Unleash the Power of Agile for Innovative Product Development
Maximising Collaboration, Flexibility, and Adaptability in the Face of Uncertainty
Agile is an iterative, introspective, and adaptive project management methodology. In an agile approach, a project is divided into sub-projects (sprints). At the end of each sprint, stakeholders and the team review their work, make adjustments for the next sprint, and repeat the process until it is complete. The point of Agile is to deliver value consistently and incrementally throughout the project rather than all at once at the end. These prototypes are then iterated through repeated cycles where customers interact with them and provide feedback that is then incorporated into the product.
The agile method encourages frequent feedback. It provides the opportunity to change focus and priorities quickly, as opposed to the more traditional, sequence-based waterfall method. Teams break down long-term plans into discrete phases for execution. Many teams inside and outside the software industry find this approach helpful in accomplishing difficult, complex tasks.
Agile project management has its roots in software development. Often, companies start with Agile software development before applying Agile to other product development activities. Today, development cycles are much shorter than they used to be. Software developers could take years to bring a product to market. In some cases, the software was already obsolete before it got into the hands of consumers.
The agile framework solves many business problems by embracing the chaos. It is designed to account for the fact that you will encounter unexpected problems. It knows that you will inevitably have to make a change to achieve the desired result.
Agile Product Development Methodology
The goal is to create something simple that can be evolved based on user feedback. It may take several iterations before the final feature or product is launched.
It also implies a learning organisation that adapts quickly to changes in markets and technology.
Agile first became known through the Agile Manifesto, a document published in 2001 and co-authored by seventeen leading software developers.
The Agile Manifesto
Like most great theories, Agile is presented in a manifesto. Here, the creators of the Manifesto for Agile Software Development (commonly known as the Agile Manifesto) define the four core values and 12 principles of agile project management.
Agile project management requires highly collaborative, flexible teams that can deliver consistent value in each iteration. This makes sense when you consider that Agile is introspective by nature and focuses on constant fine-tuning to optimise results.
Four Core Values of Agile Project Management
The four core values of Agile include:
Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
Working software over comprehensive documentation
Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
Responding to change by following a plan
12 Principles of Agile Project Management
The 12 principles of the methodology(that express the spirit of Agile development) build upon these values:
The highest priority is to satisfy the customer through early and continuous delivery of valuable software.
Welcome changing requirements, even late in development. Agile processes harness change for the customer’s competitive advantage.
Deliver working software frequently, from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, with a preference for a shorter timescale.
Business people and developers must work together daily throughout the project.
Build projects around motivated individuals. Give them the environment and support they need, and trust them to get the job done.
The most efficient and effective method of conveying information to and within a development team is face-to-face conversation.
Working software is the primary measure of progress.
Agile processes promote sustainable development. The sponsors, developers, and users should be able to maintain a constant pace indefinitely.
Continuous attention to technical excellence and good design enhances agility.
Simplicity—the art of maximizing the amount of work not done—is essential.
The best architectures, requirements, and designs emerge from self-organizing teams.
At regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behaviour accordingly.
The pros and cons of agile product development
Like any other development methodology, Agile has its strengths and weaknesses.
The pros:
1. High flexibility.
2. Reduced risk.
3. Faster time-to-market
4. By following an Agile methodology, you and your product team will be able to respond quickly to shifting customer needs and adjust the direction as needed.
5. Encourage team members to communicate and collaborate often. The alignment of goals and priorities is vital for the success of a cross-functional team.
6. Test early and often. Incorporate tests at every stage of the product development process to get real-time feedback that helps you iterate and improve.
The cons:
1. Less predictability.
2. More time and dedication.
3. Lack of long-term planning.
One of the biggest challenges of agile development is that teams have to be very well-organised and disciplined. In agile development, teams work in sprints, which means they must be able to deliver working software at the end of each sprint. This requires teams to be highly organised and disciplined and to have a clear idea of their priorities and goals. In addition, agile development requires that teams have a clear understanding of customer needs and can respond quickly to changes in those needs.
