Waterfall
This originates back to the 1970s and continued to be the leading management tool to use for quite a few years after that. In fact, it is regarded as one of the O.G.s of software development methodologies.
It’s commonly known as a strict process that doesn’t allow for any changes to occur, which kind of gives it a reputation for not being the most ideal approach. But without it, we wouldn’t have other methods such as Agile. It’s sort of like the grumpy grandpa who doesn’t want to engage with new people at the Thanksgiving dinner table, but without him, you wouldn’t have someone to look up to and strive to be like.
The Pros and Cons of Waterfall
| # | Pros | Cons |
| 1 | Everyone gets up to speed quickly | Potential lack of flexibility |
| 2 | Everyone gets up to speed quickly | Needs can be difficult to define |
| 3 | The outcome is crystal clear | Longer delivery time |
| 4 | Scope Creep |
Agile
This was introduced to the world by a group of software developers. It’s very popular today and that’s because it’s known as being more flexible than Waterfall, which is one of the main reasons why many people use it over Waterfall.
The main idea behind Agile is to create a constant flow of value at all stages in the process. This means that you’ll be developing a product and providing results to clients on a regular basis, usually every 2 weeks or so.
There are 4 key values in the Agile system:
- Individuals and interactions over processes and tools.
- Working software over comprehensive documentation.
- Customer collaboration over contract negotiation.
- Responding to change over following a plan.
The reason why this approach is so popular is because it provides a more realistic representation of what development work actually looks like. In Waterfall, there might be some processes that are not included in the system. It could be something like data mapping and transformation. With Agile, these things are usually done at the same time as requirements gathering.
The Pros and Cons of Agile
| # | Pros | Cons |
| 1 | Flexibility | Time |
| 2 | Embracing Uncertainty | Lack of Predictability |
| 3 | Immediate Feedback | Scope Creep |
| 4 | Less Defective Products | Lack of Documentation |
As you can already tell, Agile is quite a flexible alternative to Waterfall and would be the best suited choice to turn your dreams into reality.
Meyrick Flanegan – Business Analyst
Tigerfish Software
