Agility is not a prerogative of only software project management

Agility ist about high responsiveness, speed, adaptiveness, cultural change and especially about values, behaviors and mindset. Agility cannot be planned and has no end-state. There is no silver-bullet or blueprint for agility. Agility deals with complexity, regardless of industry and project life-cycle.

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

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 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 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

Agility is certainly not confined to software. The distinction you are making between project and operations management is an interesting one. A logical conclusion of organisational agility seems to be that the distinction between projects and business-as-usual all but disappears. The argument goes that if you are agile in what you do every day then you don't need anything called a "project" to become more agile - you just need to focus on delivering valuable products and services.

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