Tools to support agile methods

The whole point of managing a project using an agile method is to use lots of coloured cards and post-it notes, but sometimes you have to fall back on a boring old software tool. The thorny question keeps arising: which one do I recommend?

Many different project management tools exist, at different price-points and levels of functionality. A long list is shown below. It is important to be clear about a project's requirements for a tool before selecting. Avoid the temptation to extend any tool you select or to spend much effort integrating it with the rest of your project environment – this is a sure way to lock yourself into a single supplier.

The following list of tools is not exhaustive, though I have kept adding to it as I came across new tools:

• ]project-open[


• Achievo


• ActiveCollab


• Agilebuddy - reported by a comment on this post to be a full-featured agile project management software tool, which is easy to use and great for Scrum teams. Offered on a subscription model for US$9.95 per user per month


• Agilefant


• Agilo – based on the Trac issue-management tool and said to support only a single project at a time


• airTODO – PMBOK rather than agile, but minimalist (an Eclipse plug-in)


• AxoSoft's OnTime - available as a hosted cloud solution, a Windows native application or as a web application, one comment under this post has reported that it "great for agile / scrum development". Comparable in scope to Trac, but looks a lot more snazzy


• Banana Scrum - according to one comment below, this is a nice, web based tool that helps without getting in team's way


• Extreme Planner


• Greenhopper – a JIRA plugin favoured by some Scrum teams


• IceScrum


• Mingle - provides a shared workspace for agile teams, supporting XP, Scrum and custom hybrid approaches. Includes a virtual card wall, wiki, charts, reports and more. Integrated with issue tracking and continuous build. Priced US$995 per user with substantial discounts for multiple licences, academic institutions etc.


• Pivotal Tracker


• ProjectCards – mixed approach that uses both physical cards and software


• ProjectKoach


• Rally


• Rational Team Concert - integrates work item, continuous integration builds and software configuration management (SCM) on the collaborative infrastructure of the Jazz Team Server


• redMine


• Scrum Edge - someone commented below that it was much simpler to use than most other Scrum tools


• Scrumworks - quite popular free open source package, heavily forms-based, can integrate with JIRA


• Silver Catalyst


• StuffPlanner – Zühlke's inhouse-developed browser-based tool now at version 0.1 and with an Eclipse Mylyn connector available; access can be provided by arrangement


• TargetProcess - designed to support Scrum, XP and custom Agile processes particularly in the .NET environment. Includes a comprehensive set of tools and features, including defect-tracking, test management and customer helpdesk portal. Community edition free for up to 5 users


• teamwork


• tinyPM


• VersionOne - very full-featured, supports Scrum, DSDM, XP and AUP across multiple projects. Priced from US$348 per user per year, there is a free "team edition" for one team of up to 10


• XP Story Studio – no development since 2004


• XPlanner
- a popular free open source planning and tracking tool for XP. Quite simple in keeping with the low-ceremony agile approach

• xProcess - free open source project management and process improvement tool, focused particularly on agile and priority-driven approaches. Preconfigured processes include Scrum, FDD, Prince2, Unified and others; can be tailored. Gantt/Burndowns/target status continuously updated. See also xProcess Europe


• XPWeb

A number of web sites compare small subsets of the available software tools, including

• http://www.agile-tools.net/


• http://brunomiranda.com/past/2008/8/19/agile_project_management_tools/


• http://agilesoftwaredevelopment.com/blog/mattgrommes


• http://www.life-cycle.de/journal/