Agility is not a prerogative of only software project management

Dear Peter
Very aptly put that Agility deals with complexity ireespective of any industry and Project life cycle.
Yes it is a state of mind and all about quick adaptability to the changing demands or situations.
Thanks for excellent summary
Warm Regards
Mohan

Dear Peter
Further to my reply i would like to say the following :
My point was the every project or day to day living needs agility for enhancing the possibility of generating successful outcome.. In case of projects the systems cant be set and that closely defined as the entire path of project goes through continuous dynamic environment requiring decisions to be made.,let it be any kind of project or Industry... In case of operation management the systems or steps of operations are optimised based on study ,considering the sustainable degree of agility/swiftness in operation --but there also, in abnormal --other than set and well defined situations agility needs to be exhibited as a deligent operation. ( what I mean to state in my first statement is -- to that extent agility is not part of operations management) So agility shall be integral part of life.
My point was that agile manifesto considers software project worker as an asset and not a cost to the project while the contributing workers of projects other than software projects as Expense to the project.
I differ here and of the view that all the projects whether softtware or infrastructure or construction or any other industrial project are equally complex ,ambiguous ,uncertain demanding terrific deligence and agility to respond to changing demands and hence all those contribute to such projects are equally an asset and not just expence. In fact many large projects undergo tremendous turmoil and terrific nerve breaking uncertaities as the gestation period of such projects run in couple of years and the degree of agility required for making right decisions is very critical for success of the project (not necessarily only speed, at times as an agile act speed of execution is needed to be lowered)
I would like you to throw your thought process on this important issue of recognising all the contributing workers should as assets and not an expense for the project vis a vis what is stated in the agile manifesto.
Look forward to your reply
Thanks once again
Warm Regards
Mohan

Dear David
Thanks for the confirmation that agility is not confined to Software. My point was the every project or day to day living needs agility for enhancing the possibility of generating successful outcome.. In case of projects the systems cant be set and that closely defined as the entire path of project goes through continuous dynamic environment requiring decisions to be made.,let it be any kind of project or Industry... In case of operation management the systems or steps of operations are optimised based on study ,considering the sustainable degree of agility/swiftness in operation --but there also, in abnormal --other than set and well defined situations agility needs to be exhibited as a deligent operation. So agility shall be integral part of life.
My point was that agile manifesto considers software project worker as an asset and not a cost to the project while the contributing workers of projects other than software projects as Expense to the project.
I differ here and of the view that all the projects whether softtware or infrastructure or construction or any other industrial project are equally complex ,ambiguous ,uncertain demanding terrific deligence and agility to respond to changing demands and hence all those contribute to such projects are equally an asset and not just expence. In fact many large projects undergo tremendous turmoil and terrific nerve breaking uncertaities as the gestation period of such projects run in couple of years and the degree of agility required for making right decisions is very critical for success of the project (not necessarily only speed, at times as an agile act speed of execution is needed to be lowered)
I would like you to throw your thought process on this important issue of recognising all the contributing workers should be recognised as assets and not an expense for the project vis a vis what is stated in the agile manifesto.
Look forward to your reply
Thanks once again
Warm regards
Mohan

Dear Davis
I agree with you that in Agile Manifesto neither expense nor asset word appears.
My point was software projects are considered as knowledge projects and people working for those as knowledge workers.ans as uncertainities are high agile is said to be the approach to amnage tose. All this is fine with me. Where I differ and do not agree is that the understanding created about other industrial projects can be managed by upfront planning with waterfall--predictive life cycle approach and hence uncertainties are taken care off and hence need not be treated as value driven but task driven,as running things and not changing things,as command and control and not autonomy driven,as standard things and not innovative things,waorkers as cost and not assets, not complex and simple-straight forward.
I am of the opinion that all projects require agility and ready mindset to take on changes as they come and also some upfront planning --without this approach projects can't be successfully accomplished.
I -as aproject manager believe in application of holistic wisdom more than just grammer of management
Trust you appreciate my thought process.
Thanks once again for such a wonderful interaction.
Look forward to many more interactions and exchanges.
Warm regards
Mohan

