You may be acquainted with the terms Scrum and Agile, and you may even be working with them now or in the past. But even with their extensive use, many people still confuse them and can’t tell the difference between the two. But for any technique to be used effectively, it is essential to comprehend its goal and underlying philosophy. Let’s get started with our comparison of Agile vs Scrum right now.
The Origins and Definition of Agile
Agile “is an iterative approach to project management and software development that helps teams deliver value to their customers faster and with fewer headaches,” according to Atlassian’s definition. An alternative definition of it would be a philosophy that describes how to successfully provide software to a customer. Many software development company teams actively adopt this methodology to streamline workflows and ensure quicker delivery of high-quality products.
In 2001, this method was formally introduced by 17 engineers, including Martin Fowler, Jeff Sutherland, Jon Kern, and others, who signed the Agile Manifesto. Agile’s main objective was to replace the existing software development processes, which many believed to be too complex, unresponsive, and overly focused on unnecessary paperwork.
Agile doesn’t provide developers specific guidance on how to build up their workflows because it’s a mentality. Instead, it enumerates the priorities, the items that need attention, and the values that need to be considered. There are four fundamental ideas:
- People and relationships as opposed to procedures and instruments;
- Functional software as opposed to thorough documentation;
- Customer cooperation during the contract negotiating process;
- Adapting to change rather than sticking to a plan.
As you can see, the fundamental idea of Agile is to be responsive, proactive, and flexible. This technique also enumerates the five desired outcomes of a successful software delivery, which are:
- Better
- Value
- Sooner
- Sample Item
- Safer
- Happier
The 12 Core Principles of Agile
The Manifesto is very brief—less than 300 words—despite its seeming distinctions. It contains twelve ideas that describe how to approach a work process correctly. Agile’s principles are based on its emphasis on continuous delivery. These guidelines consist of, for instance:
- Establishing procedures that support sustained endeavors.
- Allowing the group to regularly evaluate ways to improve effectiveness, then fine-tuning and modifying behavior in response.
- Using change to get an edge over competitors.
You get the basic idea that the team should put efficiency and quality first, even if the official page contains all 12 principles. Agile also promotes autonomous work and self-motivation, which are key components of self-organized teams.
The Origins and Definition of Scrum
To properly compare Scrum to the Agile methodology, we must first define it. Looking back, Atlassian defines Scrum as “a project management framework that helps teams structure and manage their work through a set of values, principles, and practices.” Scrum is commonly said to as the most popular Agile framework since its ideals are in line with Agile concepts. When the first edition of the Scrum Guide was published in 2010, its main goal was to help people understand Scrum.
The primary difference between Scrum and Agile is that Scrum is a set of precise and unambiguous procedures to follow. As a result, Agile defines a great development environment, whereas Scrum demonstrates how to create one.
The fundamental tenets of Scrum are continuous improvement, seamless cooperation, and high transparency. Furthermore, Scrum defines three main team duties that are present in each Scrum-following team:
- Product owner: in charge of defining the objectives and vision and overseeing the project’s entire delivery;
- Scrum master: in charge of encouraging team communication and making sure everyone is aware of and able to adhere to Scrum’s tenets;
- Developers: in charge of creating new products.
Another important thing to remember is that Srum promotes work in short development cycles called sprints. Each assignment is predicated on the results of the previous sprint, which may last one to four weeks. Because Scrum bases future work planning on stakeholder feedback, it ensures high levels of openness and alignment between all stakeholders and team members.
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The 5 Core Values of Scrum
Scrum provides other clear benefits as well. These are:
- Focus
- Openness
- Commitment
- Respect
Respect for others, bravery in making decisions, commitment to the task at hand, and other qualities are all necessary for a team member. Each team member should base their decisions and efforts on these principles.
In addition to the principles, the three Scrum pillars—also referred to as:
- Transparency
- Inspection
- Adaptation
The Manifesto’s remarks about “responding to change over following a plan,” for example, make these pillars a perfect fit for the Agile philosophy. Consequently, there is minimal reason to compare Scrum to Agile. As you can see, both promote flexibility, transparency, flexibility, and a high level of commitment. And they are comparable in other ways as well.
How Scrum Supports Agile
You may wish to consider a few more methods in addition to Scrum. They are Kanban, Crystal, Extreme Programming, and Lean Development. But with good cause, Scrum remains one of the most popular frameworks.
The issue is that Scrum and Agile complement one other nicely. Let’s look at a few examples. “Our top priority is to satisfy the customer through early and continuous delivery of valuable software,” says Agile. Scrum, which encourages consistently collecting end user input and using it as the basis for future work, fully supports this claim.
“The team reflects on how to become more effective at regular intervals, then tunes and adjusts its behavior accordingly,” according to another Agile statement. Scrum facilitates high efficiency through regular retrospective sessions when team members evaluate their work and pinpoint areas for improvement (and how).
And these are only a few of instances. The idea is that Scrum and Agile are a wonderful complement, so you really don’t have to pick between them.
Agile vs Scrum: Understanding the Differences
Because these two ideas seem to intercept and somewhat blend, it could be challenging to tell them apart. In order to help you comprehend the distinctions between Scrum and Agile, we have created a brief comparison.
| Agile | Scrum | |
| Goa | 2001 | Early 1990s |
| Type | Philosophy | Framework |
| Focus on | Continuous delivery | Continuous improvement |
| Management | Self-organizing teams | Three key roles |
| Documentation | The Agile Manifesto | The Scrum Guide |
| Flexibility | Medium | High |
| Implementationframework | Does not provide | Provides |
| Alternative | Waterfall | Kanban, Crystal, Lean Development,Extreme Programming |
Choosing Between Scrum and Agile
Many individuals try to compare the pros and cons of Agile and Scrum when deciding which to use for their software development project. As the above chart shows, there are alternatives to both Agile and Scrum. What is the greatest way to decide which choice is best for you?
In general, it is highly recommended that you use Agile and/or Scrum for your project if your needs match those listed below:
- You need to be really adaptable.
- Throughout the development process, you want to make adjustments, and you must respond to them fast.
- You desire effective teamwork and open, continuous communication.
- You require regular and consistent delivery.
Because of its flexibility, agile requires self-focused teams, thus it is essential that everyone in the team understands its principles and works equally hard to put them into effect. If you have never worked with Agile before, it may be challenging at first since it requires certain organizational changes. Fortunately, Agile is now preferred by most IT outsourcing companies, so you won’t have to worry if you choose to outsource.
Conclusion
Despite their basic differences (idea vs. framework), Scrum and Agile function well together and compliment each other, even if you try to compare them. It goes without saying that preparation is essential before introducing Agile and/or Scrum. Keep in mind that this adoption will take place at every level of the business, therefore you must also think about the proper training. You will, however, be rewarded with increased client satisfaction, a higher return on investment, and more efficiency and transparency if you do everything right.
