Document Type
Paper
Publication Date
12-21-2021
Abstract/Description
This innovate practice work in progress paper presents our initial findings about the application of agile process in the day to day operation of an academic department. The benefits of agile methods, which are processes that are lightweight and people-oriented, are well-known. Agile methods provide the ability to respond faster to the changing needs of stakeholders, improved product quality, team over individual goals, and better transparency. Therefore, one would expect adaption of the agile process within academic environment would be welcomed, however, unique issues exist within faculty that impact adoption; faculty have different goals that change through their tenure, and faculty have their own priorities that drive their time investment. For the last 18 months, the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science department at the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University has been involved in adopting the use of agile process in its day-to-day operations, namely Scrum, which is one type of Agile method. To assess the feasibility of departmental adaptation of agile process, we established two pilot projects to identify advantages and disadvantages such adaptation. In this paper we report on the outcome of the projects in addition to the observations, challenges, and opportunities regarding the adaptation of the agile processes in the day-to-day operation of an academic department.
DOI (optional)
https://doi.org/10.1109/FIE49875.2021.9637458
Grant or Award Name
Revolutionizing the Engineering Department
Scholarly Commons Citation
Ochoa, O., & Towhidnejad, M. (2021). Adopting Agility in Academia through Pilot Projects. , (). https://doi.org/10.1109/FIE49875.2021.9637458