Dear Sergio
Thanks for your response.
I agree with you Waterfall is a kind of project life cycle while agile is an approach and projects can have any of the project life cycle and run accordingly.Agile has roots in Lean princiiple established by Toyota.
My point was the every project or day to day living needs agility for enhancing the possibility of generating successful outcome.. In case of projects the systems cant be set and that closely defined as the entire path of project goes through continuous dynamic environment requiring decisions to be made.,let it be any kind of project or Industry... In case of operation management the systems or steps of operations are optimised based on study ,considering the sustainable degree of agility/swiftness in operation --but there also, in abnormal --other than set and well defined situations agility needs to be exhibited as a deligent operation. ( what I mean to state in my first statement is -- to that extent agility is not part of operations management) So agility shall be integral part of life.
My point was that agile manifesto considers software project worker as an asset and not a cost to the project while the contributing workers of projects other than software projects as Expense to the project.
I differ here and of the view that all the projects whether softtware or infrastructure or construction or any other industrial project are equally complex ,ambiguous ,uncertain demanding terrific deligence and agility to respond to changing demands and hence all those contribute to such projects are equally an asset and not just expence. In fact many large projects undergo tremendous turmoil and terrific nerve breaking uncertaities as the gestation period of such projects run in couple of years and the degree of agility required for making right decisions is very critical for success of the project (not necessarily only speed, at times as an agile act speed of execution is needed to be lowered)
I would like you to throw your thought process on this important issue of recognising all the contributing workers should as assets and not an expense for the project vis a vis what is stated in the agile manifesto.
Look forward to your reply
Thanks once again
Warm Regards
Mohan

Mohan

yes, I also feel a lack of respect on the side of the agile proponents.

The agile movement in my view was founded as a potential solution to problems caused by uncertainty in SW development. Still there are uncertainties, but some causes and risks have been shifted to business. POs are expected to handle this, what traditionally a project manager would do.

As to the lack of respect, the manifesto stipulated a belief system that needs to distinguish itself from other belief systems. It does this by devaluation of features of the other system, and also by hijacking features that are considered useful.

As for people, anyone is cost factor and an asset at the same time. And food if you walk thru the jungle.

Again, setting up comparisons that heighten your side vs others is a technique to sell your belief system, not a fact based argument.

Dear Thomas
I agree with you totally
Warm Regards
Mohan

I would argue than humanity was responsive, adaptive, quick if required, changing and dealing with different values and mindsets long before the label of 'agile' was invented. We also always dealt with complexity (which is a individual perspective anyhow).

I do not even see a benefit in bringing these components together under one umbrella.

Hi Mohan
Agile and Lean are totally different things. The problem is some people think that are the same. In fact, Agile was born when a group was created in USA at DoD/NSF in 1990 level for searching a new way to deal with a predicted future world .I do not agree with you about your interpretation on how the Manifiesto consider workers. It say nothing about that. And here is a debate on other field. For me, what I am sustain and debating into each place I had the pleasure to work, workers are "assets" to call them in some way. No matter they are working to create software products or not.

Dear Sergio
Thanks for your response
I agreev with you agility and lean are not the same things .What i say is agile thinking is having some roots in lean thinking.
The software projects are considered and said to be knowledge projects and full of uncertainties and Agile is said to deal with knowledge Power and those uncertainties. Thus the people working on software projects are termed as knowledge workers.On this background it is said that Industrial projects are such that the upfront planning can be done as there are not those many uncertainties and hence predictive life cycle works good.
Here i expressed my opinion stating that not only software but all projects including industrial projects cant be really accomplished successfully without knowledge and agility mind set.
Thanks for clarifying that all workers who work on any kind of project including software and industrial projects are assets to the project and not just expense.
Warm regards
Mohan