What is agile project management?

What is agile project management?

Fundamentally, agile project management revolves around close collaboration with different teams and supervisors who regularly reassess what a project needs to meet changes and challenges. Here, rigorous methodologies and procedures aren’t always set in stone: these rules can change or even be ignored when an unexpected snag occurs. Ultimately, this form of project management values the contributions of individuals and interactions over processes and tools.

In agile project management, a major project is broken up into smaller tasks and goals, which are known as sprints. Teams adopt collaborative tools and working principles as they organize into self-managed units. As each sprint is completed, team members and supervisors meet for scrum meetings to assess what processes worked and what needs to be further refined before the next sprint. Together, these sprints add up to a fully completed project that can harness customer feedback and result in consistent deliverables throughout a timeframe, thereby showing tangible progress to stakeholders.

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Agile project management can trace its roots to software development. In the early days, the cycle it took to develop new programs took years, with some cases where new software was already obsolete upon launch. Instead, agile project management and the implementation of sprints both eliminate rigid, linear barriers and welcome change to the parameters of a project. Even in late development stages, agile management can promptly respond to market shifts.

Agile project management vs. waterfall methodology

You may have heard of waterfall methodology, another common form of project management. This is a linear system of project management, requiring teams to complete each phase of a project in order or sequence before moving on to the next one.

Compare this with agile methodology, which allows teams to break up into smaller sprints and work on multiple aspects of a project at the same time. Agile project management embraces an iterative process, allowing for flexibility and changes at any stage of development.

Both types of project management have their advantages and disadvantages: while waterfall methodology suits projects that have fixed requirements and well-defined goals, agile project management adapts to unpredictable or evolving project scopes that can respond to client or market movements. Waterfall provides a comprehensive operational plan or project scope document from the very beginning, which can be reassuring to teams and work styles that embrace clear directions. Agile project management can seem unpredictable by comparison, which can cause tension and anxiety among teams: if those working on different sprints fail to communicate clearly, this can cause more chaos.

Teams within a company can embrace both types of methodology based on a project’s requirements—even compartmentalizing aspects of a project to fit either management type.

In short, implementing agile project management requires a mindset shift and a commitment to principles of customer collaboration, accommodating change, delivering regular updates, and fostering a supportive environment for teams. When a project is launched with these principles in mind, agile project management can be transformative, ensuring greater project success rates. Discover more ways to get the most out of your team and your projects with more organizational tips.