Hybrid Project Management: Definition, Strong Points, and Strategies
| Translated by Julian Hammer
In a continuously evolving business world, companies are constantly on the lookout for efficient and flexible solutions to meet the rapidly changing requirements of today’s world. This is where the term hybrid project management comes in.
What is hybrid project management? Hybrid project management is an innovative approach that skillfully combines traditional and agile project management methods. While traditional project management methods emphasize structure and planning, agile project management offers one thing above all else: flexibility and adaptability.
In this article, we will explain the definition of hybrid project management, highlight its key strengths and take a closer look at some strategic methods, such as the combination of Scrum with Prince2 or Lean with the Kanban method.
What is hybrid project management?
Hybrid project management is the skilled combination of traditional and agile project management. Project management involves the effective coordination of tasks, resources and stakeholders to ensure the success of a project. The hybrid approach now combines the advantages of traditional and agile methods, making it a promising tool for today.
What are the basic principles of hybrid project management?
The basic principles of hybrid project management are a flexible approach, clear communication, and open collaboration in the team.
Traditional project management emphasizes a structured and planning-oriented approach with clear workflows and clearly defined milestones. Project management software like PLANTA Project assist you in traditional project planning, project budget management, as well as in risk identification.
Agile methods, on the other hand, focus on flexibility, iterative development and continuous feedback loops. Hybrid project management combines both approaches, bringing together traditional structures and agile practices. There is suitable software for a hybrid approach on the market: With PLANTA Project companies can implement a hybrid project management system to make their projects more efficient.
The table illustrates the advantages of both agile and traditional project management that lend the hybrid approach its added value:
| Agile project management | Traditional project management |
|---|---|
| Flexibility & adaptability | Clear responsibilities |
| Focus on the customer | Strict budget control |
| Fast achievement of partial results | Clear milestones |
| Transparent communication | Suitable for complex projects |
What is a hybrid approach?
The hybrid approach in project management combines the structure of traditional PM with the flexibility of agile project management methods to control projects more efficiently and be able to react to changes. “Hybrid” refers to the combination of an agile and traditional approach and unites structure, planning, flexibility and adaptability in one combined system. The hybrid approach allows project managers to enjoy the advantages of both methods and adapt them to the specific requirements of the project.
Why hybrid project management?
Hybrid project management solves various problems of traditional project management, such as rigid structures and the lack of flexibility. While the traditional approach has difficulty adapting to changing project requirements, the hybrid approach enables a dynamic response to new challenges and customer requirements. This flexible approach improves project implementation and increases stakeholder satisfaction.
The current development of working methods like remote work have a significant influence on project management. Remote work calls for an adaptation of communication and collaboration to create effective virtual teams.
Project managers must implement working methods that allow for seamless coordination and monitoring of projects, regardless of the physiscal presence of the team members. For this purpose, the implementation of an agile project management software, such as that integrated in PLANTA Project, which helps to keep up transparency in remote work, is particularly suitable. The hybrid approach offers a customized solution and enables project managers to react flexibly to the requirements of remote work.
What are the advantages of hybrid project management?
The advantages of hybrid project management are that the potential of both traditional and agile methods can be combined and utilized in the best possible way. An important advantage of the hybrid approach is the flexibility of its application.
This enables the teams to react quickly to changing requirements and priorities during the course of the project. This results in improved adaptability to project requirements as well as an increase in efficiency through the combined method.
These are the 3 most important advantages of hybrid project management:
- Flexibility in application
- Improved adaptability to project requirements
- Efficiency boost through combined methods
1) Flexibility in application
An important advantage of the hybrid approach is its flexibility. This flexibility enables the teams to react quickly to changing requirements and priorities during a project and to use different methods as required. The team can choose between traditional and agile approaches or even combine elements from both approaches.
