Is there any data on the effectiveness of Agail?

Question

Project management

In the light of another dispute about the effectiveness of Agail compared to working without it and without any methodologies, I decided to look for real data on its usefulness. Unfortunately, I found graphics only on the official website that are made in the style of Agail vs just simple washing powder. Those. some solid marketing articles without the slightest hint of science.

I myself tried several times to work according to this methodology and did not understand what tasks it solves. Moreover, the company in which I worked from Agail was abandoned and unexpectedly received an increase in productivity.

The question is, is there any serious scientific research? Otherwise, everything looks like an attempt to attract Scientology into the development world.

Answer 1

If you want a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study of the effectiveness of Agile, there is none.
In general, it would be nice to give an example of "serious scientific research" of other methods of product development, such as waterfall or kanban or something, so that it is clear what you want.
There is really a lot of noise and useless / incorrect information around this approach, many examples of unsuccessful use, but this does not mean that this is some kind of bullshit.

I myself tried several times to work according to this methodology and did not understand what tasks it solves.

You need to do it in reverse order - first try the problems that she can solve, then figure out how to do it, then try.

Moreover, the company in which I worked from Agail was abandoned and unexpectedly received an increase in productivity.

And this is normal - maybe there were not those problems that Agile is aimed at. You can try to hammer screws with a hammer, then refuse in favor of an answer and get a performance increase, but this does not mean that the phrase "hammer is a good tool" is a marketing bullshit and you need to look for scientific research on the subject of a hammer. You must first understand how to use the hammer correctly and whether you even have nails to hammer. And then maybe you have everything on the bolts there.

Answer 2

Agile will work in cases where the project needs flexibility. When you and the customer are ready to sacrifice time and money in favor of the ultimate result. When you are ready to change the product on the fly and get the product of your dreams. You can showcase a piece of the product at the end of each sprint.
In this case, waterfall just doesn't work. You lose one task - and the whole project goes to hell.
In Waterfall, you just need to go step by step and strictly adhere to deadlines. For example, in aircraft construction and space technologies. You can't attach a wing to an airplane without a fuselage.
The same Sutherland calls these industries unsuitable for Agile. Read him, he writes very well and clearly about Agile, you will probably have an understanding of what kind of animal it is.

Answer 3

Firstly, a correction: "agile", not "agail", pronounced like "agile", only in this way, of course, not "agile", etc. Secondly, the question may have been inspired by Habrom, but there was just an article recently, I don’t know of course whether they read it or not, but they just smeared it on the asphalt, I highly recommend reading it if it hasn’t been done yet, before you decide to implement it: https://habr.com/ru/post/489538