Contemporary project management strategies are rife with terms such as ‘Lean’ and ‘Agile’, which may be familiar to practitioners. Despite frequent intermingling, it should be emphasised that these two approaches refer to separate project management strategies.Agile and lean project management is very important.
Comparing and contrasting Lean and Agile methodologies highlight both similarities and differences that merit careful consideration. Knowing when best to employ each approach and how to navigate the decision-making process is crucial. We are available to provide guidance in this regard, ensuring your confidence in selecting the optimal pathway.
Agile and Lean: A Concise Comparison
1. Agile
Computer programmers in the 80s typically relied on conventional methodologies like the Waterfall technique for managing software development projects. However, due to its expensiveness and time-consuming nature, the Agile Manifesto was produced as a resolution to this challenge.
Involving stakeholders from the outset infuses flexibility into agile teams, enabling them to more effectively respond to changes, while facilitating enhancements in software architecture, development, and deployment.
2. Lean
In the 1970s, Taiichi Ohno conceived the Toyota Production System (TPS) to curb inefficiencies within the supply chain and reduce inventory expenses. The Lean manufacturing concepts that followed were founded on this methodology.
Examining the fundamental tenets of the Lean and Agile approaches in detail.
Lean Software Development and Agile Procedures
At the core of the Agile software development methodology lies the iterative process of project creation.
Agile Project Management subdivides product development into smaller iterative cycles called sprints, with a typical duration of two to four weeks. Continuous enhancement is integrated through the evaluation of feedback and proposals for alterations at regular intervals (usually upon a sprint’s completion), and subsequently incorporated into the ensuing sprint.
To promote standardisation of the Agile methodology, the aforesaid Agile Manifesto incorporated 12 guiding principles:
- Timely and regular delivery of top-quality software that ensures client satisfaction is our utmost priority.
- Embracing modifications to requirements, even in later stages. Agile methodology leverages flexibility to the advantage of the client.
- Emit frequent software releases, preferably every few weeks, while limiting the maximum duration to a few months.
- Continuous collaboration between business leaders and developers is mandatory throughout the project’s duration.
- Concentrate efforts on those capable of accomplishing the task. Have confidence in their capacity to reach the objective, and provide them with the necessary resources and autonomy to achieve it.
- In-person communication is the optimal approach to disseminating knowledge within a development team.
- In software development, success is frequently judged by its functionality and efficacy.
- Agile approaches are better suited for long-term expansion. The tempo established by sponsors, developers, and customers should be sustainable indefinitely.
- The agile approach entails continuous emphasis on technical excellence and rational design.
- The capacity to maintain simplicity or perform minimal actions is an invaluable skill.
- Autonomous teams deliver superior architectures, requirements, and designs.
- The team adjusts and improves its performance regularly by assessing how to enhance it.
One modern Agile development method that spotlights collaboration and swiftness is the Rapid Application Development (RAD) approach. Customers are now wholly invited to partake in the process, allowing them to give feedback at the end of each sprint. Thereafter, modifications are made in the subsequent iteration, based on the insights garnered.
Embracing a culture of continuous improvement is vital in creating a service or product that meets customers’ needs to the fullest extent.
Engineering with Emphasis on Minimizing Waste
The lean philosophy is concentrated on enhancing the development process by eliminating any non-value-adding steps. Any activity that impairs the process, such as inefficient processes or duplicate records, is construed as waste. Moreover, it endeavours to boost customer satisfaction while mitigating risks.
Initially created as a production methodology, Lean has since been applied to different domains of product management, such as software development.
The seven pillars of Lean project management are:
- Minimizing waste, whether it pertains to the product (e.g., missing features or faulty code) or the team (e.g., inefficient management), is crucial. Promptly addressing any problems is critical to garnering solutions.
- Cultivate expertise: constantly be receptive to fresh knowledge and leverage the team’s code evaluations, test results, and other feedback types to enhance.
- It is recommended to hold off on decisions until the project timeline’s latest possible moment to offer the team the chance to acquire knowledge through testing and feedback. This tactic aids in averting wasteful expenditure of resources, financial and human, whilst permitting the project to remain pliant and open to change.
- Maintain quality throughout the production process: by means of meticulous and well-thought-out procedures, customers should obtain a final product that meets or transcends their expectations.
- The swift delivery of features to customers via frequent iterations is critical for gaining valuable feedback.
- Instead of solely concentrating on their individual roles, teams should view the project as a whole and optimize their endeavours accordingly.
- Showcasing regard for people is crucial in any project. This entails treating everyone implicated with respect and fairness, including creating an atmosphere in which team members can perform at their best and realize their full potential. It also encompasses the clients who will benefit from the final product.
Following are the Six Key Differentiations between Lean and Agile Methodologies
1. A Strategic Approach
Unlike Lean thinking, Agile methodologies prioritize the quest for incessant improvement instead of waste reduction.
In software development, Agile methodologies lay emphasis on both constant improvement and customer contentment. It is characterized by iterative development cycles (sprints) and consistent customer engagement.
The advantages of Lean Methodology, which emphasize risk reduction and time-saving, are evident. The elimination of superfluous components from a project results in a more efficient and competent manufacturing process.
2. Procedure
The development of software using Lean and Agile methodologies follows significantly different approaches.
Agile environments follow an incremental and iterative approach for project development, through short cycles referred to as sprints. Iterative and incremental development involves breaking down a project into phases that consist of planning, implementation, testing, and evaluation. This process is subsequently carried out sequentially from inception to completion.
