Comparative Study of Waterfall and Agile Methods in Software Development

Abstract

This study compares Waterfall and Agile Scrum in terms of value delivery, change handling, and documentation governance through a qualitative simulation-based design. Two project archetypes are modeled: a governance-intensive university library system and a volatility-driven MSME mobile e-commerce application. Results show that Waterfall offers strong traceability and audit-ready control under stable conditions but delays usable value and increases the cost of late changes. Agile Scrum enables earlier value delivery and greater adaptability to evolving requirements, though it relies on stakeholder engagement and minimal documentation discipline. The findings highlight that neither method is universally superior; methodology choice should be guided by requirement volatility, governance demands, stakeholder capacity, and documentation needs.