Combine the best of both worlds.

Hybrid project management

Markets and customer needs are changing faster and faster, the complexity of projects is constantly increasing and the ability to plan is also decreasing. Our customers are therefore increasingly expressing a desire for agile working. They want to become more flexible and be able to react more quickly to requirements. This is because agile working makes it possible to focus more centrally on the customer's wishes and promote the self-organisation of employees. However, existing organisational structures, processes and dependencies within the company make this change more difficult.

This is where we recommend hybrid project management. Traditional and agile working methods are often seen as opposing poles. Hybrid project management combines the best approaches from both worlds.

Together with our clients, we define which approaches and methods are right for their organisation. We then adapt these to the circumstances and needs of the organisation and its employees.

Our performance promise for a successful hybrid project management

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Conception of a customised solution
Every project situation is individual and therefore requires careful consideration. Together with our customers, we analyse the project and its environment. From this, we derive the right combination of traditional and agile working methods. We start with the quick check. This helps us to make the right decisions when creating an optimal hybrid working environment. This is how we find a customised hybrid project management philosophy for our clients.
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The best of both worlds combined
Together with our customers, we ensure that the interplay between agile and traditional methods is effective. To achieve this, we promote the continuous and holistic further development of various fields of activity. These include strategy, structure, processes, culture, tools and leadership. The sustainable anchoring of the hybrid approach is always the top priority.
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Ensuring methodological expertise
We support our clients in supplementing traditional approaches and components with agile elements to find the best way forward for the project. We help our clients to learn and master agile working methods. We use playful approaches (e.g. Lego Serious Play, Planning Poker, customer personas) to introduce employees to the world of agile working. In this way, we impart sound methodological knowledge and ensure that process stability is not jeopardised in the ongoing project.
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Ongoing adjustments / continuous improvement process (CIP)
We maintain an overview throughout the entire introduction of hybrid project management. This allows us to recognise risks and potential at an early stage in order to continuously check whether the planned project is on the right track and successful. The continuous improvement concept (KAIZEN) takes centre stage here. Every project is individual and so the hybrid approaches must be adapted to the respective circumstances.

Our approach

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Customised alignment

Customised alignment
Quick check project and environment
Development of the target image
Selecting the right combination of agile and traditional methods
Identification of suitable (digital) project management tools
Empowerment and transformation
Training on agile values & agile practices
Joint role clarification and task definition (agile & classic)
Team development
Development of an empowerment and change concept
Realisation and support
Harmonisation of classic project planning elements (roadmap, milestones, quality gates) and short incremental iteration cycles (time-boxed sprints)
Operational support in the form of Scrum Masters, Coaches & Facilitators
Ensuring the continuous exchange of information between all participants
Involvement of all stakeholders with appropriate change measures
Continuous development
Regular review of measures and directional decisions through retrospectives and Inspect & Adapt
Continuous reflection and adaptation of structure/ roles/ processes
Sustainable anchoring of the agile mindset

Teamwork in the hybrid project management

Choosing the right approach
Classic, agile or hybrid?

Stacey Matrix

The Stacey Matrix is an effective navigation aid when it comes to the question of a suitable project approach. The matrix looks at two factors, each with different characteristics, which are considered for the individual project context: Vertically, the question is what is to be achieved. On the horizontal axis, the approach to achieving the goal is considered.

The hybrid combination

Hybrid project management combines classic and agile methods instead of switching between the two process models. An attempt is made to combine the methods in a meaningful way and to harmonise them as well as possible at the same time. For example, an agile approach at operational level (e.g. team members, work package managers) can be combined with the classic approach at decision-making level (e.g. steering committee, programe management). This can look like this, for example:

Project examples

Introduction of hybrid project management

Scope of commission

As part of the assignment, a total of 3 experienced LEITWERK consultants supported our client from the automotive industry. The aim of the programme with over 100 employees was to introduce an agile working model that is adapted to the individual programme requirements.

Initial situation

The programme was faced with the task of focusing the previously purely classically managed Group programme on product and customer orientation. Products were to be considered over their entire life cycle and lessons learnt were also to be taken into account for future products. The major challenge was that the diverse and complex interrelationships and large number of interfaces meant that simply imposing agile methods and ways of working was not expedient. Therefore, a working model adapted to the programme was to be developed that would enable both classic rough planning and agile detailed planning. In addition, this transformation acted as a pilot for the use of agile working methods in non-IT departments.

Solution approach

Our consultants worked with an overarching transformation team made up of volunteers from various departments to develop and coordinate a common vision for the direction of the transformation activities. The common vision was then used to identify the need for change in structures and processes in the areas of planning, development and rollout, as well as leadership and collaboration. Thanks to the support of working groups, our team was able to introduce new structures and processes for market- and customer-orientated product development. Target-orientated and pragmatic solutions were also developed and implemented for other support processes such as budget control, resource management, workplace design and supplier management.

Results

A working model consisting of traditional and agile elements was developed and successfully introduced for the programme. The understanding of leadership was successfully revised and expanded so that the management level now successfully supports the transformation into the new world. With the help of training courses (Scrum, LeSS, Agile Tool Chain,...) coordinated by our team and the introduction of customised exchange formats (Open Space, Brown Bag Lunch Talk, Communities,...), an agile mindset was also promoted as a basis for all participants.

Your advantages
Why LEITWERK Consulting?

Supporting the transformation process
Our agile coaches & change agents support you with the introduction of hybrid project management.
Involvement of all relevant stakeholders
During the transformation process, we intensively involve all key stakeholders - from dynamic project teams to management.
Many years of experience in classic, agile and hybrid projects
Our consultants have been at home in both worlds for many years and contribute their many years of experience in classic, agile and hybrid projects and programmes.
Our consultants live the agile values and principles
We are open and courageous to try out new things. With our enthusiasm, we also motivate your employees and take them on the agile journey with us.