Understanding Agile: The Tale of Two Engineers and the Power of Iteration
Introduction
In software development, few words are as powerful — and misunderstood — as Agile.
Many people hear it and think “faster delivery” or “daily stand-ups” — but Agile is much more. It’s a mindset, not a methodology. It’s about progress through iteration, not perfection at once.
To make it easier to understand, let’s step away from the computer screen for a moment and look at a story about two engineers in Lagos, Nigeria.
The Tale of Two Engineers
Two senior software engineers — both working at top banks in Lagos — received generous year-end bonuses. Each decided to invest in real estate and bought a plot of land in Ajah, a fast-growing area on the Lekki Peninsula.
Now, for those unfamiliar with Nigerian home ownership, here’s how it typically works: Most people buy land first, then gradually build over time — not through mortgages or instant purchases, but through savings and steady effort.
With that in mind, let’s see how these two engineers approached their dream homes — and how their choices mirror two software development philosophies.
Engineer A – The Agile Builder
Engineer A decided to go Agile. With his limited funds, he started small — building only the foundation. Six months later, after saving more, he completed a modest two-bedroom apartment with a kitchen and bathroom.
He plastered it, moved in with his family, and stopped paying rent. While living there, he kept improving — adding rooms, upgrading finishes, expanding his living space one phase at a time.
After 10 years, the once small home had evolved into a four-bedroom duplex — built incrementally, based on feedback, changing needs, and available resources.
Every stage was usable, valuable, and improvable — just like software delivered through Agile sprints.
Engineer B – The Waterfall Builder
Engineer B took the Waterfall approach — the traditional, rigid method. He wanted everything to be perfect from the start: an architect, a detailed plan, a contractor, and enough savings to complete the entire house before moving in. So he waited. But as time passed:
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Inflation hit
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The naira weakened
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Building costs skyrocketed
Years later, he still pays rent… and the land remains empty.
The Lesson — Agile vs. Waterfall
This story captures the essence of Agile vs. Waterfall development:
| Concept | Agile Approach | Waterfall Approach |
|---|---|---|
| Mindset | Build small, deliver fast, improve continuously | Wait until the full product is ready |
| Delivery | Incremental, frequent iterations | Single, large release |
| Feedback | Continuous and adaptive | After full completion |
| Risk | Lower (early validation) | Higher (failure comes late) |
| Analogy | Living in the house while expanding | Waiting years to move in |
Just as Engineer A lived and learned while building, Agile teams release working software early, gather real-world feedback, and adapt continuously.
So What Exactly Is Agile?
Agile is a project management approach that prioritizes:
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Cross-functional collaboration
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Continuous improvement
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Customer feedback and adaptability
Instead of long, sequential development, Agile breaks projects into smaller, manageable sprints — each producing something usable and testable.
“Working software is the primary measure of progress.” — Agile Manifesto
The Core Values of Agile
The Agile Manifesto defines four key values:
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Individuals and interactions over processes and tools → People first.
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Working software over comprehensive documentation → Release early and often.
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Customer collaboration over contract negotiation → Build with, not for, your users.
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Responding to change over following a plan → Flexibility beats rigidity.
These principles encourage a mindset where progress, communication, and adaptability take priority over bureaucracy.
The Benefits of Agile
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Rapid Progress: By effectively reducing the time it takes to complete various stages of a project, teams can elicit feedback in real time and produce working prototypes or demos throughout the process
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Customer and Stakeholder Alignment: Through focusing on customer concerns and stakeholder feedback, the Agile team is well positioned to produce results that satisfy the right people
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Continuous Improvement: As an iterative approach, Agile project management allows teams to chip away at tasks until they reach the best end result
Agile helps teams build better software faster — just like Engineer A built a livable home while continuing to expand.
Common Agile Frameworks
Agile is not one single method — it’s a family of frameworks built around the same philosophy. The most popular include
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Scrum – Organizes work into sprints (2–4 weeks), guided by roles like Product Owner, Scrum Master, and Development Team.
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Kanban – Uses visual boards and work-in-progress limits to create flow and identify bottlenecks.
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Lean – Focuses on eliminating waste and delivering fast value.
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Crystal – Emphasizes people, communication, and community.
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XP (Extreme Programming) – Encourages engineering excellence through testing, refactoring, and pair programming.
Each framework interprets Agile’s principles slightly differently but shares the same DNA — iteration, feedback, and adaptability.
Agile Tools
To practice Agile effectively, teams use collaboration and tracking tools like:
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Jira (for sprint planning and tracking)
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Trello / ClickUp / Asana (for Kanban boards)
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Azure DevOps (for CI/CD and backlog management)
In the #CodeTrip project, we’ll use Jira to implement the Agile process for building the GoProcure system.
Final Thoughts
Agile isn’t just a software methodology — it’s a way of thinking.
It reminds us that progress is better than perfection, and that small, continuous steps can outpace big, rigid plans.
Engineer A didn’t wait for perfection — he started, adapted, and grew.
That’s the heart of Agile.
And as we build GoProcure, we’ll live this same mindset — one sprint, one iteration, one improvement at a time.
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