Overview and Guidance on Agile Development in Large Organizations

Communications of the Association for Information Systems, Vol. 29, No. 2, pp. 25-44, July 2011

21 Pages Posted: 17 Aug 2011 Last revised: 27 Jul 2013

See all articles by Jordan B. Barlow

Jordan B. Barlow

California State University, Fullerton - Mihaylo College of Business & Economics

Justin Giboney

University of Arizona - Department of Management Information Systems

Mark J. Keith

Brigham Young University - Marriott School

David Wilson

University of Arizona - Department of Management Information Systems

Ryan M. Schuetzler

Brigham Young University - Department of Information Systems

Paul Benjamin Lowry

Virginia Tech - Pamplin College of Business

Anthony Vance

Virginia Tech

Date Written: August 14, 2011

Abstract

A continual debate surrounds the effectiveness of agile software development practices. Some organizations adopt agile practices to become more competitive, improve processes, and reduce costs. Other organizations are skeptical about whether agile development is beneficial. Large organizations face an additional challenge in integrating agile practices with existing standards and business processes. To examine the effects of agile development practices in large organizations, we review and integrate scientific literature and theory on agile software development. We further organize our theory and observations into a framework with guidelines for large organizations considering agile methodologies. Based on this framework, we present recommendations that suggest ways large organizations with established processes can successfully implement agile practices. Our analysis of the literature and theory provides new insight for researchers of agile software development and assists practitioners in determining how to adopt agile development in their organizations

Keywords: agility, agile development, software development, life cycle, large organizations, waterfall method, extreme programming, Scrum, informal communication, interdependencies, coordination

Suggested Citation

Barlow, Jordan B. and Giboney, Justin and Keith, Mark J. and Wilson, David and Schuetzler, Ryan and Lowry, Paul Benjamin and Vance, Anthony, Overview and Guidance on Agile Development in Large Organizations (August 14, 2011). Communications of the Association for Information Systems, Vol. 29, No. 2, pp. 25-44, July 2011, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1909431 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1909431

Jordan B. Barlow

California State University, Fullerton - Mihaylo College of Business & Economics ( email )

P.O. Box 6848
Fullerton, CA CA 92834-6848
United States

Justin Giboney

University of Arizona - Department of Management Information Systems ( email )

AZ
United States

Mark J. Keith

Brigham Young University - Marriott School ( email )

Provo, UT 84602
United States

David Wilson

University of Arizona - Department of Management Information Systems ( email )

AZ
United States

Ryan Schuetzler

Brigham Young University - Department of Information Systems ( email )

510 Tanner Building
Marriott School
Provo, UT 84602
United States

Paul Benjamin Lowry (Contact Author)

Virginia Tech - Pamplin College of Business ( email )

1016 Pamplin Hall
Blacksburg, VA 24061
United States

Anthony Vance

Virginia Tech ( email )

Blacksburg, VA
United States

HOME PAGE: http://https://bit.vt.edu/faculty/directory/vance.html

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