Agile Courses

Agile is an approach to project management developed by a group of software developers who valued working software over lengthy documentation and the ability to respond and change during the project instead of following a fixed plan. The developers created the Agile Manifesto, which documents the values and working principles of the team. While the original framework was applied to software, teams in all different industries now use an Agile approach to manage projects successfully. Agile programs break up development into small increments of work. These increments are then tested at each stage to ensure the product functions as intended. As new information or errors are uncovered, the team can adapt and adjust planning as needed. Agile also values communication within the team and with the customer throughout the project to ensure everyone is on the same page and people can work well together.

Customer satisfaction is Agile's priority, met by providing valuable software. Second, embrace change to deliver better products. Third, handover working software often (usually in two-week intervals). Fourth, teams of software developers and business professionals work together through the entire project. Fifth, motivated team members are the key to successful projects and require support, trust, and a positive environment. Sixth, the best communication method is a face-to-face verbal conversation, whether internally or customer-facing. Seventh, progress is measured by the success of the frequent working software deliverables. Eighth, sustainable development means working at a constant pace everyone can maintain. Ninth, strive for technical excellence and quality design. Tenth, put simplicity at the forefront of the design. Eleventh, self-organizing teams create the best software. Finally, teams often reflect on how to better deliver and recalibrate based on the feedback.

The four values of Agile emphasize a flexible and collaborative approach to software design and project management. The values are formatted as comparisons between what is valued highly and what needs to be valued less. (1) The team members, customers, and how they interact (frequently and face-to-face) are much more valuable than creating processes or tools. (2) Software that works is more important than creating elaborate or detailed documentation on how the software works. (3) Collaborating with the customer throughout the project is more fruitful and productive than setting up a rigid contract between the customer and the development team at the project outset. (4) Embracing change and responding will always produce a better deliverable than if the team adheres to the original plan.