Difference Between Agile and DevOps
Let us first see, what agile methodology is and how it is different from DevOps!
DevOps is a kind of software development method that solely focuses on integration, collaboration, and communication amongst IT professionals and enables them for the process of rapid deployment of applications and products. DevOps is a software development culture that promotes teamwork between various departments of an organization but mostly the Development and Operations Team; hence the name DevOps!
This method allows deploying the written code to produce an application faster and that too in an automated way. In short, DevOps helps boosts an organization’s speed to deliver applications and services to its respective customers or clients. In the simplest of the world, it can be defined as an alignment of development and IT operation.
On the other hand, the agile software development method refers to a group of software development methodologies that are based on iterative development procedures, where solutions, as well as requirements, evolve via a simple collaboration between the self-organizing and multi cross-functional teams. Agile methods or agile processes mostly promote a much-disciplined project management system that always encourages frequent adaptation as well as inspection.
Agile is a type of leadership philosophy in an organization that boosts cooperation, accountability, and self-organization that are a set of engineering best practices. These best practices are planned to allow for rapid delivery of high-quality software to the clients, and a nifty business approach that aligns everything all together, i.e. development, the needs of a customer, and business goals.
What Agile is All About?
The agile methodology is a very popular kind of software development approach in an enterprise as it aligns with the most important aspects of a business. The agile approach is designed to address the present gaps in customer and developer communications. Agile refers to an iterative approach that focuses on collaboration, customer feedback, and small, rapid releases.
Agile helps to manage complex projects and it focuses on constant changes. The agile methodology requires a small team and the target area is majorly software development. Agile is dedicated to focusing on the function as well as non-functional readiness of an enterprise.
What DevOps is All About?
DevOps is designed to address the existing gaps between the IT and Operations team. DevOps is an approach to bringing the IT development and operations teams together whereas as it always focuses on the methodology of constantly testing processes and delivering applications on time. The DevOps approach in an organization requires a large team because both teams have to undergo several discussions before a product is deployed in the market based on the customers’ requirements.
DevOps is dedicated mostly to the business and operation readiness of an application. The major target area of team DevOps is to render swift end-to-end business solutions and to meet the pre-requisite of fast delivery of a product or an application.
Agile Vs. DevOps: Comparison Based on Different Aspects
Agile and DevOps are completely different from each other; agile is more responsive towards requests and is meant to develop an application via high-value features. It delivers quickly via short cycles and the work involves in this approach is used and valued a lot. The non-productive work is reduced in the agile process and planning takes place daily via task-level tracking.
In this process, everyone involved has complete knowledge of the project status thus they can catch and address multiple issues quicker than any other approach that exists in an organization.
DevOps promotes operational support and faster fixes for an application and it supports good and highly functional processes across the IT and operations team that also includes automation. DevOps is dedicated to increased team flexibility and agility as it helps the development team to process codes faster and develop a product quicker. The teams involved are happier and are more engaged than ever.
DevOps supports the concept of cross-skilling and self-improvement via increasing the efficiency of the development and operations team. Teams get indulged in collaborative working and last but not least, they get respect from senior management as the goals of both teams are aligned in the same direction.
Now, let us see Agile vs. DevOps bases on different aspects:
1. Agile vs. DevOps – Purpose:
Agile is useful when it comes to managing complex projects and resolving the issues that come within while handling them. On the other hand, DevOps comes in handy when an organization wants to manage multiple end-to-end engineering processes.
2. Agile vs. DevOps – Task:
Agile is a methodology that has been adopted in an organization for several decades and it focuses on constant changes that occur while managing a project. DevOps is dedicated to constant delivery and testing in multiple phases of application development.
3. Agile vs. DevOps – Implementation:
The agile methodology can be easily implemented within a wide range of frameworks that are tactical such as sprint, safe, and scrum. On the contrary, the major objective of DevOps is to simply concentrate on themes such as collaboration and teamwork, so DevOps doesn’t have any predefined or accepted framework in an organization.
4. Agile vs. DevOps – Team skillset:
The agile development methodology is a strong proponent of training all the available team members. This will form a team that has a wide variety of equal as well as similar skills. DevOps process is based on dividing and spreading the existing skillset between the operations and development teams; that’s it – plain and simple.
5. Agile vs. DevOps – Team Size:
In agile methodology, the team needs to be small so that fewer people will need training and they can move faster towards a common goal. DevOps needs a larger team as stack holders are involved in the process including the entire development and operations team of an organization.
6. Agile vs. DevOps – Duration:
The method of agile development is managed in smaller units also known as “sprints.” The time required to complete an objective is much lesser than a month for each sprint. DevOps focuses more on deadlines and the pre-assigned benchmarks that are dependent on major application releases. The ideal goal in DevOps is to deliver written code for production on every day basis or at least every few hours.
7. Agile vs. DevOps – Feedback:
In agile methodology, the feedback is given by your actual customer or if you have a beta version of your app then the feedback will be given by real-time users of an app. In DevOps, the feedback is given by the internal team; either the development or IT team.
8. Agile vs. DevOps – Target Areas:
The target area of agile methodology in an organization is quite simple and that’s – software development. The only possible target area of DevOps is to render end-to-end business solutions and approach for faster delivery of a project to its client or customer.
