Adopting agile methods for follow-the-sun software development

Follow-the-sun (FTS) is a special case of Global Software Development (GSD) in which development is distributed around twenty-four hours of work per day in order to reduce the overall project completion time. However, FTS is barely used by software development companies as they find it difficult to put FTS into practice. Recent studies have suggested agile methods as a promising approach to implement FTS. Thus, in this study we examine how agile methods can collaborate with FTS. We present an experience report describing the challenges and lessons learned by applying the Scrum method to a software development project. Moreover, we discuss how agile methods can be used effectively for FTS software development aiming to target the project managers who want to better reap the benefits of FTS.