Project management involves creating the methodology and planning required to bring large projects to completion and overseeing their completion. As part of this process project managers need to identify and manage the risks associated with these projects and ensure that projects remain within their required parameters (such as meeting their budgets, for example).
There are various methodologies that are applied to project management and two of the most common are called Agile and Scrum. There are various Agile and Scrum courses available that teach these different approaches – though many people tend to conflate them as if they were the same. While they are similar in some respects, they rely on different concepts.
Agile project management takes an iterative approach to the tasks involved in completing a project. The goal is to create early, measurable objectives for return on investment through defined, iterative releases of various product features. This involves continuous involvement with the client to ensure that their expectations are met as the project proceeds and are aligned with any changes that the product manager makes during the process. As a project management philosophy, it is based on certain values and principles that give a general orientation to how the work is to be performed. This philosophy is then applied to different methodologies that are used to actually complete the project.
Scrum project management is one of the most popular methodologies within the Agile framework for project managers. Whereas Agile defines the philosophical approach, scrum gives specific guidance on the methodologies that are used to bring it to completion. It defines the specific process that is used to define the work, who will do the work, how it will be done and the period in which the work must be completed. The methodology defines specific phases, called ‘sprints’, during which project work is done. During sprint planning, the project team identifies the scope of the work that will be completed and sets the period in which is must be ready to be delivered to the client. Once this has been done there is a period of review undertaken in which participants review what they have learned during the process and how successful it was. This is repeated throughout the life of the project until the entire scope of the project has been delivered.
The difference between Agile and Scrum means that while Scrum is an Agile approach, Agile does not always need to use Scrum. Agile and Scrum courses, however, will teach the Scrum approach to an Agile project management philosophy.