Methodology Differences in IT Product Development: Rapid Development vs. Continuous Improvement

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When developing IT products, is rapid development always the most important value?

These days, many project management tools offer sprint-based productivity management services, aiming to increase team productivity through rapid product development and optimization of periodic sprint execution.

This method is certainly effective in quickly creating products.

✔ It's good to set small goals and execute them quickly to get results,

✔ Quickly launch the product,

✔ It has the advantage of being able to quickly reflect market and user feedback.

However, is just making things quickly always the best answer?

After the product has established itself in the market or after we have created the product we want,

Now, we need to consider stable operation and continuous improvement over a longer period, rather than just 'rapid development'.

However, achieving long-term improvements with a sprint-based approach is not as easy as it seems.

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❌ Limitations of the Sprint Method

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1️⃣ Short goal cycle is not suitable for long-term improvement

1. Since sprints are a method of quickly achieving short-term goals, they do not align well with continuous improvements that need to be carried out over a long period.

2️⃣ Focus on functional changes, making it difficult to consider improvements with a big picture

1. There is a tendency to focus on short-term goals such as adding/changing features rather than long-term improvements.
2. Prioritizing achieving small goals within a sprint often takes precedence over improving the overall product completeness.

3️⃣ Difficulty in maintaining a consistent improvement flow due to gaps between sprints

1. As goals are set and pursued for each sprint, it is difficult to maintain a consistent direction for improvement, and operational disruptions can occur.
2. In the long run, the artificial deadlines of sprints can also be a burden on improvement and operation.

Development Team Optimization for Continuous Improvement and Operation

Now, if the product is operating stably and continuous improvement is needed,

Simply performing specific goals quickly in small units may not be the best option.

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✅ It is important to help each developer perform their best work.

✅ Team operation becomes more efficient by understanding the developers' tendencies and work styles and utilizing optimization tools.

💡 Tools are needed to understand the work history and strengths and weaknesses of each developer and to provide an optimized work environment.

💡 Rather than developers meeting quick deadlines, tools are needed to look into each individual's work to increase work productivity by building on the work of yesterday and today.

🚀 It's time to consider product development methods, not just speed, but also long-term operation and improvement.