Agile vs. Design thinking - What's the difference and how do they work together?
Agile and Design Thinking are two popular methodologies that are often used in software development projects. Both of these methodologies focus on improving the end product by involving customers, breaking down tasks into manageable chunks, and iterating quickly to make improvements. But many people wonder how these two methodologies differ and how they can work together to create a better end result. In this blog, we'll take a closer look at the similarities, differences, and how Agile and Design Thinking can work together.
What is Agile?
Agile is a framework for software development that emphasizes flexibility, collaboration, and customer satisfaction. Agile methodologies break down tasks into smaller, more manageable chunks to increase speed and efficiency. This approach allows teams to quickly adapt to changing requirements and customer needs and to deliver new increments of software regularly.
Agile is typically associated with Scrum, which is one of the most popular Agile methodologies. In Scrum, development work is divided into two-week sprints. The outcome of each sprint is a potentially shippable increment of the product.
What is Design thinking?
Design thinking is a methodology for problem-solving that involves empathy and understanding the needs of the customer. It is often used in design and innovation projects to create user-centered solutions. Design thinking encourages creativity and collaboration to produce innovative solutions.
Design thinking is typically broken down into the following phases:
- Empathize – Understand the customer's needs
- Define – Define the problem statement
- Ideate – Generate multiple ideas
- Prototype – Create prototypes of potential solutions
- Test – Test the prototypes with users and refine the solution
Compared to Agile, Design thinking tends to have a longer timeline and a focus on user research and user-centered design.
Agile vs. Design thinking - Similarities
Agile and Design thinking share several similarities, including:
- Collaboration – Both methodologies emphasize collaboration among team members.
- Flexibility – Both methodologies allow for quick changes and adjustments.
- Iterative – Both methodologies encourage an iterative approach to development.
- Customer-focused – Both methodologies should result in the delivery of products that meet the needs of the customer.
Despite these similarities, there are also significant differences between Agile and Design thinking.
Agile vs. Design thinking - Differences
Agile and Design thinking have distinct differences that set them apart, including:
- Timeline – Agile typically operates on a shorter timeline with a focus on delivering increments of the product regularly. Design thinking tends to have a longer timeline, with a focus on user research and user-centered design.
- The process – Agile relies on the team to determine what needs to be done during each sprint. Design thinking relies on a defined process with specific stages.
- The objective – Agile aims to deliver incrementally and iteratively. Design thinking aims to identify the right problem to solve and ideate towards the best solution.
How do they work together?
While Agile and Design thinking have differences, they can work together. Agile can benefit from Design thinking by providing a more structured approach to thinking about customers and problem-solving. Meanwhile, Design thinking can benefit from Agile by providing a framework for swift prototyping and solution testing. Using both methods together could help in delivering a better end-product that meets both the needs of the customer, and is market-driven.
Conclusion
Agile and Design thinking have similarities and differences, and while they can be used independently, they can also be used together. Agile’s focus is on quickly delivering a product incrementally, while Design thinking focuses on customer needs through research stages to identify the right problem to solve. The combination of the two can provide a structured and swift approach towards a product that markets well and meets customer needs.
References
[1] Agile Methodology, Atlassian, https://www.atlassian.com/agile, Accessed on 21st Sep 2022
[2] Design thinking, Interaction Design Foundation, https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/topics/design-thinking, Accessed on 21st Sep 2022.