Foggy projects
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The document discusses the challenges of coping with a rapidly changing environment where the pace of change exceeds our learning capabilities. It introduces Professor Eddie Obeng's model categorizing projects into four types based on what is known and how it must be executed, recommending different methodologies (e.g., traditional project management for known elements, agile for unknowns) for each scenario. The document emphasizes the frequent experience of being 'lost in fog,' highlighting the need for systems thinking and agile approaches to navigate uncertainty in change management.
Foggy projects
- 1. The good old days… Pace of change Speed of learning
- 2. Now… Pace of change Speed of learning
- 3. How do we cope with an environment where the pace of change outstrips our learning? Prof Eddie Obeng’s model of types of project helps to choose the approach…
- 4. Pace of change Speed of learning Paint by numbers The simplest type of project: We know exactly what we want (e.g. a building) We know how to accomplish it (construction contracts) Approach Traditional methodologies like PRINCE2 work well here
- 5. Pace of change Speed of learning Paint by numbers What = known How = known Making movies Still relatively simple: The “what” can be unknown or uncertain (e.g. you have a strategic vision but are not sure of exactly what to do to achieve it) But the “how” is generally well known (what you do know is that it’s likely To be similar to something you’ve done before) Approach Business analysis techniques used to define the what, e.g. MOST/PESTLE, etc. Traditional methodologies like PRINCE2 work well here for the “how”
- 6. Pace of change Speed of learning Paint by numbers What = known How = known Making movies What = unknown How = known Quest The converse of “movies”: What is known, how is unknown (e.g. we need a new process and system to support a defined business improvement) Approach Agile is best here because the details of how to deliver what you want emerge over time
- 7. Pace of change Speed of learning Paint by numbers What = known How = known Making movies What = unknown How = known Quest What = known How = unknown Lost in Fog What = unknown How = unknown This is where we are all too often: We know we need to change (improve) but we don’t know what that change should be And we haven’t a clue as to how we can achieve it because it’s likely to be completely new territory! Approach Systems thinking, e.g. Soft Systems Methodology, to define the what Agile to carry out the how