The Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) is the structured process organizations use to plan, design, build, test, deploy, and maintain software. It provides a repeatable framework for moving from an identified need to a working product, with defined stages that vary by methodology, such as waterfall, agile, and others organize those stages differently, but the core activities remain consistent.
Why This Matters for Technical Writers
Documentation work happens inside the SDLC whether or not it’s formally acknowledged there. Understanding the SDLC helps technical writers identify where documentation fits at each stage: what needs to be written during design, what gets created during development, and what must be updated at release. It also helps writers advocate for documentation to be treated as part of the development process rather than something that happens after it.
Common Confusion
The SDLC is sometimes confused with agile or scrum specifically, but agile is one methodology for organizing the SDLC, not the lifecycle itself. The SDLC describes what needs to happen; the methodology describes how and in what order a team chooses to do it.
Related Terms
DDLC, agile, CI/CD, docs-as-code, release cycle, version control