A Review of Scaling Agile Methods in Large Software Development

Abstract

Agile methods such as Dynamic Systems Development Method (DSDM), Extreme Programming (XP), SCRUM, Agile Modeling (AM) and Crystal Clear enable small teams to execute assigned task at their best. However, larger organizations aim at incorporating more Agile methods owing to the fact that its application is prevalently tailored for small teams. The scope in which large firms are interested will extend the original Agile methods to include larger teams, coordination, communication among teams and customers as well as oversight. Determining particular software method is always challenging for software companies especially when considering start-up, small to medium or large enterprises. Most of large organizations develop large-scale projects by teams of teams or teams of teams of teams. Therefore, most recognized Agile methods or first-generation methods such as XP and SCRUM need to be modified before they are employed in large organizations; which is not an easy task. Accomplishing said task would necessitate large organizations to pick and select from the scaling Agile methods in accommodating a single vision for large and multiple teams. Deciding the right choice requires wholesome understanding of the method including its strengths and weaknesses as well as when and how it makes sense. Therefore, the main aim of this paper is to review the existing literature of the utilized scaling Agile methods by defining, discussing and comparing them. In-depth reviews of the literature were performed to juxtapose the methods in impartial manner. In addition, the content analysis was used to analyse the resultant data. The result indicated that the DAD, LeSS, LeSS huge, SAFe, Spotify, Nexus, and RAGE are the adopted scaling Agile methods at large organizations. They seem to be similar but there are discrepancies among them that take the form of team size, training, and certification, methods and practices adopted, technical practices required and organizational type.

Scaling agile in large organizations: Practices, challenges, and success factors

“…There are nowadays several frameworks that can be used to guide the scaling process in organizations . Based on the needs emerging over the years, several methods, practices, and frameworks were derived to extend traditional agile methods: Scrum of Scrums (SoS), SAFe, LeSS, Disciplined Agile Delivery (DAD), Lean scalable Agility for Engineering (LeanSAFE), Recipes for Agile Governance in the Enterprise (RAGE)—with SoS, SAFe, and LeSS considered the more mature …”

“…DAD covers 3 main project life‐cycle phases: inception (initial exploratory phase to understand project scope), construction (production of the solution), and transition (deployment of the solution) . DAD phases can be customized according to the needs: agile/basic (more similar to Scrum application), advanced/lean (more similar to Kanban), continuous delivery life cycle (brief transition period, ideal for quick releases, even daily), exploratory life cycle (for start‐up/research projects with more phases for envisioning and measuring product releases) .…”

“…DAD phases can be customized according to the needs: agile/basic (more similar to Scrum application), advanced/lean (more similar to Kanban), continuous delivery life cycle (brief transition period, ideal for quick releases, even daily), exploratory life cycle (for start‐up/research projects with more phases for envisioning and measuring product releases) . DAD provided other roles to address scalability issues across teams (specialist, independent tester, domain expert, technical expert, and integrator) …”

“…Apart traditional Scrum roles, DAD introduces a role called team lead (similar to Scrum master) and an architecture owner role derived from the agile modeling method . DAD provided other roles to address scalability issues across teams (specialist, independent tester, domain expert, technical expert, and integrator) .…”

Key Factors for Selecting an Agile Method: A Systematic Literature Review

“…Team and project size can affect the outcome of different Agile methods in different ways [40], [101], [137]. Thus, when composing an Agile team, the size of the project and the team must be considered [55].…”