Example: In a project that has clear and structured requirements, using traditional methods makes sense. However, when unpredictable changes occur or customer feedback is required, more agile approaches, such as Scrum or Kanban, help to achieve a quick response and successfully complete the project. A hybrid approach is crucial for successful project implementation.
2) Improved Adaptability to Project Requirements
Through the improved adaptability to project requirements, you can react fast and efficiently, regardless of the complexity or dynamics of your project. This means that project management is flexible enough to react to changes in requirements, priorities or resources without losing sight of the overview or the project objectives.
Example: Unplanned changes often occur in software development projects. Instead of reworking the entire project plan, hybrid project management can introduce an agile approach such as Scrum to tackle the changes in short development cycles.
3) Efficiency Boost by Combined Methods
The use of hybrid project management ultimately leads to increased efficiency by combining different methods: The clear structure and planning reliability of the traditional approach and the flexibility and adaptability of the agile approach allow for more efficient project implementation without sacrificing productivity.
Example: A construction project goes through various phases, from planning to completion. While the planning phase is inherently structured and the traditional waterfall model is suitable, the implementation phase can prove to be more dynamic, especially when unforeseen events occur. Here, more agile approaches such as Scrum or Kanban can be considered in order to achieve faster progress.
Disadvantages of Hybrid Project Management
Although it attempts to utilize the advantages of both agile and traditional process models, hybrid project management also has some disadvantages.
Adapted from agile methods, a “Scope Creep” may occur, meaning that the project scope expands uncontrollably since new requirements arise during the development process. The iterative nature of agile elements often makes scaling to large and complex projects difficult, which can lead to scaling challenges.
The lack of flexibility inherent in traditional project management can cause difficulties in adapting to changing requirements or unforeseen events. Delays and additional costs can also arise due to the slow adaptation process. Last but not least, the lack of customer involvement can lead to increased costs in the event of changes during the course of the project.
The table shows the disadvantages of agile and traditional methods, which may also concern hybrid project management:
| Agile project management | Traditional project management |
|---|---|
| Susceptibility to Scope Creep | Low flexibility |
| Challenges in scaling | Slow adaptation process |
| High need for communication | Lack of customer involvement |
| Lack of predictability | High costs in case of changes |
What are the task planning methods in hybrid project management?
Hybrid project management combines different methods to meet project requirements. These are some of the most important methods:
- Scrum is an agile framework which is focused on iterative development cycles, called sprints. It puts an emphasis on close teamwork, regular reviews and adjustments to work, as well as clear roles and responsibilities.
- Kanban is a visual method that focuses on continuous improvement and value creation. It uses a visual board to graphically depict the workflow and identify bottlenecks.
- Lean aims to reduce waste and maximize value for the customer. It emphasizes continuous improvement, lean processes, and customer focus.
- Waterfall is a sequential model in which each phase of the project is run through in turn, starting with planning and ending with implementation and maintenance. It stands for clear structures and detailed planning.
- Prince2 stands for Projects in Controlled Environments and is a structured project management framework based on clear roles and responsibilities, a detailed phase model and a focus on the control and management of projects. The method ensures continuous monitoring and risk management throughout the project cycle.
- Stage Gates are checkpoints in the project at which important decisions are taken: Is the project continued, changed, or concluded? These gateways help to monitor project progress, ensure quality and deploy resources effectively.
- The V model is a development model that provides for a sequential sequence of development activities from conception to implementation and validation. The focus is on the close linking of development and test activities which allow requirements to be considered and validated throughout the entire development process.
- The Spiral Model is an iterative development model that provides for the step-by-step development of prototypes and incremental versions of a product. It emphasizes continuous risk analysis and assessment as well as flexible adaptation to changing requirements during the development process.
These methods can be combined according to a company’s specific requirements to create customized solutions. By combining the different methods, companies can increase their flexibility and adaptability in order to be able to respond effectively to challenges in their projects.
