The systems development Life cycle (SDLC) is a structured process of creating or altering business solutions, including methodologies that people use to develop these systems and include a set of processes for developing and maintaining business solutions throughout the development life cycle.
There are many approaches to the SDLC that include traditional and agile methodologies. They all share similar qualities and are often divided into initiation, planning, analysis, design, and testing activities.
5 things you should know about the SDLC are:
- Project development will go through a series of iterative and often overlapping activities, usually called phases, stages, or sprints;
- The SDLC identifies the deliverables or artifacts that should be created. The scope of deliverables should scale with the size of the project;
- The SDLC will determine how the deliverables are created. It should define specific tasks, techniques, or methodologies used;
- The SDLC should address the communication and timing of deliverables and handover activities between groups (stakeholders) and phases; and
- The SDLC should address who the product is created for and how it will be supported after it is released.