Agile is a methodology used in production and development stages. It helps businesses to be prepared for innovations and accelerates adaptation in the face of these changes. It enhances productivity and performance among teams. Agile, also known as the 'agile methodology,' provides innovative and flexible approaches instead of traditional methods. Its aim is to optimize the production and development process with a customer-centric approach.

What is Agile?

Agile is a business management model that provides agility in project management. It is a work philosophy based on collaboration, flexibility, and rapid adaptation. It emphasizes innovative methods instead of bureaucratic ones. Agile encourages continuous improvement and learning. It ensures that all individuals involved in business processes take responsibility and play an active role in the decision-making mechanism. Agile proceeds step-by-step by dividing the project into small parts. At the end of each step, a functionality of the project goes live. Improvements are made with customer feedback.

Although Agile was developed as an approach for software development, it is now actively used in team management. The idea of Agile first emerged in 1957 in the development processes at IBM. By 2001, 17 individuals from the software world gathered together and, after two days of meetings, published the 'Agile Software Development Manifesto.' This manifesto established the values and principles to be applied in Agile software development processes.

What Are the Agile Values?

Agile is fundamentally comprised of four values. These values are:

1. Individuals and interactions: A project's success depends more on having the right people involved rather than just high-quality tools.
2. Working software: Instead of focusing on documentation, Agile prioritizes having a project that is usable and working for the end-user.
3. Customer collaboration: In the Agile business model, the customer is involved from the development stage to the delivery stage.
4. Responding to change: While a project is prepared based on a contract, it should be able to quickly adapt to changes in infrastructure, technology, and other factors.

What Are the Agile Principles?

The Agile principles consist of 12 items. They are as follows:

1. Early delivery of working software.
2. The project should be delivered in increments rather than as a whole, to avoid keeping the customer waiting for long periods.
3. The project should be ready for changes even in its final stages to keep the customer competitive.
4. Collaboration between project owners and developers leads to better decision-making.
5. Projects should be handled by individuals with the appropriate motivation.
6. The best way to transfer information is through face-to-face communication.
7. Working software is a must for measuring progress.
8. The Agile learning process is sustainable; lessons learned from the first iteration can be applied to subsequent iterations.
9. Technical excellence and attention to design increase agility.
10. Simplicity should be maintained by avoiding unnecessary details that are not central to the project's core.
11. The best outcomes come from self-organizing teams.
12. Teams should conduct regular self-assessments to improve their effectiveness.
     

What Are Agile Practices?

Agile practices are methodologies that use agile methods in software development and project management. Some of them are:

Scrum

Scrum is a process in which teams come together in short cycles to complete tasks and solve problems. The Scrum Master identifies points that hinder the project's progress and ensures the project gets back on track as quickly as possible. These short cycles are called "sprints," and the product owner is also involved. The Scrum team is self-organizing, maintaining high productivity. Agile values and principles are applied throughout.

Extreme Programming (XP) 

Extreme Programming focuses on the technical aspects of a project. It offers technical tools to complete tasks, suggesting that teams prioritize tasks over design. Practices such as test-driven development, continuous integration, pair programming, and refactoring are part of XP.

Kanban

Kanban is a simple but powerful agile practice. It originated from the production control method used in Toyota factories in Japan. It visualizes the workflow. A Kanban board is used to track the project. This board can be online or a physical board with sticky notes. Tasks within the project are classified under three main categories: "To Do," "In Progress," and "Done." Additional columns, such as "In Testing," "On Hold," etc., can be added based on the project’s needs. This system allows tasks to be completed quickly.