Agile Strategies for Successful App Development in the Dynamic Landscape

Do you know, that an average app loses around 77% of its daily active users within the first 3 days after installation? The landscape of mobile app development is changing frequently and if you are still using a traditional software development approach, this may not help you create the app that today's users want. This method follows preorganized stages, and you can only test the app after the completion of the development process.

Understand the dynamic landscape of app development and follow a method that allows you to create an app with personalized features and allows your team to be flexible in making changes. For this, you can go for Agile app development.

As per a report, compared to other app development models, the success rate of Agile is quite high, i.e., 80 percent. It is more popular than the Hybrid, Iterative, and Waterfall methods Unfortunately, implementing Agile app development into practice can be a challenging process. So here, we have curated some effective strategies that will make it easier for you.

Why Opt for Agile Methodology for Your App Development?

The Agile approach can help you update the app regularly by adding new features. Looking for some more reasons to adopt this methodology? Check out the following points.

#1. Impressive Product Quality

In the case of Agile app development, testing is done at every stage of the development process to ensure the quality of the app. Testing every component lets developers make necessary adjustments and lower the risk of bugs in the final testing round, increasing chances of success.

#2. Faster Time-To-Market

As the methodology focuses on an iterative approach, it can help accelerate your mobile app’s time-to-market. Different from the waterfall method, Agile allows side-by-side development as well as testing. As the entire project can be divided into smaller sprints, your team will be able to make functional increments quickly.

#3. Helps Lower Development Cost

Agile methodology encourages efficient utilization of various resources by splitting the work into priority-driven, multiple sprints. On the other hand, frequent iterations and testing can help you identify possible errors and you can fix them before moving to the next phase. This way you can avoid costly fixes in the future.

#4. Better Transparency

As the process of Agile app development is based on every team’s involvement along with the clients, every member will know about the project that is carried out and its current status. Clients can also keep track of the process. Besides, there will be a continuous and open communication channel within your development team.

#5. Enhanced Control

The iterative, rapid cycles in this method can offer regular feedback, making it easier to identify and resolve the issues as early as possible. On the other hand, due to regular clients’ participation, you can also ensure that the app is developed based on the client’s requirements. All these factors will help you streamline the process and come up with an informed decision. As a result, there will be better control over the app development project.

#6. Better Stakeholder Satisfaction

As we mentioned above, Agile app development encourages active client engagement in the process. It helps your team to create an app that will align with the requirements of your stakeholders or clients. This, in turn, will lead to better customer satisfaction. Besides, it also ensures higher acceptance of the app among the target user group.

Agile Methodology: A Balanced Approach

Some Pros And Cons Of Agile Methodology To Keep In Mind.

Pros:

✅Increased Flexibility and Adaptability

Agile teams focus on iterative development. They create a plan and complete the project in small pieces. That means the project can change or adapt easily whenever required. In fact, a team can implement changes instantly. Besides, working iteratively also lowers the waste considerably while improving the process.

✅Improved Team Collaboration and Communication

The agile methodology requires the involvement of multiple people in each iteration. This method also encourages face-to-face communication as well as continuous interaction. Teams generally organize regular meetings to make sure that all the members are on the same page. This, in turn, lowers the risk of misunderstanding or confusion, offering a perfect environment to build an app efficiently.

✅Faster Feedback Loops and Continuous Improvement

Instead of asking for clients' feedback at the end of the process, Agile methodologies require the team to get it frequently. This way, you can ensure that the process of development is heading in the right way. Besides, you will save much time in modifying the app's features. You can make the app a perfect one without redeveloping a new version.

✅Reduced Risk of Project Failure

App development projects using Agile methodologies don't face failure. Agile divides the project into various small sprints and encourages continuous delivery. Furthermore, the methodology makes it easier to adapt to the changing software environment. Bugs and issues can be detected early, before the release of the app. So, the chances of project failure are very low.

Cons:

❎Demands Strong Team Discipline and Self-Organization

When following an Agile methodology, team members need to make room in their work schedule to attain daily meetings. Besides, they also need to collaborate with clients, testers, and other major stakeholders constantly. They also need to follow the guidelines carefully. All these things require high discipline. Such factors can create strain on team members.

❎May Not Be Ideal for Projects with Rigid Requirements or Strict Deadlines

Another major downside of Agile development is that the team can't guarantee how long every Sprint takes to complete. A major reason behind this is changes can arise anytime during the process.

❎Requires Ongoing Effort to Maintain a Clear Product Vision

As the method is used to ensure the best product quality, it also requires an ongoing effort from the team, project manager, and other stakeholders. Besides, there should be regular and transparent communication between clients and teams to ensure the apps have the features that the clients want. That's why Agile is a good choice for a high-performing app development team.