Another challenge of agile development is that teams must be highly collaborative and communicative. Agile development requires teams to work closely together, share ideas and feedback, and make sure everyone is on the same page. This can be challenging for teams that are not used to such collaboration, and team members may need to get used to it.
5 Tips for the successful implementation of the agile methodology for the development of new products
Implement some basics like sprints, release plans, or self-organising teams.
Think of an agile implementation as a change management project with classic change management pitfalls.
Understand where there are challenges to Agile in your culture (including product management).
Make sure your initial Agile teams are well-staffed with proven Product Owners (Product Managers), Scrum Masters, and Team Leaders.
Scrum masters need to be proficient in Agile. Invest in their training.
Start with an agile team first and test agile development.
Start small. If Agile is new to your organisation, try it out with a single development team first, then with another team, and then slowly spread it out. Start with the development function and then consider how Agile development principles might be applied in other organisations.
Improving product strategy: product vision and agile product management
Although product strategy is often thought of as an annual process, it does not have to be. Agile practices can be applied to strategic planning if management is willing to allow iterations as the market, competitors, and customers change. Although the product vision should be a fixed guide during the development cycle, the vision for the product should evolve as the market changes dramatically, just as it would in a startup company where turnarounds are commonplace.
Product managers and those leading agile product development or agile software development should take advantage of the learning that occurs when the product concept is introduced to end users. This is one of the most important benefits of an agile project.
Agile vs waterfall
In a traditional waterfall environment, product managers would create detailed product requirements documents listing all the feature parameters, use cases, acceptance criteria, and maybe even wireframes or mockups. UX and product development would grab the baton, get to work, and pass it to QA weeks or months later. Product releases are usually stretched out and scheduled, and in most cases, products don't ship until they're complete.
But in an agile world, once everyone agrees on the strategy, the organisation goes a different way. Instead of getting a sober idea of what to build, UX and product development play a more active role in deciding what to build. Product management still creates requirements, but they more often come in the form of user stories.
"A current user can invite their friends to try the product" or "After purchase, a customer can rate their purchase to inform other potential buyers."
Based on user stories and personas, the entire team determines the best approach to help the "user" accomplish the task stated in the story. Product management doesn't determine in advance where to find reviews for each product offering or how buyers can submit a review. That is determined collaboratively during the actual development cycle.
This approach allows for flexible and responsive product development, which is particularly well suited for software and web-based solutions. It is easy to constantly release new updates that are automatically installed and used by most customers. With the agile approach, the benefits of a feedback loop are less likely to materialise since no one releases a new version of hardware or large enterprise solutions every few weeks.
Expediency and efficiency have led companies to adopt agile principles at record speed. Competitive pressures, accelerating growth, and maximising revenue are worth turning the status quo on its head.
One technique valued by many agile product managers is the use of the agile planning onion. By starting with a big vision, then getting more specific with a product roadmap, then reaching a specific release, then iteration, and finally day-to-day activities, product management can bridge the gap between long-term ideals and day-to-day execution.
Moreover, agile product managers do not need to delve into every detail and nuance of the product development cycle. Although some like to delve into the deep end, product managers need to keep the big picture in mind and keep an eye on the future.
Keeping pace with continuous delivery
For some organizations adopting Agile, continuous delivery is the goal. This means delivering code as soon as the bits are dry rather than waiting for a sprint to complete.
Continuous Delivery and product roadmaps seem even less compatible than "normal" Agile, but the same principles apply. Code may always be delivered, and exact release dates are hard to pin down, but programmers don't work independently and follow their whims.
Regardless of how frequently a product is updated, these improvements should be aligned with the issues, goals, and outcomes that the business has prioritized. So product roadmaps can still serve their purpose, which is to align and guide development activities. It only shortens the feedback loop to maximize the value of what people are developing.
Misconceptions of Agile Product Management
The widespread adoption and disruptive nature of Agile have led to some misrepresentation and confusion around Agile product management. This confusion is sometimes the case even among Agile's biggest proponents. Here are a few common misconceptions that can be easily dispelled:
Agile is just for software—This is the origin of Agile. It's particularly well suited for developing products that are digital, not physical. But all types of organisations use Agile.
