Working product delivered at the end of each sprint.

Other Agile Frameworks

| Framework | Highlight | Best For | |-----------|-----------|----------| | Scrum | Sprints, roles, events | Software teams | | Kanban | Visual board, WIP limits | Support/maintenance | | XP | Pair programming, TDD | Engineering-focused | | SAFe | Large-Scale Agile | Enterprise | | Lean | Waste reduction | Startups |

Agile Metrics

| Metric | Description | |--------|-------------| | Velocity | Work completed per sprint | | Burndown Chart | Remaining work visualization | | Cycle Time | Start-to-finish time for an item | | Lead Time | Total request-to-delivery time | | Sprint Goal Success | Sprint goal achievement rate |

Common Mistakes

1. Saying "we do Agile" but working waterfall
2. Using Scrum Master as a project manager
3. Extending sprints or changing commitments
4. Skipping retrospectives
5. Ignoring technical debt
6. Writing "tasks" instead of "user stories"

Conclusion

Agile and Scrum are a revolution in software development. Faster delivery, lower risk, and happier clients. But it's a culture change, not just tools. The team adopting the Agile mindset matters more than using the tools.

If you'd like to manage your projects with Agile and Scrum practices, get in touch: info@cagribilgehan.com. Check out my projects: cagribilgehan.com