The Art Of Agile Project Management- A Comprehensive Guide

Agile Project Management (APM) is one of the innovatory procedure bring in for the carry out of project management. And many smart organizations have ditched on to this method to hit their milestones and with proper execution. Let’s have a discussion on the major facts of APM with a comprehensive guide.

What is Agile?

Agile software development is a quick yet iterative approach to incremental software development aiming the delivery, instead of trying to deliver everything only after completion.

This methodology is based on continuous productivity of the team, flexibility, improvement, and product delivery before the deadline without compromising the quality.

What are the common principles of Agile methodology?

• Customer satisfaction is the first priority which can be achieved through rapid delivery of products or projects with high-quality.
• All team members and stakeholders remain motivated for the best project outcomes with the required support and tools.

Before entering the benefits and other factors of agile project management, I would like to show the difference between agile and traditional project management methods and why agile has been chosen over traditional! Let’s dive inside;

Agile methodology Vs. Traditional development:

(Source: jm2marketing.com )

In software development, frequently we talk about “Traditional model” which defines the “waterfall model”. The waterfall model is a process where you can see the progress going through different phases. It is a steady model that goes from the analysis, planning, implementation, testing, to maintenance.

Agile is the base of development. It manages to deliver adaptability, visibility, and the value at the initial stage of the process and removes the risks during the project. It shows the actual progress in real time. So it is all about iterative planning to complete a project on time.

So these are the common differences between traditional and agile methodology. Now let’s talk about the major benefits of choosing agile project management.

Benefits of Agile Project Management:

1. High product quality – Testing is involved throughout the cycle. That implies there are regular checkups to check the product that is working to expectation during the development. It allows the product owner to make necessary changes if required and the team is aware if there are any issues
2. Efficiency – Agile makes its teams more efficient in getting their work done. When everyone does their role properly in the team by focusing on their most important tasks, the entire team works flawlessly which helps them to complete the projects on time.
3. Higher customer satisfaction – While working on a project, the first and foremost thing to consider is “customer satisfaction”.The flexibility to change when it is required and the visibility of the product and progress create better customer satisfaction and business engagement. This is one of the most important benefits that can create positive working relationships.
4. Transparency – Agile methodology offers an extraordinary opportunity for clients to get connected throughout the project, from initial planning to adding new features addition. Hence, transparency increases in a project and clients can check the project progress whether it is satisfactory or not.
5. Reduced risks – Agile methodologies eliminate the chances of project failure. It helps to identify any issues early and makes it easier for the team members to rectify them. Agile allows for the changes when they need to be implemented.
6. Faster ROI – Agile development is iterative- this means the features are delivered incrementally. It results to the early realization of benefits while the product is in the development process or the project is in progress. Agile means fast product releases and keeping you ahead of the competition.

For better understanding, below I have put a image to show “Agile Project management Life Cycle”-

Seeing the popularity, various agile methodologies have emerged from last few years. Within all, some commonly/frequently used methods are in demand. So,

What are the popular agile methodologies?

• Scrum
• Kanban
• Crystal
• Lean (LN)
• Crystal Clear methods
• Scrumban
• Extreme Programming (XP)
• Feature-driven development (FDD)

What are the Key Agile Skills?

There are 6 key agile project management skills that all project managers should carry:

1. An ability to erase unnecessary work and focus only on important work
2. The ability to remain calm on stress
3. The ability to make decisions quickly as per the requirements
4. Strong coaching skills to guide team members throughout the project
5. Adaptability skill to accept changes and reduce risk
6. Organizational ability to keep everything prioritize and straight

What is the future of Agile?

As the competition is increasing continuously, agile offers a lot of benefits and limited drawbacks. More companies are moving towards digital workplace which is dependant on speed, increased productivity, and flexibility, agile would become increasingly necessary. Its application in multiple industries indicate that agile adoption rate will continue to increase in industries around the world.

Bottom Line:

Agile is now on the top. In today’s challenging world, organizations look for an advanced approach as they want to become more agile. So they are heading towards Agile project management software which can help them to reach on the top.

This software are designed to make agile management easier and flawless. Tools like Orangescrum are getting immensely popular.

Orangescrum is a powerful project management software which helps in your business growth. Now create projects, invite your teams and assign tasks to your team members in less than a minute with this agile project management tool.

The best thing about this tool is, it offers a one-month free trial to go through it thoroughly and to know it more. If you don’t have an account yet, then no need to worry.

Sign up here and get a one-month free tour.