9. Agile vs. DevOps – Shift-Left Principles:
Shift-Left is a method in app development that is intended to prevent as well as find any possible defects in a stage of the software delivery process. Agile follows strict shift-left principle and always adhere to it. Since DevOps doesn’t have any accepted framework it follows shift-left as well as shift-right principles.
10. Agile vs. DevOps – Emphasis:
The agile methodology stresses on software development process for developing required software or an application. When the software/application is released or developed, the agile team does not care about what happens to it. DevOps methodology is all about taking the application or software which is ready for deployment and releasing it securely and reliably.
11. Agile vs. DevOps – Cross-functional:
The cross-functionality of agile methodology is quite simple as the members belong to the same team and communication is easy as all of them are always on the same page. For DevOps, IT as well as the Operations team are involved and they are different as well separate entities, so the communication is a tad complex to follow.
12. Agile vs. DevOps – Communication:
Daily meeting happens in agile methodology so the communication is shared between every team members and they can follow it without any hassle. DevOps teams’ communication involves every aspect of specifications and design documents. It’s mandatory for the operational team to fully understand the software release procedure and its relevant hardware or network implications. This allows for an adequate running of the deployment process for software or an application.
13. Agile vs. DevOps – Documentation:
Agile methodology emphasizes giving priority to the working system over the complete documentation process. It is just perfect when a team is responsive as well as flexible. In DevOps, transferring process documentation is crucial for smooth deployment, but it can be challenging when handing over to another team. Automation helps but may not fully address knowledge transfer in complex software development.
14. Agile vs. DevOps – Automation:
Agile never focuses on automation but it might come in handy though if it is involved in the process of software development. In DevOps methodology, automation is the prime goal. It works on the concept of maximizing efficiency while deploying software or going for a major release in the market.
15. Agile vs. DevOps – Goal:
The agile methodology addresses the existing gap between customer requirement, development as well as testing teams that are involved while developing a project. The DevOps methodology is designed to overcome the gap between the operations team and testing/development teams.
16. Agile vs. DevOps – Focus:
Agile methodology concentrates on the aspect of functional as well as non-functional preparedness of a project while DevOps is dedicated towards the business and operational preparedness of a software/project.
17. Agile vs. DevOps – Importance:
In the case of agile methodology, only software development is of sheer importance. For DevOps, development, testing, as well as the implementation of an application or software, is of equal importance.
18. Agile vs. DevOps – Speed vs. Risk:
The teams that are using agile methodology support rapid changes, and a strong application structure that is beneficial for application development. In the DevOps methodology, the IT and operations teams must ensure that the accepted changes that are made to the entire architecture will never develop risk to the project.
19. Agile vs. DevOps – Quality:
The agile methodology renders a better application that complies with the desired requirements of a customer. It can easily adapt according to the changes made on a real-time basis; during the project lifecycle of an application. In the case of DevOps, automation and early bug removal take place that contributes to creating a better quality application as well. The developers always need to follow the best coding and architectural practices that are designed to maintain quality standards.
20. Agile vs. DevOps – Tools:
Agile methodology uses tools such as – JIRA, Bugzilla, and Kanboard. DevOps utilizes various tools like – Puppet, Chef, TeamCity OpenStack, and AWS.
21. Agile vs. DevOps – Challenges:
The agile method demands the teams that are involved in the process of software development to be more productive which is difficult to meet every time. Om the other hand, the DevOps process demands that the operations, development, production, and testing teams must work in a streamlined manner which is also difficult to maintain all the time.
22. Agile vs. DevOps – Benefits:
The agile methodology always offers a shorter deployment cycle and improved defect detection in the early stages of application development. DevOps supports the concept of agile’s release cycle which comes in handy when a team has to match the business goals in a shorter amount of time.
Agile Vs. DevOps: Which Is Better for Career?
Both domains offer amazing career opportunities. After completing a course or a certification in Agile, an Agile Coach earns Rs. 22, 21,146 per annum but this will take time as becoming an agile coach demands huge experience. At the beginner to intermediate level, an agile developer can earn Rs. 7, 57,719 as a salary.
Entry-level DevOps engineers can earn Rs. 6, 98,308 as salary in India which is more than similar domains. A DevOps engineer with more than 8-10 years of experience can earn Rs. 1,142,206 easily.
Both the domains have a huge demand in the Indian market as most of the start-ups are tech-oriented! According to Naukri.com, a job portal website – more than 18000 jobs are available for DevOps developers and 29000 jobs are available for agile developers.
Consider pursuing a degree or certification in agile or DevOps development for a promising career. Choose a reputable training institute for professional education and a successful future.
Related Blog: DevOps Engineer Salary in India in 2021 [For Freshers & Experienced]
Is Agile vs. DevOps the Same?
We know Agile and DevOps aren’t the same. DevOps merges development and operations, while Agile emphasizes collaboration, quick releases, and customer feedback through iterations. DevOps prioritizes continuous testing and delivery, while Agile emphasizes constant changes.
Agile methodology focuses on making development cycles and developers more efficient. DevOps process is all about bringing the operations and development teams into play in order to enable a flow of continuous integration and constant delivery.
The 4 core values of agile methodology are:
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- Individuals and interactions over processes & tools
- Working software over comprehensive documentation process
- Customer collaboration over contract negotiation demands
- Responding to frequent changes over following a plan
DevOps Principles Follows:
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- The 1st Way: Principles of flow
- The 2nd Way: Principles of feedback
- The 3rd Way: Principles of continuous learning
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