Agile project management, such as Scrum, is based on an evolutionary project management approach that aims to acquire an iterative incremental development tactic in which a functional result is delivered to the client after a short period of time (sprint). Scrum derives its name from the comparison of this type of collaborative work to the advancement of Rugby players in formation (scrum). The origins of this framework can be traced back to the early 1980s, when Ikujiro Nonaka and Hirotaka Takeuchi defined a model with five values:
- Courage to show ourselves vulnerable and ask for help when we need it and to solve the impediments that may arise along the way.
- Focus on achieving the sprint goals and focus on doing one thing at a time.
- Commitment of each team member to make the maximum effort possible.
- Respect , teamwork, camaraderie and trust in others to give and ask for feedback.
- Openness , transparency, sincerity and frankness.
Why use scrum?
The most obvious answer is that this framework has an agile management approach, which facilitates administration, communication, information flow, client collaboration, and, most importantly, the delivery of continuous value to the customer in a timely manner. Clients and project participants.
Another major advantage that Scrum provides is a sustainable work rate, because it adapts to changes quickly, achieving a constant rate in both sprint duration and effort. Additional advantage of using Scrum is the ability to overlap different stages of development since the teams are self-organized and multidisciplinary. This is a significant advantage over Waterfall methodologies, in which one phase must be completed before proceeding to the next. Furthermore, agile management determines pending work to be done rather than completed work. Task efforts and duration are estimated in this manner.
Among the main advantages of using Scrum compared to traditional or heavy frameworks, we can mention:
- Transparency: All relevant information about the process is available to all parties involved, and everyone understands it.
- Adaptability: If it is determined that there are variations in one or more aspects that go beyond what is acceptable, adjustments are made to keep the goal within reach.
- Continuous improvement: As the Sprints progress, the various processes and deliverables are corrected and improved. The Product Backlog estimation, prioritisation, and maintenance are improved.
- Continuous and timely value delivery: Sprint's iterative development allows for the regular delivery of value to the customer in the form of functional software.
- Efficient development: Sprint development ensures that important work is completed. Scrum's definition of artefacts allows non-essential work, particularly documentation, to be reduced to a bare minimum. Each event also has its own set of times (time boxing).
- Work Pace: The Scrum framework is designed to allow teams to work at a comfortable and sustainable pace.
- Continuous feedback: Using Scrum events, both the client and the team receive constant feedback on the status of the work as well as the validation of the deliverables.
The Scrum framework makes being adaptable in the face of change much easier. Sprint development, which typically lasts 2-4 weeks, allows for change management as you work.
Due to the speed of today's business environment and constant change, great ideas can become obsolete in a very short period of time. As a result, it is critical to quickly introduce this new idea to the market and continuously develop it, providing the customer with a working product and obtaining feedback as soon as possible in order to improve it.
An MVP (Minimum Viable Product) is obtained with each delivery, which is a version of a product that allows a team to collect the most validated learning about customers with the least amount of effort.
In conclusion, Scrum focuses on empiricism and rapid succession of failures through iterations (sprints) to obtain the best possible result and maximize the delivered value of the product.
Using traditional methodologies, the work can be extended between 12 and 16 months, and it is possible that the client's objectives will not be met. As a result, the iterative model proposed by Scrum allows for earlier detection and correction of errors at a lower cost. That is, they simply permit problems to be discovered as soon as possible so that they can be addressed.
