The agile methodology is gaining attention among practitioners and researchers in hardware development. As a new methodology, it is a source of misunderstandings and misinterpretations. This is problematic at the managers' levels as they may hinder its adoption or lead to its impractical implementation and use. This study, therefore, aims to explore the manager's level of understanding of the agile methodology. The study identifies the similarities and differences between the fundamental elements of the agile methodology and the elements mentioned by managers in hardware development. The fundamental elements of the agile methodology are identified based on the elements presented in the Scrum method; the elements mentioned by managers are identified based on ten semi-structured interviews with managers in hardware development. The study shows that the understanding of the agile methodology varies largely among managers. The obtained detailed insights in the managers' level of understanding of the agile methodology could be used to develop appropriate support to facilitate its adoption and implementation.

Due to the current fast-paced business environment, new approaches to product development (PD) have been requested. In that matter, the agile approach has gained interest among researchers and practitioners. Based on its positive results in the software industry, it has started to be adopted in the manufacturing industry. Nevertheless, there are factors that manufacturing companies must consider while adopting the agile approach, and there is a lack of in-depth empirical studies about those factors. In that matter, this paper presents the preliminary findings of a single case study of a large manufacturing company. The data collection consisted of fifteen semi-structured interviews with persons with key roles in different organizational functions. The identified factors were analyzed and presented according to a product development system (PDS) perspective which encompasses people, process, and technology and tools subsystems. For the people subsystem, the study identified factors related to cross-functional integration and coordination, cross-functional communication, organizational culture, understanding of the agile approach, definition of roles and responsibilities, and people involvement and support. In respect of the process subsystem, the study identified factors associated with workload leveling and development interfaces. Regarding the technology and tools subsystem, the study identified factors related to the integration of information systems, and technology and manufacturing readiness levels. As a result, the study contributes further to the establishment of the factors that may influence the adoption of the agile approach in the PDS of a large manufacturing company.