Disadvantages of agile methodology

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Agile methodologies promise to execute projects on time, avoiding that the loss of focus or lack of information put projects at risk. Teams incorporate a lightweight and dynamic format, ensuring that the tasks are executed without major deviations in project planning, something that will minimize downtime or corrections in the future.

This article comes to prove the maxim “Excess of everything is bad “. That is, the danger hidden within the Agile methods lies in its own essence, in the elongation of redundant practices that impede progress, as I shall explain:

 

Meetings

Meetings are very important because they help maintain planning without overruns. However, there is a natural tendency to debate all issues, forcing to overuse the debate and introducing too many stops to reflect during production, which will eventually leave little time to effectively perform the assigned tasks.

 

Interruptions

When we need to discuss some matter or expose a problem to a colleague, we assume that there is availability of this team member. Teams that are too dynamic tend to lose discipline, disrespecting the space of others. People replace research, study and self-taught ability with talks with colleagues.

 

Independence

Too much independence from senior staff can lead to catastrophe, especially because less experienced professionals make critical decisions in the wrong way, which often remain camouflaged until an advanced stage of the project, making their reversal compromising to the project’s fulfilment. On the other hand, the creation of tasks unilaterally complicates planning for the project manager who is unaware of communications made without being notified.

 

Creativity

The creative process can become one of the biggest obstacles to meeting the deadlines of an Agile project. At times, the will to drink new ideas ends up prevailing to objectivity, making the processes cyclical and inhibited to advance to the next phases.

 

Culture

It is a utopia to assume that an organization can be managed through a total sharing of functions, overriding hierarchies and regulations. There must always be company culture. Many projects fall because they lose control.

 

Formation

Agile processes should be simplified because it is the simplicity that will allow us to move forward. The problem arises when the methodology assumes an obsessive character. That is, there is an excess of discussion and formation that lead to the excessive use of time with conceptualist questions.

It is much more complex to implement an agile project than is initially thought because in many cases we are simultaneously confronting different mindsets. The method is proven to be the right path, although it is imperative that the correct implementation is carried out since it is a productive process that is multiplied in cycles.

The truth is that more than good KPIs, the important thing is that there is an excellent notion of the overall state of the project and that the customer’s needs are properly predicted and documented so that there is precision in terms of quantity and duration of productive cycles. In order to achieve success, there has to be a recurring involvement of the customer, the entity that has the know-how in the segment in which it operates and where the product will serve.

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About the Author

Francisco Cardoso is ZALOX’s CEO. With several decades of experience in business management, digital projects and teams, this blog gathers the know-how acquired, helping managers to overcome current challenges.