A New Look at 'Doing Agile' vs. 'Being Agile'

Andy Jordan is President of Roffensian Consulting S.A., a Roatan, Honduras-based management consulting firm with a comprehensive project management practice. Andy always appreciates feedback and discussion on the issues raised in his articles and can be reached at [email protected]. Andy's new book Risk Management for Project Driven Organizations is now available.

  Agile   Strategy  

You may have heard someone say that there is a difference between doing agile (the approach to project delivery) and being agile (the larger concept). It’s been said by many people (myself included) for a number of years because it is a convenient soundbite, and is something most people can relate to on some level.

But it’s also become a bit of a cliché. Organizations say that they are now agile because they know that it’s the right thing to be (and say to be). But not many actually walk the walk, or even understand what it means to build a truly agile organization. Add in the fact that the idea of agility—along with so many other aspects of how organizations operate—is being forced to be revisited by the explosion of AI, and it seems like it’s time to revisit the idea.

So, as we prepare to enter 2026, I wanted to explore my perspective on what it means to be agile versus doing agile in the modern world. Some things are going to be familiar, others perhaps less so.

You have to do agile…in an agile manner
Let’s start with something that should be understood by all organizations. At a very minimum, you have to be doing at least some of your work using agile techniques. There has been a lot of talk about how agile has become compromised, or that certain methods are no longer viewed as positively as in the past. …

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