Fail fast, learn faster with Agile methodology
Last updated: December 16, 2024 Read in fullscreen view
Recommended for you
- 01 Aug 2024
The Standish Group report 83.9% of IT projects partially or completely fail 1334 - 02 Nov 2021 What is Terms of Reference (ToR)? 1283
- 27 Oct 2020 8 principles of Agile Testing 1101
- 03 Apr 2022 Microsoft Solutions Framework (MSF) 1032
- 18 Oct 2021 Key Elements to Ramping Up a Large Team 989
- 18 Oct 2020 How to use the "Knowns" and "Unknowns" technique to manage assumptions 813
- 21 May 2022 "Fail Fast, Fail Often, Fail Forward" is the answer to Agile practices of software success 796
- 16 Jun 2022 Rapid Application Development (RAD): Pros and Cons 759
- 13 Apr 2024 Lessons on Teamwork and Leadership from Chinese story book "Journey to the West" 736
- 14 Oct 2021 Advantages and Disadvantages of Time and Material Contract (T&M) 703
- 19 Oct 2021 Is gold plating good or bad in project management? 671
- 20 Jul 2022 Software Myths and Realities 665
- 09 Oct 2022 Key Advantages and Disadvantages of Agile Methodology 655
- 20 Jan 2021 Fail early, fail often, fail cheap, fail safe but always fail forward 614
- 19 Oct 2021 Software development life cycles 614
- 02 May 2022 What Is RAID in Project Management? (With Pros and Cons) 613
- 14 Jun 2022 Example and Excel template of a RACI chart in Software Development 581
- 18 Dec 2023 The Cone of Uncertainty in Scrum & Requirement Definition 556
- 13 Jan 2020 Quiz: Test your understanding project cost management 533
- 28 Jul 2022 POC, Prototypes, Pilots and MVP: What's the differences? 523
- 08 Oct 2022 KPI - The New Leadership 514
- 19 Apr 2021 7 Most Common Time-Wasters For Software Development 513
- 21 Jun 2021 6 Useful Tips To Streamline Business Processes and Workflows 476
- 18 Jul 2021 How To Ramp Up An Offshore Software Development Team Quickly 454
- 12 Oct 2022 14 Common Reasons Software Projects Fail (And How To Avoid Them) 444
- 12 Oct 2020 The Agile Manifesto - Principle #8 422
- 04 Mar 2023 [Medium] Box-Ticking: The Management Strategy That’s Killing your Productivity 414
- 27 Jan 2020 Should a project manager push developers to work more hours due to mistakes of manager schedule setting? 401
- 28 Dec 2021 8 types of pricing models in software development outsourcing 388
- 20 Jan 2022 TIGO Self-Organization Practice: Change Management Workflow 386
- 13 Oct 2021 Outsourcing Software Development: MVP, Proof of Concept (POC) and Prototyping. Which is better? 384
- 31 Oct 2021 Tips to Fail Fast With Outsourcing 359
- 11 Jan 2024 What are the Benefits and Limitations of Augmented Intelligence? 356
- 16 Jul 2022 What are disadvantages of Agile Methodology? How to mitigate the disadvantages ? 341
- 28 Oct 2022 Build Operate Transfer (B.O.T) Model in Software Outsourcing 340
- 23 Sep 2021 INFOGRAPHIC: Top 9 Software Outsourcing Mistakes 338
- 07 Jul 2022 Managing Project Execution Terms 336
- 12 Dec 2021 Zero Sum Games Agile vs. Waterfall Project Management Methods 335
- 11 Nov 2021 What is an IT Self-service Portal? Why is it Important to Your Business? 330
- 03 Jan 2023 Organizing your agile teams? Think about M.A.T (Mastery, Autonomy, Purpose) 330
- 12 Aug 2022 What is End-to-end project management? 329
- 13 Feb 2021 Why is TIGOSOFT a software house for Enterprise Application Development? 325
- 02 Nov 2022 Frequently Asked Questions about Agile and Scrum 324
- 10 Apr 2022 Agile self-organizing teams: What are they? How do they work? 323
- 10 Dec 2023 Pain points of User Acceptance Testing (UAT) 322
- 06 Feb 2021 Why fail fast and learn fast? 311
- 17 Oct 2021 Does Fast Tracking increase project cost? 308
- 05 Mar 2021 How do you minimize risks when you outsource software development? 305
- 26 Sep 2024 Successful Project Management Techniques You Need to Look Out For 304
- 10 Apr 2024 The Parking Lot Method: Unlocking a Simple Secret to Supercharge Your Productivity 303
- 03 Apr 2021 How digital asset management streamlines your content workflow? 288
- 20 Nov 2022 Agile working method in software and football 283
- 09 May 2022 Build one to throw away vs Second-system effect: What are differences? 280