Use Cases and Examples of Hybrid PM Methods
The three most popular combinations in hybrid project management are:
- Agile-Waterfall Hybrid: This combination integrates agile practices such as iterative development and continuous feedback with the phases of the traditional waterfall model such as planning, design, and implementation. This enables flexible adaptation to changing requirements, while at the same time defining clear milestones and structures.
- Prince2-Scrum Hybrid: This hybrid approach combines the structured methods of Prince2 with the agile methods of Scrum. The Prince2 guidelines enable efficient project planning and control, while agile Scrum practices such as sprints and daily stand-up meetings allow project participants a great deal of flexibility.
- Lean-Kanban Hybrid: In this combination, the project manager makes use of the lean principles of Lean to reduce waste of all kinds and maximize value for the customer. In addition, the work flow is visualized using Kanban boards in order to identify bottlenecks in good time. This hybrid approach enables continuous improvement and optimization of project management workflows.
1) Agile-Waterfall Hybrid
The Agile-Waterfall Hybrid approach in hybrid project management integrates agile practices with the traditional waterfall model. Agile methods such as iterative development and continuous feedback are combined with the structured phases of the waterfall approach.
These are the strong pointsof the Agile-Waterfall Hybrid:
- Flexibility: By incorporating agile practices, teams can adapt better to changing requirements and respond quickly to customer feedback.
- Structure: The waterfall model offers clear phases and milestones, which enables good planning and control.
- Risk management: The structured phases of the waterfall approach support a thorough analysis and identification of risks, while agile methods enable rapid iterations to recognize and avoid these risks at an early stage.
These are some of the weaknessesof the Agile-Waterfall Hybrid:
- Complexity: The integration of two different approaches can lead to increased complexity and coordination effort.
- Adaptation problems: It requires a clear delineation and understanding of roles and processes between the agile and traditional methods, which can be challenging for the team.
- Time and Cost Risk: The flexibility of agile methods and insufficient control can lead to projects taking longer and becoming more expensive than planned.
The “agile-waterfall hybrid” combination is particularly suitable for projects that require a certain predictability and structure, but at the same time flexibility and rapid achievement of milestones. In areas such as software development, where customer requirements can rapidly change, this hybrid procedure can be of advantage.
2) Prince2-Scrum Hybrid
The combination of Prince2-Scrum hybrid in project management combines the structured principles of Prince2 with the agile methods by Scrum. This combines the clear planning, control and governance of Prince2 with the flexibility, iteration and collaboration of Scrum.
These are the strong points of the Prince2-Scrum Hybrid combination:
- Structured governance: The use of Prince2 enables a clear definition of roles, responsibilities and processes, which facilitates efficient project management and control.
- Flexibility and iteration: The integration of Scrum enables the team to react quickly to new requirements during the project phases and deliver continuous results.
- Clarity and transparency: Prince2 offers clear phases and milestones, while Scrum promotes transparent communication and collaboration within the team with regular sprints and meetings.
The Prince2-Scrum Hybrid approach comes with the following weaknesses:
- Complexity: The combination of Prince2 and Scrum can lead to increased complexity, especially if the team members are not familiar with the two methods.
- Adaptation problems: It requires careful integration and delineation of the roles and processes of Prince2 and Scrum, which can lead to challenges.
- Time and Resource Risk: The need to implement both the structured governance of Prince2 and the flexibility of Scrum can lead to increased time and resource expenditure.
The hybrid approach of Prince2 and Scrum is particularly suited for projects that require clear governance and control and at the same time cannot do without flexibility and iteration for development. This can be an advantage in various industries and projects with dynamic requirements and regular customer feedback, such as in software development or in the automotive sector.
3) Lean-Kanban Hybrid
The Lean-Kanban hybrid in hybrid project management combines the Lean principles to eliminate the wasting of resources and generate added value with the help of Kanban’s visual work management. Streamlined processes and the continuous improvement of lean are combined with the visualization of the workflow and the identification of bottlenecks using Kanban.