Abiding by the Lean manufacturing philosophy involves making continuous, incremental enhancements. While this approach may have the potential to shorten development times, it is not its primary objective.
3. Project Scheduling
Both Lean and Agile methodologies prioritize the rapid delivery of the final product. However, they differ in terms of the timeframe for achieving this objective. Agile processes are typically characterized by shorter iterations, with most cycles and sprints lasting between two to four weeks.
By simplifying their processes, Lean teams can reduce project duration. They concentrate on distinct steps, therefore decreasing the overall project time. Unlike Agile, there is no set timeframe that needs to be followed.
4. Team Organization
When it comes to team organization, there are significant differences between Lean and Agile. For an Agile team to be formed, it is essential to have a committed team of individuals possessing the required qualities.
- Self-organized refers to teams deciding independently on how to execute tasks.
- Collaborators may have distinct roles and expertise, but they all work towards achieving a common goal.
Teams could comprise a diverse range of roles, such as product manager, Scrum Master, business analyst, product owner, and other such positions.
As part of the Lean process, multiple teams consisting of personnel from various departments are established. Each group is led by an appointed leader who is responsible for coordinating everyone’s contributions. Although your Lean team members should be skilled, they may not necessarily be required to be self-sufficient and proficient in several disciplines.
5. Overall Objective
The objectives of Agile and Lean development diverge from each other.
The primary goal of Agile development is to deliver a product that meets the needs of the intended audience.
According to Lean development principles, tasks that do not directly contribute to product value are eliminated.
6. Key Point
Agile and Lean methodologies have distinct disparities in their objectives.
Agile development lays significant emphasis on the scope of the project and its value to the customers. The product’s scope is ascertained based on its qualities and functionalities. In each sprint, the development team prioritizes customer value to refine the product further in the next cycle.
Lean software development aims to enhance efficiency and optimize quality. Value stream mapping is a popular technique employed to achieve this, as it depicts the stages from the product’s concept to its delivery to customers in a graphical form.
What Do Agile and Lean Methodologies Have in Common?
Due to their common principles, including adaptability, Agile and Lean methodologies are frequently juxtaposed.
In this section, we will delineate the critical shared traits and principles of Agile and Lean methodologies:
Continuous Improvement
Both methodologies concentrate on evaluating the existing process to pinpoint areas where it can be enhanced. The particular stages of the Continuous Improvement Lifecycle may vary based on the product, but they frequently encompass the following:
- In the Gathering and Concepting phase, the team will recognize the challenges that require answers throughout the Sprint and delineate how these challenges will mesh with the overarching strategy.
- During the development phase, the team executes the workload approved for the sprint in accordance with the plans delineated in the preceding phase.
- After the development concludes, the new features are tested to guarantee that they are functioning as intended and align with the prescribed design specifications.
- If the testing procedure goes smoothly, the new functionality is included in the principal product.
- Upon project deployment, it is necessary to uphold it by means of routine observation aimed at uncovering any discrepancies or issues caused by newly introduced features.
Customer Value as the Top Priority
Agile and Lean methodologies are both committed to ensuring client contentment by actively assimilating feedback from the end-user and trimming any gratuitous expenses without impacting quality.
Result-Driven Planned Processes
Lean Project Management and Agile Methodology are two methodologies that aim at streamlining workflow. While Lean Project Management aims to diminish the number of stages in the process, Agile Methodology prioritizes expedited iteration and delivery of functional products. Both methodologies strive to ensure a consistent and efficient workflow.
Continual Arrival at Conclusions
Agile adds value throughout the process, while Lean emphasizes delivering results by consistently reducing waste.
Agile vs Lean Comparison
| Paradigm of Evaluation | Agile | Lean |
| Methodology’s core concern | When managing projects using an agile methodology, the goal is constant refinement. | Waste reduction is at the heart of lean project management. |
| Worth to Customers | To this end, the agile approach places a premium on providing value to the client via iterative development. | Providing value to customers is at the forefront of the Lean technique, which is why the focus is on making high-quality goods. |
| Speedy Shipping Techniques | Agile teams finish projects in shorter iterations. | In order to expedite product delivery, lean teams guarantee that all superfluous unproductive variables are removed. |
| Betterment That Never Stops | The goal of each cycle in the Agile approach is to incorporate input from the project’s end users and other stakeholders. | The goal of the Lean approach is to make better use of resources at all times by minimising waste at each step of the project’s development. |
| Targeted Result | The ultimate result of an Agile process should be a product that completely meets the needs of the customer or other interested parties. | The goal of the Lean approach to product development is to get rid of everything that isn’t necessary. |
Looking for a Project Manager with Agile or Lean Software Development Expertise?
Project management methodologies, such as Agile and Lean, are meant to simplify the software development process. By incorporating feedback from stakeholders and end-users into the development process, as stipulated by Agile, the final product can satisfy the requirements of all parties involved.
On the other hand, Lean project management aids in increasing output while decreasing input.
The right personnel is crucial for the effective implementation of any process. At Works, we can assist you in finding a proficient programmer to work on your Agile or Lean initiatives. Our seasoned international recruiters can aid you in sourcing, interviewing, and recruiting a remote engineer in two weeks. Furthermore, we will handle all the HR paperwork, freeing you to unwind. As staffing expansion is our forte, please get in touch with us for further information.