- 04 Oct 2021 Product Validation: The Key to Developing the Best Product Possible 280
- 13 Dec 2020 Move fast, fail fast, fail-safe 280
- 01 Dec 2022 Difference between Set-based development and Point-based development 278
- 06 Jun 2022 Change Management at the Project Level 275
- 02 Nov 2021 [Case Study] Streamlined Data Reporting using Tableau 264
- 17 Feb 2022 Prioritizing Software Requirements with Kano Analysis 244
- 04 Oct 2022 Which ERP implementation strategy is right for your business? 242
- 07 Oct 2020 How To Manage Expectations at Work (and Why It's Important) 237
- 22 May 2022 What are common mistakes that new or inexperienced managers make? 236
- 01 Aug 2022 Is planning "set it and forget it" or "set it and check it"? 236
- 15 May 2022 20 Common Mistakes Made by New or Inexperienced Project Managers 230
- 01 Mar 2022 Why Does Scrum Fail in Large Companies? 230
- 03 Jul 2022 Manifesto for Agile Software Development 226
- 18 Aug 2022 What are the consequences of poor requirements with software development projects? 224
- 28 Nov 2023 Scrum Team Failure — Scrum Anti-Patterns Taxonomy (3) 218
- 06 Nov 2019 How to Access Software Project Size? 215
- 05 Aug 2024 Debunking 10 Myths About Change Management 214
- 10 Nov 2022 Poor Code Indicators and How to Improve Your Code? 200
- 02 Oct 2022 [Medium] The Importance of Being Able to Pivot 199
- 02 Nov 2022 Difference between Change Management and Project Management 196
- 01 Dec 2023 Laws of Project Management 195
- 02 Dec 2022 Success Story: Satsuki - Sales Management Software, back office app for School Subscription Management 194
- 31 Aug 2022 What are the best practices for software contract negotiations? 194
- 01 Jun 2022 How Your Agile Development Team is Just Like a Football Team? 193
- 02 Dec 2021 3 Ways to Avoid Scope Creep in IT Consulting 185
- 02 Jun 2024 Reviving Ancient Wisdom: The Spiritual Side of Project Management 184
- 26 Dec 2023 Improving Meeting Effectiveness Through the Six Thinking Hats 180
- 12 May 2024 The Pros and Cons of the Creator Economy in the Age of AI: Opportunities, Challenges, and the Gray Zone with the Gig Economy 179
- 23 May 2024 Mastering AI: Sharpening the Axe in the Digital Age 178
- 03 Sep 2022 The secret of software success: Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication 177
- 24 Nov 2023 The project management paradox: Achieving MORE by doing LESS 174
- 01 Mar 2023 Bug Prioritization - What are the 5 levels of priority? 171
- 10 May 2022 Levels of Teamwork 166
- 01 May 2024 Warren Buffett’s Golden Rule for Digital Transformation: Avoiding Tech Overload 164
- 06 Nov 2023 How do you streamline requirement analysis and modeling? 160
- 01 Jan 2024 The pros and cons of the Centralized Enterprise Automation Operating model 142
- 05 Sep 2023 The Cold Start Problem: How to Start and Scale Network Effects 140
- 30 Nov 2023 Project Managers, Focus on Outcomes — Not Deliverables 139
- 07 Dec 2023 12 project management myths to avoid 139
- 21 Oct 2022 Virtual meeting - How does TIGO save cost, reduce complexity and improve quality by remote communication? 135
- 05 Jan 2024 Easy ASANA tips & tricks for you and your team 132
- 23 Jun 2024 Best Practices for Managing Project Escalations 124
- 21 Jun 2024 Dead Horses and the Escalation of Commitment 121
- 06 Mar 2024 [SemRush] What Are LSI Keywords & Why They Don‘t Matter 111
- 01 Mar 2024 10 Project Management Myths 107
- 10 Oct 2022 Should Your Business Go Agile? (Infographic) 98
- 12 Mar 2024 How do you create FOMO in software prospects? 97
- 05 Jun 2023 Fractional, Part-Time (virtual) or Interim CTO: Who Will Cover Your Business Needs? 94
- 14 Mar 2024 Why should you opt for software localization from a professional agency? 85
- 12 Aug 2024 Understanding Google Analytics in Mumbai: A Beginner's Guide 70
Failing fast and failing forward is a pretty established concept and is a 'cute' way of saying “Learn by Doing.” Understand there will be failures, and keep moving forward—no wasting time. Your laser focus on getting the idea/business/product for your business right is of primary importance.
