Compare and contrast the Systems Development Lifecycle with Agile Development methodologies.

Provide examples where it might be appropriate to implement each. What drawbacks or issues

might an organization encounter when implementing an Agile development program?

Organizations normally follow a standard methodology to either improve or create new

information systems in support of running the business to take care of the needs of their

customers. Like any process that a business follows it has a start or identification phase, in-depth

analysis phase, a proposal phase, an acceptance phase, an implementation, and an evaluation

phase after which the process starts all over again. There are various approaches in developing

software the more structured and maybe the oldest methodology is the Systems Development

Lifecycle (SLDC) also referred to as the waterfall methodology (Bella, Knight, 2019). The

waterfall or cascade methodology is very linear which requires one task to be completed before

the next task starts (Waterfall vs Agile, n.d.). Valacich, George, & Hoffer (2007, p.13) indicate

that there are four key steps in the traditional or waterfall methodology. “1. Planning and

Selection, 2. Analysis, 3. Design, and 4. Implementation, and Operation.”

Conger on the other hand gives an 8 phase sequential project life cycle model and the phases

more or less agree with the model presented by Valacich, George, & Hoffer as their model has

sub-phases to a phase. (Conger, 2008) Morales (2019) also defines the first step in the SLDC as

a System Planning and Selection phase. The first step is, therefore, dual fold as the first part

would be an understanding that is a requirement for a new or an enhanced system. As is the case

for Lowes, this step is required as the new executive team realizes that the current systems are

not standing up to the requirements of today’s customer. Therefore, Lowes is in dire need of

implementing a system that is able to provide additional functionality and allows the company to

capitalize on the information the company has already collected. Once the decision has been

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 made to change or upgrade, systems analysts have to turn the need or requirement into a written

plan. All concerned parties provide input to the analysts so they can do a feasibility study and

come up with a workable plan for various needs (Valacich, George,& Hoffer, 2007). A feasibility

study will then be completed which will cover areas such as risk, the costs involved, and the

benefits of taking on such a project. The feasibility report in accordance with Conger (2008) will

summarize

“The problem,

The economic, technical and organizational feasibility,

The risks and contingency plans related to the application,

The preferred concept for the software product and an explanation of its superiority to alternative

concepts,

Training needs and tentative schedules,

And estimates of project staffing by phase and level of expertise.” (Conger, 2008, p.25). Once

the feasibility studies have been completed, the second phase starts and this is when an analysis

of the system that is currently used or available, is completed (Valacich, George,& Hoffer, 2007,

p.14). This phase has its sub-phases that have to be completed before the project can be moved

on to the following phase. These subphases are similar to the individual phases as laid out by

Conger. The first sub-phase is to determine what is needed from the proposed system or

enhancements. Here the analysts look at the different plans submitted and will look at a

description of the current system. Analysts have to look at system interdependence,

interconnectivity, and maybe redundancy. With this in mind, they have to come up with a

recommendation to fix, enhance, or because of redundancy may be a replacement for the current

system. (Valacich, George,& Hoffer, 2007, p.17) During this phase, the time to complete, the

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 cost thereof, and the labor required will be evaluated as well and then prioritized (Conger, 2008).

The next phase in the process is the system design phase. In this phase, the analysts take the

recommended plans and turn the written plans into system specifications (Valacich, George,&

Hoffer, 2007). Other aspects that are considered by the analysts are:

“Application and control software,

Data structure and physical implementation scheme,

Sizing,

Key algorithms,

Program content.”(Conger, 2008, p.27)

The 4th phase in the system is the implementation and operation phase. (Valacich, George,&

Hoffer, 2007, p.17) According to Conger, this phase allows for the new software to be installed

and or integrated into the existing system. So during this phase, the new system, enhancements,

and upgrades are installed and tested. The coders have written the programs and testing will

allow for any possible errors to show up before the software is put into production. Proper

installation of new software is crucial as incorrect installation can lead to systems failing which

can be disastrous. (Valacich, George,& Hoffer, 2007, p.17) The operation part of the 4th phase

includes deploying the software and then monitoring the system to see that it performs to design

and requirements. Conger has an added element being the maintenance of the system. In

accordance with writing, maintenance includes perfective actions, corrective actions, and

adaptive actions.

So what are the differences between a Traditional and an Agile system? The Traditional

waterfall system is seen as more structured and not as flexible as the Agile approach. Some

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 authors even state that once one step is completed and you have moved on that you cannot go

back and if the change is required it is expensive to institute. (Waterfall vs. Agile, n.d.).

