Agile software development has become the safe, default choice. However, there are contexts where lean software development can provide a decisive advantage over agile. Here we explore what to consider when choosing between each approach.
Our blog
Our written thoughts on design, technology, and more.
Charlye Tran: Serving people through service design
Service Designer, Charlye Tran, wasn’t always a public-interest technologist, but her work always had a goal of delivering positive outcomes to people.
A human-centered approach to rebuilding the U.S. Refugee Admission Program
Lara Kohl shares her experience designing a roadmap to rebuild the U.S. Refugee Admission Program, as part of a project with the National Conference on Citizenship.
Why plain language policies matter: Telehealth billing and coding during a pandemic
Telehealth quickly needed to be implemented due to COVID-19, but updating billing codes to accept it was a bit more complicated.
Lean software development, part 1: The three instances of lean
Lean software development is an underutilized alternative to agile in the toolbox of modern software development methodologies. Here we discuss what it is and how it differs from lean startup and lean product development.
Gianna Buda: Launching a civic tech career
Skylight’s Gianna Buda is just beginning her career as a civic technologist. She’s bring a unique perspective to service design, having worked at the U.S. Department of State, as a Civic Digital Fellow, and AmeriCorps.
Jordan Guinn: Making the impact of technology real
For Jordan Guinn, getting into the civic-tech world with Skylight was a career change. Now that he’s here, Jordan’s discovering why our mission matters.
Leveraging collective insights for early care and education information systems
Skylight’s effort to create a nation-wide handbook of best practices for early care and education information systems, inspired by our work with the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood.
Key trends in mobile app development, part 2: Making sense of the trends
The landscape of mobile app development has evolved greatly over the past decade. Here we discuss how to make sense of the trends discussed in Part 1 of our two-part blog post series.
Key trends in mobile app development, part 1: The trends
The landscape of mobile app development has changed considerably over the past decade. Here we discuss the two key trends that are shaping how mobile applications are developed today.
Learning techniques for public servants
Five learning techniques that public servants can employ to perform their jobs more effectively in today’s complex technological environment.
Maya Benari: Accelerating the development of high-quality products
Maya Benari’s career path has taken her from UX designer with Code for America and 18F before joining Skylight. Here, she’s been working with our government clients to make effective use of design systems.