Failing fast is the most important driving principle behind the Agile school of thought that was introduced into the software development space by the launch of the Manifesto for Software Development along with its 12 guiding principles back in 2001. Many Agile software development practices such as test-driven development and continuous integration are firmly rooted in the concept of fail fast.
Unfortunately, the fail fast approach has repeatedly been bashed and ridiculed by business publications because the concept is often uprooted from its original context of software development, away from the related ideas of Agile, Lean and DevOps. Also, most don’t like to entertain the idea of failing.
The truth is that in any business, failure can be a good thing to go through as long as you learn the lesson it has to offer. It is a strategy that can help any company grow faster and more successful. This is because in development or the creation of anything new, failure is inevitable, so the focus is on how to manage that failure and make the most of it.
The fail fast approach is anchored in the word “fast”; it’s about reducing the delay in detecting failures. In software development and many other business practices, it’s crucial to make sure that if a failure is going to occur one can reduce the lag in detecting any issues and then alert the responsible party.
Fail Fast Approach in System Design
In systems design, a fail-fast system is one which immediately reports at its interface any condition that is likely to indicate a failure. Fail-fast systems are usually designed to stop normal operation rather than attempt to continue a possibly flawed process.
Fail-fast-designed code decreases the internal software entropy, and reduces debugging effort.
Pros of The Fail Fast Approach
Lower Cost of Failure
The cost of fixing a project/product with defects rises exponentially the longer they remain undetected. Worst case scenario, the bug doesn’t get discovered until the completed project is in the customer’s hands. This can be a blow to the company’s reputation and/or force a mass product recall. All of which come at a cost.
Faster Learning
If it is possible to learn from a certain failure then the sooner the failure occurs, the sooner the learning can start. Failing fast enables you to get quick, quality feedback about what works and what does not, which you can then utilize to adjust your project/development plans accordingly.
Creates an Innovative Company Culture
Fail fast enables a company to build a culture that celebrates intelligent failure. Managers looking to foster innovation and creativity can use this method to create an environment that encourages employees to take smart and strategic risks and doesn’t punish any failure that may come with those risks.
Cons of Failing Fast
Doesn’t Work When Launching A Proven Concept
Fail fast makes sense when you are launching a new concept or new idea but for a business that has a proven concept it is redundant. In this case, it makes more sense to simply take the time to learn from the mistakes of others who have previously done the work rather than using the trial and error method of Agile.
Can Encourage Mediocrity
The fail-fast approach can easily breed nonchalance about failure if it is not well managed. When a failed idea carries no consequences, the motivation to produce high-quality prototypes and run super-accurate experiments can drop. This can reduce the team’s chances of finding the success it set out for.
Everyone Has to Be on The Same Page
Agile and failing fast are relatively new and yet the entire team must be on the same page with how failing will affect everyone for these concepts to work. If some employees are still stuck in old methods and outdated mentalities, it can demotivate and hinder the whole team’s creativity and innovation.
Is the fail fast approach right for your company?
As explained above, failing fast in business has great potential for success when applied in the right way, but can also be unsuccessful when not managed appropriately. The key is being able to discern under which conditions one should to tap into this concept’s tight feedback loops.
Explore more on these topics
Guest Blogging: The Definitive Guide
Top Trending Topics
Share This
Recently Updated News
