Agile methodologies in Insurance
Of late some insurers have been trying to implement agile methodology for software development. Insurers who rushed in to implement agile methodology quickly have failed to reap the real benefits of agile. Based on my interactions with a few clients who failed in agile implementations, I have listed here a few tips to note if you are trying to implement agile methodology.
1. You are more than likely to fail in the first 2 to 3 iterations while trying agile methodology. So, Start small and go slow to build the experience in agile.
2. Don't try to make the iterations duration less than 45 days. IF the iteration is too long, benefits of agile are gone. If it is too short , it poses too many risks.
3. Don't take up agile methodology as an excuse to those who don't like to follow the process. Your team is comfortable with following the traditional processes, but agile is used to cut short some of the long drawn processes.
4. Key to agile implementation is agility of the people. Not only of your development team - but also of business, infrastructure, testing and other support groups. If all groups are not aligned, you are not likely to see the benefits.
