Software Development has become an essential component of almost all organizations in order to serve as a means of business development. Even the smallest project requires a dozen IT specialists, numerous meetings, plannings, and discussions, as well as strict deadlines to meet. As a result, a specified Software Development Methodology is required for any team. It contributes to the standardization of the process, making it clear to both clients and internal team members what is going on with the products. However, with the rise of numerous software development methodologies to simplify operations over the last decade, how do you choose the best? What are the benefits and drawbacks of some commonly used ones? Follow this blog to gain a better understanding!

1. What Is Software Development Methodology?

In the simplest definition, Software Development Methodology refers to the process to build Software. In reality, a Custom Software Development Company can create a platform in a variety of ways, like advancing from less important to more important duties, completing tasks alphabetically or based on preferences, etc. And a Development Model will help to provide a systematic software development approach by defining which parts of functionality will be completed first, in what time period, and when results will be presented to clients. To put it another way, software development methodology provides a framework for developers to build seamless communication and work effectively as a team. It streamlines communication and establishes how information is shared among team members.

2. What Are The Most Commonly Used Software Development Methodologies?

a. DevOps Development Methodology

One of the latest methodologies to be used widely is DevOps Development Methodology, which combines software development (Dev) and information technology operations (Ops) participating together in the entire service lifecycle, from design through the development process to production support. These two departments work as a single team to complete all processes throughout the life cycle. The continuous integration and delivery models enable development and operational teams to perform all tasks in development, quality assurance, security, and other operations simultaneously. According to research, when adhering to DevOps:

• 63% report improvement in the quality of their software deployments
• 63% release new software more frequently
• 55% noticed improved cooperation and collaboration
• 38% report a higher quality of code production

Take a look at DevOps Software Development Methodology.

Advantages of DevOps:

• Because multiple ongoing processes are running simultaneously, the time it takes to complete a product is much shorter.
• DevOps enables businesses to continuously innovate and improve their products, resulting in a better software products.
• With increasing changes in the product and infrastructure, the developed products are more robust and secure, giving them a competitive advantage over their peers.
• Increase the productivity and efficiency of your employees.

Disadvantages of DevOps:

• Incompatibility with various development environments.
• DevOps does not always result in increased speed and security. Some companies may not be able to guarantee both in a single stage for some critical software engineering projects, and you may need to consider a separate plan for security at each stage of your DevOps workflow.

b. Agile Methodology

It is hard for any methodology to take over the position of Agile over the past few years. This model is used in many projects because it allows for changes during the development phase. With an Agile approach, the IT team frequently divides the project into smaller sprints that can be completed in 1-4 weeks. Each sprint is treated as a separate project and must go through the entire process of designing, coding, testing, deploying, and reviewing. Once each sprint has been completed and combined, the final product will be completed.

Advantages of Agile:

• Customer satisfaction is achieved through the timely and continuous delivery of useful software.
• Easy to adapt and change to suit the market.
• The final product comes up with minimal defects due to real-time testing and fine-tuning. 

Disadvantages of Agile:

• Too many changes can lead to the derailed focus of the project.
• Agile focuses on working software rather than documentation, hence it may result in a lack of documentation.
• The discussions and feedback time after each sprint can be time-consuming. 

c. Waterfall Methodology

The waterfall is one of the oldest methodologies, but it is still an effective tool, with 10% of global users. This methodology is quite linear and strict; once you enter the next phase, you can’t go back to the previous one to handle changes in requirements. For example, if the IT Providers are in the coding phase, there is no way to return to the design stage and change something. As a result, in any phase of the development cycle, you should always double-check that the previous phase has been completed.

Advantages of Waterfall:

• This model’s linearity makes it simple to understand, making the development process simple for new developers.
• Because of the model’s rigidity, project management is simple. Furthermore, each phase has its own set of deliverables and review process.
• There is no room for miscommunication at any stage due to the well-defined approach practice.

Disadvantages of Waterfall:

• Requires a lengthy discovery process.
• Not suitable for projects that require continuous maintenance.
• It can’t be considered the clients’ feedback during the early stages of the development process, increasing the likelihood of deviating from the intended path.
• In the testing stage, it is nearly impossible to go back and do any changes to the completed software, causing many problems.

This is a process of Waterfall Methodology.

3. Things To Consider Before Choosing A Development Methodology

The level of flexibility: While it is hard for clients to change the requirements in the Waterfall Model, it can be achieved if the development team follows the Agile Methodology. Therefore, Agile is more suitable for projects catching the latest trends.

The scale and scope of work: The number of developers required to complete a project is determined by its size. The larger the project is, the more team members are needed. For large-scaled ones, the Waterfall approach seems to be a better fit as such projects always require much more elaborate and orderly project management plans. 

Time to launch products: If you want to launch products as early as possible, DevOps or Agile can be your better choice. However, in case the time-frame for the development is long-term and there are no fast-approaching deadlines, the waterfall method is a great choice.

The expected end products: If you’re targeting a specific group of end-users, you’ll most likely have a mostly fixed set of requirements to work with, making the Waterfall method ideal for web and app development. However, if your target end-users are dispersed, you’ll almost certainly have to deal with a number of feedbacks after the app’s launch requesting the inclusion of new features, so Agile would be the best SDLC model in this case. 

The past experience of the project team: When selecting a Development Model, prior experience is also important. Some team members may be hesitant to work with certain systems if they have no prior familiarity with them, while others may struggle to adjust to working with new team members. It’s critical to consider team capabilities and dynamics.

4. Final Thoughts

To conclude, there is no one-size-fits-all methodology for every development team. Therefore, let’s choose wisely based on the aforementioned pros and cons of each model. You should also base on the team structure, objectives, and goals to get the best out of one. Various software development approaches can also be used for different projects.

Have an idea project in mind? Contact us to get started. As a Software Development Outsourcing, our IT Professionals can implement any project size of any sector, including Finance, F&B, Healthcare, Education, Logistics, Retail, Manufacturing, etc. At SotaTek, we adhere to Agile Methodology, DevOps Methodology, and even Waterfall in our daily process. Our standard approach is to keep our services as open-ended as possible for our clients. And we are still striving to earn your trust as a reliable Tech Partner who creates platforms with Clients’ users in mind.