Traditional Software Development Methodology
Traditional software development methodologies are based on pre-organized phases/stages of the
software development lifecycle. Here the flow of development is unidirectional, from requirements to
design and then to development, then to testing and maintenance. In classical approaches like the
Waterfall model, each phase has specific deliverables and detailed documentation that have
undergone a thorough review process.
Traditional approaches are suited when requirements are well understood – for example, in industries
like construction, where everyone clearly understands the final product. On the other hand, in rapidly
changing industries like IT, traditional development procedures might fail to achieve project goals.
Below are the major disadvantages of traditional SDLC methods.
Problem statement / business need has to be defined well in advance. The solution
also needs to be determined in advance and cannot be changed or modified.
The entire set of requirements have to be given in the initial phase without any chance
of changing or modifying them after the project development has started.
Agile Software Development Methodology
Unlike the traditional approaches of SDLC, Agile approaches are precise and customer friendly.
Users/Customers have the opportunity to make modifications throughout project development phases.
The advantages of Agile over traditional development methodologies include:
Though the problem statement/business need and solution are defined in advance,
they can be modified at any time.
Requirements/User Stories can be provided periodically implying better chances for
mutual understanding among developer and user.
The solution can be determined by segregating the project into different modules and
can be delivered periodically.
The user gets an opportunity to evaluate solution modules to determine whether the
business need is being met thus ensuring quality outcomes.
It is possible to create re-usable components.
There is less priority on documentation which results in less time consumption and
expenditure.
