Last week, a routine house errand lit a light bulb over my head, drawing a striking parallel between someone’s behavior and the prevalent trend in project management across the organizations I’ve interacted with over the last decade or so.

The First Thought:

Let me start with a confession – I’m an observer. I absorb the life around me, deciphering patterns and intellectually applying this knowledge to my professional life. One lesson in leadership, for instance, dawned on me with the advent of parenthood. The fact is both fascinating and appalling. I always thought that you dealt with grown-ups in the professional world (humor intended).

During a recent routine maintenance session, as we were cleaning up a wood-burning stove, a group of experienced handymen and I embarked on a pre-planned list of tasks. As we neared completion, about 5 minutes away from the moment to reassemble and reignite the stove, something unexpected happened. The project morphed into an impromptu research and development endeavor. Components that weren’t malfunctioning were taken apart for a closer look, and discussions around additional fixes or add-ons ensued. It was a stark reminder of the “agile” project management style I’ve encountered in numerous companies. Attempting to steer the group back to the original plan, especially given the imminent “delivery” moment, led to a discourse on the “greater good” as daylight waned and the house cooled off.

In the pursuit of trendy hashtags, it appears that some forget essential lessons learned through painful experiences:
– In a dynamic environment referred to as “Agile”, the customer governs, not the delivery body.
– True agility comes at a cost.
– The life cycle of any complex product can be dissected into several simple waterfalls.
– There is no one-size-fits-all guide to success; otherwise, everyone would have bought, read, and implemented it.

Everything, including project management approaches, thrives in moderation.

The Second Thought:

In the realm of startups, I’ve noticed a similar trend afflicting small companies. Many fail to deliver their products to the market due to a rush to align with trendy methodologies, resulting in constant changes that delay product launches and, ultimately, cost these companies their position in the free market. The reasons are manifold – dwindling operational capital and the emergence of a more audacious competitor, to name a few. History attests that breakthroughs or innovations rarely stem from a lone individual; it’s typically a group effort driven by societal readiness and demand. This isn’t a call for founders to endorse unfinished products but a reaffirmation that everything, including adopting trends, is beneficial in moderation. Don’t lose sight of project tasks amidst the allure of hyped-up trends. Focus on what’s at hand.