AGILE OR WATERFALL?
This year's first InnerCircle meeting was held on May 27th in De Witte Bergen (along the A1 motorway). There was a lot of interest, with over 30 people exchanging views on the topic: Project Management, Agile or Waterfall?
The two speakers, Dick Croes and Laurens Bonnema shared their experiences with Agile practices in a project management environment.
Time to market in een Agile omgeving Vive le ROI
After a fine presentation of both gentlemen, chairman of the evening Nathan Yousef (ACB board member and ING employee) sharpened the debate with a number of edgy statements. The vibrant debate continued even at the informal reception, after the session.
Statement 1: I don't need methods like Agile. Prince and Waterfall work fine for me.
A few responses:
- Applying either Agile or Waterfall depends on the organizational culture
- You never know what's coming beforehand, so you choose Agile
- Combining Agile and Prince2 is a great option
- As far as end users are concerned, choose Agile
- Prince2 and Waterfall cannot be treated alike, but they can be used complementary
- The (culture of the) organization decides the context of how you get to work
- From a quality point of view, Prince2 and Agile are a fine combination
- In fact, Agile consists of numerous little waterfalls
This debate continued for some time based on ‘agree and disagree' with regard to concept and method.
Statement 2: I really don't see a difference between Waterfall and Agile. It's all about the way you decide to do it, all the fuss about methods; it is always a fuss (agile in name only).
- The mentality of your organization determines the method
- It does matter whether you choose Agile or Waterfall
- Choice greatly depends on the level of changes
- Working Agile on contract basis only works if the client has confidence in your working method. However, commitment from the supplier is essential too.
Statement 3: Not the method, but the people are crucial.
With a good team you will always reach success, despite the method.
The group agrees on this for the most part.
- Make sure to communicate this during certification
For more information and responses to the statements, please contact Nathan Yousef
Chairman of the meeting Nathan Yousef
There was a lot of interaction with the participants