These are some of the strong pointsof the Lean-Kanban Hybrid:
- Eliminate the waste of resources: The application of lean principles makes it possible to identify and reduce the waste of resources, which leads to more efficient use of resources.
- Visualization and transparency: Kanban boards visualize the project flow and make bottlenecks immediately visible, resulting in transparent and effective team collaboration.
- Continuous improvements: The combination of Lean and Kanban supports continuous improvement, as the team is always able to react flexibly and optimize project processes.
These are some of the weaknesses of the combination of the Lean and Kanban project management methods:
- Limited structure: The Lean-Kanban hybrid may not offer the same structured governance as other traditional methods such as Prince2 or the waterfall model, which can lead to challenges in project management.
- Lack of flexibility: While Kanban is characterized by a high degree of flexibility, Lean is less adaptable, especially if the requirements change significantly during the project.
- Dependence on the understanding in the team: The effectiveness of the Lean-Kanban hybrid depends heavily on a clear understanding of the Lean and Kanban principles by the team.
This hybrid approach is particularly suitable for projects that require a lean and efficient way of working and benefit from a continuous improvement culture. Sectors such as product development, marketing, or IT companiescan benefit from the process optimization and maximization of customer benefits offered by the Lean-Kanban hybrid.
What does the allocation of roles look like in the hybrid project management approach?
In hybrid project management, the roles vary depending on the specific requirements and the chosen combination of methods. Generally speaking, however, a distinction can be made between the following roles:
- Project manager: The role of the project manager remains of central importance even in hybrid projects. You are responsible for the overall management of the project, coordinate the team members and monitor the achievement of the project objectives. Compared to traditional project management, however, the project manager focuses more on the adaptability and flexibility of the team and the integration of different methods.
- Team members: The team members actively participate in the implementation of the project and contribute to achieving the project objectives. Their roles and responsibilities vary depending on the requirements of the project and the methods chosen. With hybrid methods, team members focus more on collaboration, flexibility and continuous improvement of work processes.
Stakeholders: Stakeholders are persons or groups that have an interest in the project or are concerned by it. The role of stakeholders includes providing resources, giving feedback, supporting decision-making and communicating requirements and expectations. Effective stakeholder management remains crucial in hybrid project management to ensure that their needs and expectations are taken into account to ensure project success.
Case Studies and Success Stories by PLANTA
PLANTA has implemented the project management software in two steps in the pharmaceutical company Losan Pharma GmbH and has successfully digitalized and modernized the company. Losan has been successfully using the project management software PLANTA Project for the complex area of research & development since 2007.
With the traditional methods of the waterfall model with milestones, Losan has gained an individual solution for the creation of customer project plans, the allocation of necessary resources and efficient project controlling for themselves and their customers.
Supported by agile techniques such as Kanban boards result in efficient task management and recording of working hours for its 600 employees nationwide. The hybrid PLANTA Project allows Losan to keep up their established project management processes without any problems.
The Max Frank corporate group was looking for a transparent budgeting process for investment processes, especially in the area of product development. The company develops, produces and sells a wide range of tried-and-tested products for concrete and reinforced concrete construction.
For their objectives of establishing a precise cost controlling and efficient schedule tracking, the sector-independent project management system PLANTA Project is the go-to solution. The company develops, produces and sells a wide range of tried-and-tested products for concrete and reinforced concrete construction. Thanks to the introduction of the hybrid software, the company can now overcome the challenges of project management with its approximately 800 employees and has established an efficient budget process.
Conclusion on Hybrid Project Management
Hybrid project management offers a balanced solution that combines the strengths of both agile and traditional approaches. While the agile approach offers flexibility and adaptability, large and complex projects can lack structure and control.
The purely traditional approach, on the other hand, offers structure and control, but often lacks the necessary flexibility to meet changing requirements. Hybrid project management combines the best from both worlds to provide flexibility, structure, control, and adaptability for achieving the best results in different project contexts.