The advantages of the Traditional (waterfall) approach is seen as

Being easier to understand and function,

Because of its rigidity, it is easy to handle,

It saves time because each step is completed before going on to the next,

The structured approach makes for easy testing and analysis. (Bella, Knight, 2019)

The same authors also came up with some disadvantages for this approach being

It only matches exact needs and is not suitable for maintenance projects,

Because one step follows on the previous there is no way to determine the possible outcome until

the end and it is not suitable for long term or contentious projects. (Bella, Knight, 2019)

EDUCBA provided a comparison between the Agile and Traditional approach to the Software

Development Lifecycle. For starters, Agile is defined as a methodology whereas Traditional is

seen as a process. When defining where the approaches would be used, SLDC is used to produce

quality products whilst Agile in an incremental development approach to get a quality software

product . When stages are compared SLDC has definitive stages in its process whereas Agile

has different phases in its methodology. The platforms utilized differ in that SLDC works for

any product or software development whereas Agile splits the project into small independent

incremental builds. When the size of the project could decide the approach used it is stated that

SLDC works for any size of projects whereas Agile is more suitable to smaller projects. In

comparing which approach to use when possible changes might be necessary downstream it must

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 be noted that SLDC is rigid and does not allow for changes when the project has started whilst

Agile can accommodate rapid changes. When looking at how the different methodologies attack

the problem it is stated that SLDC has different approaches based on methodology whilst Agile

has a realistic approach in its development. The Agile approach is for the most easier to manage.

As mentioned before when looking at the flexibility of the methods agile would be more flexible

for the team and the developers of the system. (SDLC vs Agile, 2020).

So what do we know about the Agile Software development Cycle. In various stages of my

research the following advantages of the Agile approach have been aired. More definitively the

Pros for the Agile system can be seen as follows:

The approach is very adaptive and can accept changes quickly.

It allows for direct communication between various members of the team.

It is easier to improve quality by finding and fixing system issues quickly.

It allows for identifying requirement deficiencies early on. (Bella, Knight, 2014). Miller, 2013

indicates that there are more or less five identifiable problems when using the Agile approach to

software development. So these drawbacks can be seen as follows: He sees communication

issues as not all is familiar with the methodology. The communication problems come at various

levels of the process and can be internal or lack of communication between developers and

requirement setters. Documentation in Agile is not as efficient as when working with definitive

stages of the traditional method. This might allow the project to go off track as the outcome is

not clear. (Bella, Knight, 2014) The lack of communication, a paper trail, too many open

queries at the same time and a lack of buy in makes the day-to-day operations difficult. A

problem is created when there are too many players that have to buy into the project, when not

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 everybody is on the same field it relays into delays etc. When creating something new there are

always people who resist change because it requires a changed mindset and maybe even a culture

change for the organization. The buy-in to change is problematic because people have to gain

experience within the new and must have the will to make it work. (Miller, 2013)

References

1. Bella, M., & Knight, J. (2019, March 14). 12 Best Software Development Methodologies

with Pros & Cons. Retrieved from https://acodez.in/12-best-software-development-

methodologies-pros-cons/

2. Conger, S. (2008). The New Software Engineering. Retrieved from

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/247933628_The_New_Software_Engineering.

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 3. Miller, G. J. (2013). Agile problems, challenges, & failures. Paper presented at PMI®

Global Congress 2013. Retrieved from https://www.pmi.org/learning/library/agile-problems-

challenges-failures-5869

4. Morelos, D. (2019, August 07). Traditional vs. Agile Software Development Method:

Which One is Right for Your Project? - DZone Agile. Retrieved from

https://dzone.com/articles/traditional-vs-agile-software-development-method-w

5. SDLC vs Agile: 9 Most Valuable Differences You Should Know. (2020, April 23).

Retrieved from https://www.educba.com/sdlc-vs-agile/

6. Valacich, J., George, J. F., & Hoffer, J. (2007). Modern Systems Analysis and Design,

5th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Retrieved 5-10-2016 from

https://www.bau.edu.jo/inst/hamza/SAbook.pdf

7. Waterfall vs. Agile: A Comparison of Methodologies. (2020, May 06). Retrieved from

https://www.wholegraindigital.com/blog/waterfall-vs-agile-comparison-methodologies/

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