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Difference between Agile and Waterfall

• Categorized under Software | Difference between Agile and Waterfall

There’s more than one way to accomplish a task and that goes for software development too. A
developer has to make hundreds of decisions and go through different approaches over the course.
One of the very first decisions he has to take is to choose the right development methodology. Agile
and Waterfall are the two most common yet reliable methodologies for software development. Well,
both serve the same purpose which is to find the best possible approach to get the project done in
the least time possible, but they do that very differently. Both the approaches have been used to
implement large-scale ERP (enterprise resource planning) projects for quite some time now. While
both are two sides of the same coin, they have their fair share of differences.

What is Agile?
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3/4/2020 Difference between Agile and Waterfall | Difference Between

Agile is one of the most prominent

software development methodologies that
follows an incremental approach to
completing tasks. The idea is to deliver
products quicker using ERP
implementations while preserving the
integrity of the methodology. It’s a project
methodology that is derived from Lean
thinking where requirements and solutions
advance through a collective collaboration
between the teams and the end users. It’s
a modern approach to development which
emphasizes on adaptive learning,
incremental delivery, evolutionary
development, and continuous iteration. It
allows changes to be made during the development cycle which provides flexibility to oversee the
progress of the project thereby reducing the risk of failure.

What is
Waterfall?
Waterfall is a plan-driven
traditional approach to
development which follows a
sequential design process
which can be rigid at times.
The development cycle is
divided into a series of
events from documenting
requirements to product
delivery. Developers are
only allowed to proceed after
successful completion of
one phase. Each phase must be thoroughly reviewed and approved by the customer before
developers move on to the next phase. Unlike Agile, it doesn’t allow for changes to be made during
the development cycle which makes it almost difficult to undo the code thereby increasing the risk of
failure. However, the progress can be easily measured as it requires developers to create a paper
trail for each phase of the development cycle allowing for a smooth and predictable workflow.

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Difference between Agile and Waterfall

1) Methodology of Agile and Waterfall

Both Agile and Waterfall are two of the most prominent software development methodologies used
for ERP projects to deliver high value products in the least time possible. However, despite a
common goal, they use different approaches to get the projects done. While Agile follows an
incremental approach to get things done, Waterfall uses a sequential design process.

2) Approach in Agile and Waterfall

Both are viable methods used in project management but in different ways. Waterfall uses a
traditional approach which can be rigid at times and where the whole development process is divided
into a series of events starting from conception and all the way through to production. Agile, on the
other hand, is newer than Waterfall and uses an incremental approach to lean development.

3) Scope of Agile and Waterfall

Waterfall is more like plan-driven which see analysis, design, coding, implementation, and testing as
different phases of a software development project. It works well when scope of the project is known
beforehand, but it limits changes thereby restricting adaptability. Agile, as a modern approach, is
open to changes comes at a price of course, but it works well when scope of the project is unknown.

4) Design Process in Agile and Waterfall

Agile begins with a simple project design, starting with small modules over a set period of time. The
phases of development process run parallel with regular feedbacks and a backlog is maintained to
keep tabs on the progress. On the contrary, Waterfall is a sequential process which doesn’t oversee
the progress of the project. A developer can only jump to the next step after successfully completing
the first step because it follows a sequential approach.

5) Prioritization in Agile and Waterfall

Contract terms in Agile methodology allows partial success of the project thereby decreasing risk of
failure. As a modern approach, it prioritizes process based on value which requires valuable features
to be implemented first thereby reducing the risk of unusable product. Waterfall, on the other hand, is
all about the “all or nothing” approach which increases the risk of failure because it limits the partial
success of project.

Agile vs. Waterfall: Comparison Chart

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3/4/2020 Difference between Agile and Waterfall | Difference Between

Summary
of Agile
vs.
Waterfall
Both Agile and
Waterfall are the two
most popular
software
development
methodologies used
in ERP projects, but
they follow different
approaches to serve
a common goal; that
is to deliver the
required product in
the least time
possible free of bugs
and errors. Agile
follows a more
incremental approach
to software
development which provides the flexibility to oversee the progress throughout the development cycle.
Waterfall, on the other hand, does everything sequentially starting from conception and initiation to
implementation and maintenance. Developers can only proceed to the next phase after successfully
completing the first phase which restricts changes thereby increasing the risk of failure. Agile allows
changes to be made during the development cycle which decreases the risk of complete failure.

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Sagar Khillar
Sagar Khillar is a prolific content/article/blog writer working as a Senior Content
Developer/Writer in a reputed client services firm based in India. He has that urge to research
on versatile topics and develop high-quality content to make it the best read. Thanks to his
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