Agile Frameworks and Strategies

#1. Scrum

Scrum is the most popular Agile framework that effectively controls the process’s flow. This model categorizes entire projects into multiple manageable and short modules or sprints. The duration of each sprint can last for around 2 to 4 weeks. In this method, a Scrum Master will lead the development team and organize regular meetings to ensure the on-time completion of the project. It is based on the continuous interaction of 3 major roles, i.e., Scrum Master, Scrum Team, and Product Owner.

#2. Kanban

Another popular framework for implementing Agile methodology is Kanban. Many organizations have witnessed improved visibility in their projects with this framework. Well, the reason behind this is Kanban primarily focuses on workflow visualization and encourages transparency. Here, developers can divide the project into different workflows and check the progress of the development lifecycle easily. This framework also helps eliminate the risk of burnout.

#3. Lean

This framework is based on two important principles i.e., minimizing waste and maximizing value. With this, you can avoid unnecessary things that don’t add any value to your project. This way, you can make your app development process more efficient and quicker. The Lean framework encourages continuous improvement. This, in turn, leads to faster development, satisfied clients, and high-quality apps.

#5. XP- Extreme Programming

Extreme programming framework differs from others as it focuses on comprehensive documentation and programming. It encourages developers to focus on specific components of apps, helping them create a high-quality app with better adaptability quality. Agile developers generally use extreme programming to inculcate discipline in the work.

#6. APF- Adaptive Project Framework

APF allows the project managers or developers to easily learn, adapt, and adjust goals based on their progress in the app development process. A major principle of APF is the collaboration of stakeholders. By understanding their feedback and inputs, the development team can create an app that will meet the stakeholder’s expectations.

#7. Crystal

Crystal is a light and flexible framework that easily manages the Agile app development process. It is a combination of different Agile methodologies that focuses on the continuous interaction of the team and stakeholders with the process. This framework is based on 7 principles, i.e., improvement in reflection, personal security, frequent delivery, work concentration, osmotic communication, proper utilization of technology, and access to subject experts.

#8. DSDM- Dynamic Systems Development Method

The DSDM approach focuses on the whole app development project lifecycle. Being popular for its strong and structured foundation, DSDM is an ideal option for projects that require better governance. Some major principles of DSDM are collaboration, focus on business requirements, development iteratively, on-time delivery, clear and continuous communication, and no compromise in quality.

Best Strategies for Implementing Agile App Development Methodologies

Consider these 6 practices to ensure that Agile development is implemented properly.

#1. Embrace Continuous Learning

Agile development emphasizes speed, collaboration, and flexibility, allowing companies to quickly adapt to changing markets as well as customer requirements. However, successful implementation of this methodology requires a continuous learning mindset. This can help your team to keep up with the changing technologies.

Besides, continuous learning agile development also increases employee engagement, and improves collaboration and innovation. The Agile technology landscape is evolving constantly, and by practicing continuous learning, you can reduce the risk of falling behind in this competitive industry.

#2. Prioritize Customer Feedback

Creating an app that is valued and appreciated by your clients is an important element of Agile project management. To attain this, you need to get your customer feedback at every stage of your project. In agile methodology, customer collaboration is given maximum importance. Involve your customers throughout the development process and create an efficient channel for regular interactions.

To collect customer feedback, you can opt for A/B testing. This is a smart way to experiment with different designs and process options and understand what works best for you. Another effective way of getting feedback is by conducting user interviews. This method helps you get a better understanding of your users' pain points, wants, and needs.

#3. Focus on Short Iterations and Early Delivery

Working in sprints or focusing on short iterations is an excellent way to deal with complicated app development projects. When a team has a short amount of time to complete a project, they will focus on planned work and can deliver that quite frequently. The high rate of delivery suggests that your team can be more adaptive in terms of their process and product.

Furthermore, they can also easily evaluate the market's response and change their development strategies accordingly. It is also important to focus on the early delivery of the app. Analyzing the feedback, they can understand what fixes, innovative features, or other changes they need to make.

#4. Invest in DevOps Practices

DevOps divides the project between your development and operations teams and promotes a culture of shared accountability and responsibility. Multiple teams will work together to attain common goals, and their collaboration will accelerate the app delivery while enhancing innovation, responsiveness, and agility.

A crucial element of DevOps is process automation. By integrating automation, you can streamline repetitive tasks, boost efficiency, and lower the chances of manual errors. Furthermore, DevOps also focuses on the integration of testing early into the project lifecycle. With the help of automated testing practices and frameworks, it will be easier for you to identify and resolve issues sooner.

On the other hand, DevOps also leads to seamless deployment of apps. Using different containerization technologies, your team can attain scalability, reliability, and consistency in deploying apps across multiple environments.

#5. Embrace a Culture of Experimentation

A culture of experimentation means providing your team with an environment where they can try out new ideas and strategies without any restrictions. Create an environment where everyone, from developers and managers to executives, feels free to ask for others' ideas and opinions.

