Is SCRUM just for software development?

Despite being often associated with software development, SCRUM can actually be used for the development of any product.

The classic definition of SCRUM says that it is a framework that uses agile methods for the development of complex products. It is based on the incremental construction of a product, so that rapid development cycles (sprints) generate continuous learning and adaptation, invariably delivering value at the end of each cycle. The product in question can be of any type: a new restaurant dish, a new corporate or industrial process, marketing research, a new advertising film, the development of a new brand, new technologies, and even software.

Due to their lack of knowledge of SCRUM, many CEOs opt for traditional project management, believing that the product to be developed would not adapt to agile methods. I, particularly, still haven't found a project that couldn't be conducted using the agile or traditional method, this choice being just a decision to be made based on other variables and not the methodology itself.

I often hear project managers saying that agile methods should not be used for complex projects, which involve a large development team, dispersed in distant geographic points. In such complex scenarios, we can more clearly see the benefits of SCRUM. Demystifying, although SCRUM defines that development teams have a maximum of nine people, SCRUM can be scalable and work smoothly with several development teams, each with a maximum of nine members, working on the same backlog. There is also no impediment to distance since today we have several means of holding meetings by call or video conference, we can share files and promote integration and communication between geographically dispersed teams. There are a considerable amount of tools on the market for all of this.

Another issue we need to clarify is that SCRUM shouldn't just be used for software development. Recently, I used SCRUM in a project, whose final product was about configurations, registers and adjustments in a traffic tool, already built. For this, we would need to involve a multidisciplinary group to elaborate calculations, create new operational procedures, elaborate new panels and create machine learning algorithms. A complex job, performed by highly qualified personnel, but whose scope did not require the development of algorithms.?After this experience and an always high-level conversation with a great friend Luiz Eduardo Costa , I write, to record this topic.

Jobs that require a high degree of creativity, but that need a minimum of control and organization, are also very well suited to agile methodologies. Creative work always needs a good dose of autonomy and freedom and SCRUM allows this to be done in a collaborative, transparent and incremental environment. Several companies linked to the areas of marketing and advertising have used agile methods to build their products with great success. Even better results are achieved when other methodologies such as Lean Startup are added.

Regardless of the final product, I always suggest evaluating the possibility of using agile methods as an approach to managing projects.?

Think about it!