Agile software development is a set of methods, practices and principles based on the the Agile Manifesto. Self-organizing development teams and stakeholders collaborate on projects to encourage adaptive planning, continuous improvement, early delivery, and greater quality control. If you're still sceptical of agile software development, check out some of the many benefits that it offers.

1) User Involvement

One of the many benefits of agile software development is increased user involvement. While no two projects are exactly the same, most are broken up into small increments known as iterations. Lasting from one to four weeks on average, a cross-functional team works on the project during these iterations. At the and of each iteration, the software is demonstrated to the stakeholders who then provide invaluable insight and perspective on the product. Project teams may then implement changes in the product based on stakeholders' feedback.

2) Early Release

Software development is one instance in which the age-old adage, the early bird gets the worm, holds true. The sooner your product is released, the greater your chance of dominating your respective market. Agile development encourages the early release of products, as well as beta and perpetual beta releases, assuming it's logical and in the best interest of the respective company.

3) Ongoing Testing and Quality Control

Regular, ongoing testing is a fundamental principle of agile software development. The project is broken into smaller, more manageable units, allowing the team to test builds as they are created. Subsequently, this encourages high-quality development, as project teams can identify and fix defects in a timely manner.

4) Project Predictability

Another reason why so many software developers are using the agile method is because it promotes improved project predictability. Project teams can better predict the outcome of their product thanks to short sprints and daily scrum meetings. And with this information in hand, the product can be finalized for an optimal launch.

5) Risk Management

Agile software development also offers the benefit of risk management. Whenever a project team begins working on a new product, there's some risk involved. Maybe technique hurdles will prevent the product from achieving its goal, or perhaps testing will reveal errors within the product. Agile all but eliminates the conventional risks associated with software development, as small incremental releases of the product are made in an effort to identify issues early, before they progress into larger problems.

6) Customer Satisfaction

Last but not least, agile software develop promotes a higher level of customer satisfaction. The method encourages both active user involvement and flexibility to make changes, allowing project teams to improve the product with ease. Subsequently, this leads to improved customer satisfaction with the respective product.

As you can see, agile software development offers numerous benefits, ranging from quality control and product predictability to user involvement and early releases. A State of Agile even found that 73% of respondents said agile practices help them complete projects faster; 87% said it improves their team's productivity.

Many of our clients have commented on the benefits they've witnessed as we've use Agile development methods when working with them.

Thanks for reading and feel free to let us know your thoughts in the comments below regarding the benefits of Agile Software Development.