Agile methodology has been touted as a panacea by project managers for years now. It offers teams a flexible and adaptive approach to project development, allowing for changes and adjustments as needed. However, not all Agile frameworks are created equal. Two of the most common approaches are the lightweight and heavyweight Agile frameworks. In this post, we'll explore the differences between them and help you determine which is best suited for your team.
Lightweight Agile Framework
Lightweight Agile Frameworks are also known as "Adaptive Agile," based on their flexibility and the ease with which they can adapt to new situations. The focus is on maximizing value delivery by minimizing bureaucracy, documentation and hierarchy, based on specific Agile project management tools such as Kanban and Scrum.
Advantages of Lightweight Agile Frameworks:
- Promote incremental and iterative delivery
- Flexible changes in project requirements
- Highly reactive to change
- Easy to understand and implement
- Lightweight Agile management tools like Kanban and Scrum can be used by any team size and industry.
Disadvantages of Lightweight Agile Frameworks:
- Lack of structured documentation and therefore lack of formal idea transfer
- Limited governance and accountability, the informal approach can lead to scope creep
- Requires a high degree of self-discipline and team autonomy
- The system may be less formal, making it less attractive and less comfortable for some stakeholders.
Heavyweight Agile Framework
Heavyweight Agile Frameworks are also known as "Plan-Driven Agile", which are similar to Lean Six Sigma, with more structure and documentation. It allows the project management team to expand the Agile framework beyond the usual iterative and incremental approach, for example, SAFe and DAD.
Advantages of Heavyweight Agile Frameworks:
- More structure and formalities which leads to high accountability
- Well documented procedures which make knowledge transfer easy
- Higher levels of governance which promote organization and with governance that can eliminate anything that may lead to scope creep.
- Scalable, making it possible for multiple teams across the entire organization.
Disadvantages of Heavyweight Agile Frameworks:
- Required well planned and documented
- Less agile and perhaps not suited for a rapidly changing business environment.
- More bureaucratic compared to lightweight frameworks
- It can be complicated and more expensive to implement which may not be ideal for small teams.
Which Is Better for Your Team?
The best approach for each team is based on the specific needs of each project. The lightweight Agile framework is suitable for small teams or teams that work well together, value autonomy and flexibility, and have minimal regulatory requirements. Heavyweight Agile framework would be ideal for large or complex projects that require more integration and a more formal organizational structure or teams that have low levels of self-discipline.
In conclusion, Agile frameworks have come a long way since the initial Agile Manifesto was introduced in 2001, and many development frameworks are in use today. The choice between lightweight and heavyweight frameworks depends on the team's current situation, their goals and objectives. It is important to study these frameworks in order to understand which would be suitable for your team and particular project requirements.
References
- Agile Manifesto. (n.d.). https://agilemanifesto.org.
- Sirbu, M.-D. (2011). Lightweight vs. heavyweight processes. Cost Engineering, 53(10), 16-17.
- Beck, K., et. al (2001). Manifesto for Agile Software Development. Agile Alliance.