When Agile Works: Unveiling the Secrets to Agile Success
Pedro M. Serrador, Adel A. Zadeh · Engineering Management Journal · 2025
While Agile methodologies are extensively advocated across various literatures as superior project management methods, empirical evidence substantiating these claims remains sparse. Furthermore, there is limited understanding regarding the optimal conditions and practices that enhance the success of Agile implementation. In our research, we analyzed a data sample of 1002 projects from various industries and countries to test the effect of Agile use in organizations. The results indicate that Agile methods are more successful than traditional methods, particularly in projects with experienced teams, medium to low stakeholder engagement, smaller team sizes, and unclear goals. However, the effectiveness of Agile methods is limited in low complexity projects with clear goals, high stakeholder engagement, large teams, or inexperienced teams. Nonetheless, teams benefit from adopting Agile methods, even if their project does not fit the ideal Agile use case. The popularity and growth of Agile methods are therefore justified.