A gradual increase is noted in the number of organizations developing software applications in distributed environments. Under distributed development plan, bulk of the software development and testing efforts are outsourced to developing countries to curtain the project overheads, while a small team of consultants or in-house manages work on site with the business stakeholders. Further, many organizations implement Agile methods in the distributed environment to deliver quality software on time and on budget. According to the 8th Annual STATE OF AGILE survey, over 35% of software development companies use Agile with distributed development teams. So your organization can avail several advantages by using Agile to address some of the common problems related to distributed development.
Why Over 35% Companies Apply Agile Methodology to Distributed Development?
Facilitates Uninterrupted Communication
The Agile methodology facilitates smooth and uninterrupted communication among distributed teams regardless of their geographic location. Along with one-to- one communication, the methods further emphasize on on-the-fly interaction between team members. According to the methodology, an organization has to allow remote team members and project owners to communicate in a real time environment through emails, conference calls, video conferencing and texting. So the organization can eliminate the need to schedule formal meetings required according to the conventional project management methods. An organization can further avail competitive advantages by adopting Agile communication model.
Maintains Transparency across Distributed Teams
Unlike conventional project management techniques, Agile methodology emphasizes on uniting the members of distributed teams to unite around the team’s common goals and vision. The elimination of ownership silos results in code sharing and training among team members. At the same time, the Agile methods further require the project information to be shared continuously between stakeholders, product owners and development teams. The daily scrum or standup meetings between different stakeholders ensures that each party stay tuned to the current status of the project. Also, the frequent reviewing of requirements makes it easier to incorporate changes in the process to deliver better usability results.
Optimizes Decision Making Process
Often companies find it a daunting task to take quick decision in a distributed development environment. Along with defining the team’s common goals and vision to each member, Agile methods further empower distributed teams to decide how to complete the assigned tasks on schedule. So each distributed team can carry out its activities without waiting for the centralized management’s direction or approval. At the same time, each member of team clearly understands his responsibilities, along with having the authority required to take sound decisions according to the iteration’s requirements. So the prompt decision making process is no way affected by the different geographical locations of the teams.
Enhances Scope for Automated Software Testing
The Agile methods further optimize the scope of automated software testing in a distributed environment. As many developers can make changes to the code in a distributed environment, there are chances that feedback received from a tester many become both faulty and outdated. So automation testing techniques are used to share quick and reliable feedback with development teams. As end-to-end use cases to written to constantly evaluate the software’s critical features, the testing can be completely automated to deliver flawless user experience. At the same time, each team can use automated test metrics to set goals and keep track of progress. These metrics will further help the teams in identifying the issues that slow down the performance, despite not having any impact on the products.
When you decide to use Agile methods in a distributed development environment, it becomes essential to make and implement a comprehensive plan. The inclusive environment created by embracing Agile methodology will further make it easier for your organization to meet widespread challenges. However, it is also important to avoid adopting a specific process or methodology without evaluating specific requirements of the software development project. If you are planning to hire software testing companies, you must evaluate them to see if they are sufficiently agile or not!
We provide agile software testing services. If you would like to hire software testing engineer for your software projects, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.
Why Over 35% Companies Apply Agile Methodology to Distributed Development?
Facilitates Uninterrupted Communication
Maintains Transparency across Distributed Teams
Unlike conventional project management techniques, Agile methodology emphasizes on uniting the members of distributed teams to unite around the team’s common goals and vision. The elimination of ownership silos results in code sharing and training among team members. At the same time, the Agile methods further require the project information to be shared continuously between stakeholders, product owners and development teams. The daily scrum or standup meetings between different stakeholders ensures that each party stay tuned to the current status of the project. Also, the frequent reviewing of requirements makes it easier to incorporate changes in the process to deliver better usability results.
Optimizes Decision Making Process
Often companies find it a daunting task to take quick decision in a distributed development environment. Along with defining the team’s common goals and vision to each member, Agile methods further empower distributed teams to decide how to complete the assigned tasks on schedule. So each distributed team can carry out its activities without waiting for the centralized management’s direction or approval. At the same time, each member of team clearly understands his responsibilities, along with having the authority required to take sound decisions according to the iteration’s requirements. So the prompt decision making process is no way affected by the different geographical locations of the teams.
Enhances Scope for Automated Software Testing
The Agile methods further optimize the scope of automated software testing in a distributed environment. As many developers can make changes to the code in a distributed environment, there are chances that feedback received from a tester many become both faulty and outdated. So automation testing techniques are used to share quick and reliable feedback with development teams. As end-to-end use cases to written to constantly evaluate the software’s critical features, the testing can be completely automated to deliver flawless user experience. At the same time, each team can use automated test metrics to set goals and keep track of progress. These metrics will further help the teams in identifying the issues that slow down the performance, despite not having any impact on the products.
When you decide to use Agile methods in a distributed development environment, it becomes essential to make and implement a comprehensive plan. The inclusive environment created by embracing Agile methodology will further make it easier for your organization to meet widespread challenges. However, it is also important to avoid adopting a specific process or methodology without evaluating specific requirements of the software development project. If you are planning to hire software testing companies, you must evaluate them to see if they are sufficiently agile or not!
We provide agile software testing services. If you would like to hire software testing engineer for your software projects, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.
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