Agile Unified Process
A lightweight, easy-to-grasp method for building business application software using agile practices, delivered as a streamlined version of the Rational Unified Process (RUP).
Key Points
- Iterative, incremental lifecycle with frequent stakeholder feedback and demos.
- Retains RUP phases (Inception, Elaboration, Construction, Transition) but with just-enough modeling and minimal ceremony.
- Emphasizes early, risk-driven architecture plus continuous testing, integration, and deployment.
- Simplified roles and artifacts suited to small and mid-sized teams delivering business applications.
Example
A retailer building a new point-of-sale system adopts AUP: the team runs 2-week iterations, starts with a brief inception to align vision and risks, sketches a lean architecture, implements the highest-risk features first, continuously tests and integrates, and delivers a working increment to store managers at the end of each iteration.
PMP Example Question
Which statement best describes the Agile Unified Process (AUP)?
- A set of Scrum ceremonies with no documentation or architecture.
- A streamlined, agile-focused variant of RUP used to develop business applications.
- A predictive method for managing large construction and infrastructure projects.
- A scaling framework for coordinating multiple Scrum teams without lifecycle guidance.
Correct Answer: B — A streamlined, agile-focused variant of RUP
Explanation: AUP simplifies RUP and applies agile practices to deliver business software iteratively; it is not pure Scrum, predictive, or solely a scaling approach.
