8 Reasons Why You Should Use Agile

Table of Contents

8 reasons why you need to use agile in dealing with today's fast and complex business changes, especially when facing the fact that the initial planning arrangement does not match current market conditions because the initial plan results in becoming obsolete even though the actual planning is still needed.

1. Product Marketing Opportunities (time to market)

The first reason for using agile is to prevent loss of opportunities or momentum to market products (time to market). Using agile allows products to be released to the market / consumers without having to wait for all product improvement steps to be completed, for example sending a minimum available product first to be released to the market so that it always gets time to market.

2. Product Change (ability to change)

The reason for using the second agile is being able to make product scope changes (ability to change) according to the current market situation and conditions by "inspecting" and "adapting" product increments. Increments are the results of work that can be inspected and have been completed to support empiricism at the end of the sprint. Increment is a manifestation of the product backlog that is completed in the sprint. Each increment is an addition to the previous increment and has been thoroughly tested

3. Sprint (accelerate product delivery and feasibility)

Able to run sprints with short cycles of maximum short duration of 1 month so that the risk of product delay is small compared to long term planning for the entire product process. Long-term plans are more at risk of estimation errors.

4. Customer Satisfaction

Agile focuses on the latest business outcome values compared to output based on the initial plan which the customer doesn't actually use because it is no longer appropriate to current conditions and the customer can provide feedback on the product so that it can inspect and adapt it in the next sprint.

The process from this feedback to execution requires the birth of a product that is not final to be used and tried and after the feedback is obtained, the product is improved again until the customer is satisfied. This technique allows products to develop more quickly and the build distance between prototypes may be as little as weeks or months.

5. Business continuity (business existence)

The reason for using the fifth agile is to maintain business continuity. Currently, changes often occur in a short time, so you should have to adapt to change in order to survive or be disrupted, bankrupt and out of business. Now many start-up companies are a threat to large companies and by using agile it is hoped that they will be ready to face change so that the organization can survive.

6. IT Collaboration

Agile prioritizes cooperation between IT and teams in accordance with agile principle number 4, namely "business people and developers must work together" to be able to produce higher quality products and have high business value according to current market conditions.

7. Eliminate Part Mindset (removed silo mindset)

Agile eliminates the terms business analyst, developer, tester and others, all are combined into a development team that is responsible for product quality where these business analysts, developers and testers come from different departments with KPIs for each department.

8. Independence (self organize)

The last reason for using agile is the independence of the team so that it can develop and improve skills because it is given space to develop and has the courage to express opinions and without orders to achieve business goals. The agile way of working prioritizes responding to change rather than following the initial plan. Agile will minimize risk by product iteration and releasing products to market little by little but often

Agile management encourages teams to be solid, adaptive and multitasking against all changes. Following are the characteristics/characteristics of agile team members:

• T-shapped member: has broad basic knowledge and at the same time has expert knowledge in one of his fields.
• Cross functional: having capabilities in several areas, not just their main capabilities
• Adaptive: having qualified skills to have consistent results even though circumstances change
• Curiosity: is important in the team to find solutions
• Entrepreneurial: having the capacity to move on their own without having to be ordered, take initiative and be able to see what the current needs are.
• Team oriented: priority on joint success not only on oneself
• High target: have high quality standards, high dedication and ready to produce the best quality.

Agile is a mindset to act quickly, adaptively and flexibly. Agile includes 4 values and 12 principals according to the agile manifesto and includes various frameworks.

Agile is not a methodology so using agile will differ from one company to another depending on the company's business journey. Agile implementation makes agile management the basis of various frameworks within it.

Agile management can apply differently to each team, but the principles remain the same and this agile management will work for small teams (5-10 people), the fewer team members the less time for arguing.