03. Open Source - Shortcomings

Home

05. Scrum Methodology

This paper does not explain the Scrum methodology other than is necessary for the purposes of this paper. For more details on Scrum I recommend starting with Wikipedia:
Scrum: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrum_%28development%29

The Principles of Agile Projects

Scrum is a software development methodology that follows Agile principles. The roots and principles of Agile come from the principles of Lean manufacturing created in Japan by Toyota in the 1980s which in turn pulled from the philosophies of Henry Ford (Wikipedia).

The principles of Agile (Agile Manifesto) are:

• Customer satisfaction by rapid, continuous delivery of useful software
• Working software is delivered frequently (weeks rather than months)
• Working software is the principal measure of progress
• Even late changes in requirements are welcomed
• Close, daily, cooperation between business people and developers
• Face-to-face conversation is the best form of communication
• Projects are built around motivated individuals, who should be trusted
• Continuous attention to technical excellence and good design
• Simplicity
• Self-organizing teams
• Regular adaptation to changing circumstances

It is apparent from this list that the principles of open source and the principles of Agile development have a lot in common. In many cases there is an analogous principle or a close mapping to one.