Waterfall, Agile, or Hybrid?
The emergence of digital transformation has impacted the silo mentality to shift to a collaborative project management approach. Organizations using antiquated systems development approaches are transitioning to adapt to ever-changing systems requirements. Hence, the companies are now able to change their mindset and embrace newer project management techniques to accelerate their business operations. Let’s explore project management methodologies, so you might be able to make your mind on what’s the best fit for your business.
Waterfall Method
The traditional or waterfall project management follows a sequential design process. The project’s progress flows downwards like a waterfall. It is commonly practiced in manufacturing and construction industries, owing to its inflexible nature where the model acts as a case study to better understand what not to do.
Consider, your job is to build a house. You lay down the ground which you have to stick to until the completion time. The waterfall model works in the same way. Your construction team will have to work on one section at a time before moving on to the next one. The requirements are clearly defined at the beginning of the project and testing happens once the product is ready.
Pros
1. Project requirements, timeline, cost, risks are all clearly defined.
2. Complete and detailed documentation in hand.
Cons
1. Less flexible. It can get complex to start from scratch if the end result is not satisfactory, therefore can exceed budget, time, and compromise quality.
Agile Method
An iterative approach to improve business processes. According to the survey by consulting firm, McKinsey, 70% of companies, in some shape or form, are piloting Agile now. It was originated in software product development to divide the project into sprints or smaller “chunks”. Such that developers can code in quicker cycles and continuously test and discuss with the team at the end of every sprint. It becomes helpful to stay on the right track and fix bugs right away rather than waiting for the deployment of the final product.
Pros
1. The agile incremental development adds user visibility, ensures that teams can use feedback to make changes early and often.
2. You do not have to waste effort in detailing future aspects of the product backlog that are likely to change because of changes in the market conditions or management decisions.
Cons
1. Lack of close collaboration and user involvement can impact the quality of the final product.
2. The model is likely to undergo scope creep as the beginning of the development lifecycle involves insufficient detailed planning.
3. You cannot pre-assess the effort, cost, and time of delivering the final product.
Agile-Waterfall Hybrid Model
The Hybrid model utilizes the elements of both waterfall and agile frameworks. If your client doesn’t like the full agile approach or waterfall completely, you can use the best of two. The infusion allows reaping benefits to improve project speed, reduce costs, and create better/higher-quality results.
When To Use
At specific phases in development such as when there is a high-level risk involved so agile techniques can be implemented to iterate until all the problems appear upfront to be resolved. Let’s assume the project has both software and hardware components but lack detailed planning in the initial phase, so the Waterfall model can be applied to the application design, planning, and requirements, while an Agile method can be used in short sprints for development and testing.
Pros
1. Supports information exchange, data consistency, and traceability across the project lifecycle.
2. Allows defining project frames such as cost and time of delivery.
3. Enhances collaboration through effective communication channels.
4. Those who find the full agile culture problematic can switch to Hybrid.
Cons
1. Insufficient tools can impede the successful implementation of the Agile-Waterfall Hybrid method.
2. Ineffective communication forms and channels can break the sequence of the methodology.
3. Requires a strong project manager to work as a frictionless bridge between all the stakeholders.
In a nutshell, there is no comprehensive methodology for your project. You have to see what might work for your business. Do not just pick the project management methodology considering how you’re used to working. The key is to understand the project goals, features, and skill set of your team.
Therefore, to make the project successfully within the set timeframe and budget, if you can’t do it all alone, you don’t need to worry. Psmorfia’s project managers would love to help you in the process and make your project complete and successful as per your requirements.
Reach us to get more information and help you make your project a success.