Agile is only for startups and small companies
Agile means there’s no plan—Agile is useless without a long-term plan and goals. Agile merely breaks down major initiatives into smaller components that are completed as efficiently as possible.
Agile means there is no documentation - When things are moving fast, there is no time to write anything down. In an agile environment, there is no shortage of documentation. Since the team composition itself is dynamic, someone needs to be able to get into a situation and be productive immediately. That's often impossible without documentation. There may not be a laminated user manual as new features keep popping up, but there is still room for (and need for) documenting things.
Agile = scrum—Scrum is a byproduct of Lean and eXtreme Programming. It is a particular project management approach but by no means a firm requirement for Agile adoption.
Agile means everyone does what they want—Traditional top-down management can coexist with an agile approach. The demarcation line dictates implementation. Established and defined roles remain, and projects are monitored. But there is less command-and-control management for individual teams, who are left largely alone to translate user stories and other requirements into functional components.
Agile sacrifices quality for speed—If organisations value quality, Agile won't eliminate it. Quality assurance, beta testing and the like can be performed throughout the Agile process. And for products developed in Agile, technical debt still needs to be kept under control before it becomes a significant barrier.
Agile doesn’t work when there’s a hard deadline—The reactive and responsive nature of Agile doesn't preclude working toward specific deadlines. Agile can help organisations meet those deadlines by taking a dynamic approach to resourcing and problem-solving.
Agile projects never end—Teams can certainly keep releasing new versions. But once goals are met, there is no rule against stopping. Agile methods give organisations the ability to finish things faster. There is always an upcoming release that can be designated as the "last one" This frees up resources for other projects.
It’s all or nothing— You can discuss Agile as if it were a religion. But there are no hard and fast rules against partial adoption or integration with new processes and approaches.
Agile and Future
Businesses are engaged in a continuous race to provide new experiences to their users. That, in turn, stimulates increased speed and competition to differentiate offerings. This is the fuel that feeds Agile: the 22-year-old trend that shows no sign of slowing down.
Agile is something that originated in software development, and that makes sense: exploratory projects are a great space for this kind of risk. But today, Agile is also being applied to core areas of an organisation, such as talent management. The risk associated with such cornerstones is too great to apply a reductive and iterative approach. Agile should only be used deliberately, selectively and with great caution.
Agile and short-term iterations are great for environments or challenges that require a learning-based approach. But they only work fully when applied in conjunction with a systemic view. Many of the challenges we face are complicated, not complex, and therefore can be addressed with other methods.
In applying Agile, as with any process, we must consider the relevance of what we're applying it to. Agile should be used judiciously to avoid adverse impacts on people, businesses, and the planet. Consider this a wake-up call for companies using - or considering - Agile. Stop and think about how it aligns with your goals, how it fits into the larger scheme of what you're trying to accomplish and make sure that if you're moving fast, you're doing so in the direction you want to travel.
Conclusion
Agile development is a powerful methodology well suited for new product development. It allows teams to quickly test and validate new ideas, foster collaboration and communication, and be flexible and adaptable. However, it also requires teams to be highly organized, disciplined, collaborative and communicative. With the right approach and mindset, agile development can help teams develop new products that meet customer needs and remain competitive in the marketplace.
This article was originally published on the company blog.
Intellicy is a consultancy firm specialising in artificial intelligence solutions for organisations seeking to unlock the full potential of their data. They provide a full suite of services, from data engineering and AI consulting to comment moderation and sentiment analysis. Intellicy's team of experts work closely with clients to identify and measure key performance indicators (KPIs) that matter most to their business, ensuring that their solutions generate tangible results. They offer cross-industry expertise and an agile delivery framework that enables them to deliver results quickly and efficiently, often in weeks rather than months. Ultimately, Intellicy helps large enterprises transform their data operations and drive business growth through artificial intelligence and machine learning.