Agile software Development encapsulates a collection of software development methodologies in which the requirements are met by cross functional teams.

1. Agile software Development encapsulates a collection of
software development methodologies in which the requirements
are met by cross functional teams. Though the methodology of
Agile dates back to the 90s but it was only in 2001 that its
theories received due consideration. In this development
process, the process of software design is fragmented into small
pieces. The basic components of agile are client collaboration,
teamwork, high degree of adaptability and time boxes.

2. The programming teams for agile software development are broken
down into small groups of five to ten programmers. The smaller size of
the group makes way for daily and planned interactions. Prevailing
corporate identities are not considered as group members as each
person is equally important for the completion of time box. Each team
is provided direct access to a customer relation expert so that all the
queries emerged during the process of development can be sorted out
in a timely manner. Client satisfaction is the foremost concern in agile
development.

3. Also known as iterations, time boxes are short frames of time in the
design process and they are usually of one to four weeks. The
component of code is constructed by the teams during this time. The
entire process of software design is contained in the iterations and at
the end of the time period a bug free component is produced. Teams
have to perform the tasks of designing, planning, analyzing, coding
and testing before the component is presented to the clients. This is
the main difference between agile method of software development
and the bulky designs like ‘Waterfall model’ which require the project
to be completed before the approval or the denial by clients.

4. The feedback from clients offers the software a greater degree of
adaptability within the single method. The troubleshooting of
issues by the programmer during the process of development
provides room for innovative thinking. In the agile model of
software development, the clients assess and ranks their
requirements based on the value of each component with respect
to their business. The quantity of generated documentation is very
less in this model as compared to other development models.

5. The main approaches used in agile development include scrum,
adaptive software development, extreme programming, Dynamic
Systems development Method (DSDM), feature targeted and clear
development. The approaches are targeted towards the people
cantered approach for software development. Agile method may
not be suitable for all software projects but it is still considered as
very valuable for some.