As you know, an Agile team has a short duration, and they constantly experiment and adapt, considering the stakeholders' and customers' feedback. So, here, failure is inevitable. However, this can be a great opportunity for them to learn from their failures and work more efficiently.

#6. Data-Driven Decision Making

When you follow a data-driven decision-making approach, instead of any guesswork, you utilize metrics data, facts, and real-time info to make more informed decisions. When used in app development processes, data-driven decision-making can help you enhance users' experience as well as boost app retention rate.

Wondering how to use this approach in app development? One of the best ways is by conducting A/B testing. For this, you can launch multiple app versions and then analyze the responses of different users. Then, you can come up with the best version by considering their behavioral patterns. You can also go for performance and analytics.

Top Agile Project Management Tools and Resources

While Agile project management has become a top priority for many businesses, it is also important to use the right tools that can support this approach. Here, we have listed down the top 7 Agile project management tools that you can confidently opt for.

#1. JIRA

It is one of the most popular and widely used Agile project management tools. JIRA is generally used for issue detection and resolution. Besides, it has some useful features like project tracking, team collaboration, reporting, and agile boards.

#2. ClickUp

It is a well-known productivity platform that is designed to help teams effectively plan, collaborate, and organize projects using goals, chat, whiteboards, docs, tasks, etc., You can also visualize your task in more than 15 different views, including Calendar, List, and Gantt. ClickUp also offers time tracking and workflow automation features.

#3. Maven

If you are looking for an Agile tool to automate your build processes, you can give Maven a try. Using this, you can create as well as manage different complex app development projects along with their configurations. The tool supports various popular languages, including Scala, C#, Java, Ruby, and more.

#4. Wrike

This is a cloud-based Agile project management platform that can help you organize multiple development tasks, manage projects, and track progress. It has some advanced tools for workflow automation, communication, task management, reporting, and team collaboration.

The platform also supports AI-powered content creation features. Using generative AI and available data, it can create effective project plans, descriptions, and documentation. Besides, it can be integrated with Slack, Asana, GitHub, Trello, Adobe and more.

#5. Nifty

Want to use less to get more results? Well, Nifty can help you with that. Using this, you perform multiple actions like creating timelines, tracking real-time values, making project documents, addressing IT problems, managing clients, and more. It helps your team to get more done while efficiently collaborating with others.

This tool allows users to check dashboards in five different views. To enjoy maximum benefits, you can integrate Nifty with Webex, Microsoft Suite, Harvest, and Zoom.

#6. Kanbanize or Businessmap

Formerly known as Kanbanize, Businessmap is a Kanban-based Agile project management program that can help your team visualize the workflows. It also helps streamline all the processes. With the help of a visual representation of progress, your team can easily manage their tasks, enhance productivity, and track their performance metrics.

#7. ActiveCollab

ActiveCollab is designed to offer you complete control over your project. More than 50,000 Agile teams are now using ActiveCollab for project management. When you are using this, you don't have to keep your stakeholders on the sidelines. You can easily keep them informed and determine what they can access and see. Besides, ActiveCollab also helps in sharing files, project planning, brainstorming, expense tracking, and more.

Real-World Examples Of Agile Development Method

#1. British Telecom

While using the waterfall model, the British Telecom encountered a lot of challenges, such as:

• Financial losses due to late and faulty deployment of the programs
• A complex and long approval process due to improper collaboration of teams and stakeholders
• Frequent addition of requirements by users on high-priority

Well, to solve these issues, BT desired to use Agile development methodologies. The company decided to focus on continuous development. After opting for frequent iterations, the team was able to lower their delivery time to 90 days from 12 months. Besides, they also witnessed an increase in the quality.

#2. Uber

When it was first launched, Uber only had some core features. It was just a web app created using PHP. Customers used to send an email to book a cab. However, later, the company found it challenging to manage emails. To come up with a solution, they called some drivers and informed them about the Uber Business Model. Some drivers agreed to follow the model and that was the first success for the company.

After that, they created an MVP and introduced it to the market. Their MVP witnessed a massive success. That helped them to optimize their business model and app features. Before launching the final product, they tested the idea with a few early adaptors. Well, the feedback they got from the adaptors helped them to make sure that they should launch the final product.

Conclusion

Are you ready to develop a high-performance mobile app? You may have an amazing app concept or may be researching to know what your target audiences want. However, before you can move ahead, you need to choose the best app development methodology that can lead to success. The Agile app development method can help you a lot to deal with this dynamic landscape. This methodology is scalable, feasible, and also adaptable. With changing scenarios, it has emerged as a popular option. Use it, and turn your unique app vision into a reality.

You can also consider top mobile app development companies in India like Expert App Devs to achieve the desired results. We boast a seasoned team of mobile app developers who follow Agile methodologies to develop cutting-edge applications for our clients.

Jignen Pandya

Vice President at Expert App Devs

Responsible for creating a sales funnel, attracting top-of-the-funnel customers, and converting the target market.