Agile vs Waterfall

Course Project

Project Methods: Agile vs. Waterfall

Demarcus R. Calhoun

Amberton University

MGT6152.E1

Fall 2013

November 2, 2013

Abstract

When it comes to methods of project management, there is much debate about which method is best. The Waterfall vs. Agile issue has probably been one of the most debated topics in project management. In this paper I will attempt to discuss the pros and cons of both, and look to find out which one is truly the best method. Agile is more suited for smaller projects because you can mange projects in small burst or sprints. Also with agile you have a chance to gauge results much more quickly which gives a team the opportunity to make changes before it's too late. Waterfall maybe more suited for large scale projects of 300 or more team members. But with waterfall you run the risk of immense planning and work, that can't be substantiated till the end of a project which is much too late. Jeff Gothelf of Harvard Business Reviews says, "Despite the confidence inspired by all of this upfront planning and design, the only guaranteed thing to come out at the end of this waterfall process is the wrong solution."

Personally I don't think that either methodology is outright the best option, the option lies in the grey area, which is one where you mix the best of both to get goals accomplished. So with this research project I will address the pros and cons of each.

Introduction

Agile Project Management is an iterative approach to project processes as it applies guiding and project planning. Agile projects are done in small sections which some people call sprints or iterations. Each section is reviewed and checked out by the project team, which might include reps of the client business as well as employees. Any information or insight gathered from the team are used to determine what the next step should be in the project. Each project sprint or iteration is typically scheduled to be completed within a few weeks....