Agile Development minimizes risks by developing software in short amounts of time - in iterations that typically lasts from two to four weeks. Each iteration passes through a full software development cycle and a release - without bugs - available at the end of each iteration. Agile Software Development is a conceptual framework for software development that promotes development iterations, open collaboration, and adaptability throughout the life-cycle of the project.

There are many agile development methods; most minimize risk by developing software in short amounts of time. Software developed during one unit of time is referred to as an iteration. Each iteration passes through a full software development cycle, including planning, requirements analysis, design, writing unit tests, then coding until the unit tests pass and a working product is finally demonstrated to stakeholders. Documentation is no different than software design and coding. It, too, is produced as required by stakeholders. An iteration may not add enough functionality to warrant releasing the product to market, but the goal is to have an available release (without bugs) at the end of each iteration. At the end of each iteration, stakeholders re-evaluate project priorities with a view to optimizing their return on investment...
 

Companies follow agile software development methodology to accelerate software delivery yet be flexible to changes. According to GoodFirms, 61.5% of companies follow Agile methodology because it lets them change priorities fast.