What is a group of practices aimed at shortening and improving the SDLC through short, simple, and iterative development cycles?

Agile Development is a group of methodologies focused on delivering high-quality software through iterative and incremental development cycles. Its core philosophy emphasizes flexibility, collaboration, and customer feedback, allowing teams to adapt to changes throughout the development process. By breaking projects into smaller, manageable units known as sprints, Agile enables continuous improvement and quick iterations. This results in a faster delivery timeline, improved product quality, and responsiveness to user needs.

Agile Development stands out due to its emphasis on collaboration among cross-functional teams and its focus on delivering working software frequently. This makes it ideal for projects where requirements change frequently or where rapid delivery of a product is essential. The iterative nature means that feedback is obtained regularly, leading to a better alignment with user expectations and a more refined final product.

The other methodologies mentioned have their unique approaches but do not encapsulate the same principles of rapid cycles and iterative development in the same way as Agile.