A presentation on the traditional approaches of SDLC versus the Agile methodology

1. Traditional
approaches of SDLC
vs Agile
methodology
An informal presentation by Lohet Ramesh

2. Traditional SDLC
• It is a stage gate model
• Prescriptive and has a series of sequential steps
• Documented properly i.e. emphasis is on initial requirements,
contracts and plans
• There is an audit trail resulting in user clarity
• Costly because of its descriptive nature
• Due to its prescriptive nature and a detailed initial plan, the
resources need not be highly skilled
• Since it is a stage gate model with costs separate for each
stage a real-option can be taken to insure it
• Popular types are the waterfall, v-model, spiral model etc.

3. Agile methodologies
• A flexible model which is iterative i.e., a single requirement is
iterated multiple times until the client is satisfied
• Due to its constant interaction with clients, any change in their
requirement is easily met by using the object oriented
programming concept
• Multiple iterations lead to very good quality of the end
product leading to client satisfaction
• Since it requires on-the-go thinking and as the requirements
are not as comprehensively laid out as it is in the traditional
model, the resources working on it should be highly skilled
and should be adaptable to rapid changes
• Modularity and Prototyping is its core feature as the client is
shown the outline of how their end product would look in a
short period and feedback is then taken from them to learn

4. Agile methodologies
• Popular methodologies under agile are SCRUM, RAD(Rapid
application development) and XP(extreme programming)
• SCRUM is a management framework for incremental product
development using one or more cross-functional, self-
organizing teams of about seven people each.
• It has three roles: Product owner, team and Scrum master
• It provides a structure of roles, meetings, rules, and artifacts.
Teams are responsible for creating and adapting their
processes within this framework.
• Scrum uses fixed-length iterations, called Sprints, which are
typically 1-2 weeks long (never more than 30 days). Scrum
teams attempt to build a potentially shippable (properly
tested) product increment every iteration.

5. Agile vs Traditional
approaches
Agile Traditional
• Ideal for smaller project
ex: mobile application
• Management is decentralised and
distributed among the team
members
• Success of the project is measured
by the business value delivered
• Highly adaptable to changes
• Minimal upfront planning
• Return on investment is early in the
product cycle
• Size of the team is usually small,
creative and highly talented
• Refactoring is not costly
• Chances of occurrence of risk is
more which can impact the project
• Ideal for large project
ex: ERP systems
• One person has all the control and
other follow
• Success of the project is measured
by the conformation to the plan
• Changes are not welcomed in the
later stages of the project
• Highly planned before the actual
development starts
• Return on investment is at the end
of the project
• Teams are large and do not
expertise in their respective fields
• Very costly to refactor code
• Risks are identified, understood,
prioritised and made sure it does
not impact the project

6. Real-world examples of Agile
• Boeing 787 is a real time example of Agile methodology being
implemented as the specification document went from 2500
pages for Boeing 777 (787’s predecessor) to 20 pages for
Boeing 787.
• Multiple smaller teams are working independently on this
aircraft which is similar to agile
• This has caused a delay of 2+ years in the deployment of the
aircraft which is a shortcoming of agile
• Amazon e-commerce website data crawler
• Another would be the department releases on a newly
opened e-commerce website