11 Essential Tools For Agile Product Development Teams

The best way for startups to make headway against larger, more established companies is to ensure that their development process is as efficient and effective as possible. One of the best ways to accomplish this is to ensure that product development teams have access to the best agile development tools. 

If you are heading up an agile product development teams, take a look at the following 11 tools. They could be exactly what your team needs to be as productive as possible. 

1. Trello 

Trello is a visual project management tool that is ideal for agile teams. It uses a simple, card-based format. Each card can contain a list of tasks and can be moved around the board as needed. Cards can be opened to reveal more information, and users can upload files, and more. 

This tool was practically made for agile development. In fact, there are sample boards available via the Trello website that can be used as templates for agile projects. 

2. Slack 

Slack has emerged as one of the most popular collaborative tools there is. It’s easy to use, requiring very little training or effort to jump in and get productive. Even better, there are many ways agile teams can use Slack. By implementing add-ons such as Google Drive Integrator or Geekbot, agile teams, especially distributed ones, can ensure that everyone is on the same page. 

3. Agilo For Scrum 

Agilo is a complete workflow management tool. It tracks the scrum process in real time from Sprint until the project is completed. It does all of this in real time. This tool supports distributed teams, provides visual feedback and has a drag and drop interface. 

There are three subscription plans available. However, users may upgrade or downgrade their plans with no worries about data loss. 

4. Pivotal Tracker 

Pivotal Tracker takes a unique approach to project development. While it is frequently used for other purposes, this tool was designed specifically for agile software development. To use the product, teams create ‘Stories’ to define their projects. Then, within each story, there are chores and other tasks. 

The product includes analytics, workflow tracking, and an intuitive dashboard-style interface. Its file sharing feature encourages collaboration between team members. 

This tool does take some time to master. Pivotal Tracker uses some terminology that isn’t instantly familiar to most, and there is some complexity in the way everything works together. However, it is worth spending the time it takes to master this agile tool. 

5. ActiveCollab 

It’s nearly impossible for agile teams to collaborate effectively using emails. This is why many teams opt to use ActiveCollab instead. Its features include invoicing, project management, and time tracking. ActiveCollab is widely regarded as an extremely easy to use tool with lots of built in flexibility. 

As far as collaboration goes, the product features an all in one calendar. Further, it can host discussions between users, and even has a ‘tag’ feature. This allows users to mention other users to draw their attention to questions or requests. 

6. Sublime Text Editor 

This simple but powerful text editor helps developers write code quickly and efficiently. Sublime comes with a variety of plugins that developers can use to customize the product to meet their needs. This means that every developer can work in a coding environment customized for them while team leaders enjoy the peace of mind that comes from having everyone using the same development tools. 

7. Google Docs 

Google Docs pairs well agile development in two ways. First, it’s cloud-based and perfect for collaboration. Secondly, and more importantly a simple search on the phrase ‘Google Docs for agile’ reveals exhaustive links of SCRUM templates and instructional articles on using Google Docs as a tool for agile development. Even better, many other agile development tools come ready to interface with this product. 

8. VersionOne 

VersionOne is an enterprise level agile platform. It’s noteworthy for its ease of use, scalability, and end to end transparency. This product can be tailored to work for teams using a variety of agile frameworks. These include KanBan, Scrum, SAFE, or mixed methods. Customers opting for this solution can access agile and product training as well as consulting services. 

9. SoftAgile 

SoftAgile is an all in one agile project management tool. While those experienced with agile will like this product, it’s also a great starter package for those who are new to agile development. In fact, one of its key features is that it allows project managers to migrate from waterfall development to agile in a way that is comfortable for them.

10. Screen Hero 

If you’re already using Slack, you might consider adding Screen Hero to your list of tools. This is easy to use screen sharing tool that works in real-time. It even features multiple cursors. This means that you can tune into another developer’s screen and code with them in tandem. 

11. New Relic 

Finally, let’s not forget the role of customer satisfaction and real-time performance in the agile development process. New Relic is a tool that teams can use to track the performance of their software as it is working in production environments. This means that teams can proactively identify areas of improvement, and make necessary adjustments.

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Conclusion 

If you haven’t added any of these tools to your arsenal, we recommend giving them a try. They could be a key asset in improving the productivity of your agile development teams.