The PMBOK® Guide, 8th edition, draft version has been made available on the Project Management Institute’s (PMI®) website. Like process group related processes and performance domains, the content for Agile has also seen changes.
First and foremost, parts of the Agile Practice Guide (APG) have been directly included in the PMBOK Guide, 8th edition. The APG may remain as one of the reference sources. In some areas, it has good content and explanations with respect to certain situations.
This post is in continuation of the earlier post on PMBOK Guide, 8th edition:
PMBOK, 8th edition: Process Groups, Performance Domains and Artificial Intelligence
Overall, the PMBOK guide (6th, 7th and 8th editions) can be seen as a human – with a head (the standard part), body (the guide part) and legs (the terms, definitions etc. on which the head and body stands). This is shown in the figure to our right.
Again, do note that it’s a draft edition and hence the approved one will have additions, removals and modifications. A number of new contents can also be added.
Now, let’s see the changes briefly with respect to Agile, Hybrid and related content.
Development Approaches
The spectrum of development approaches remains the same in the PMBOK, 8th edition:
- Predictive: It’s at one end of the spectrum. It’s used when requirement churn is low.
- Adaptive: It’s at the other end of the spectrum. It’s used when requirement churn is high.
- Hybrid: It sits in the middle and is a combination of predictive and adaptive.
Do note that the development approach is completely different from the project life cycle. Many confuse the two. The below three are distinct and separate in the PMBOK Guide, 8th edition.
- Project Life,
- Development Approach, and
- Scheduling Approach.
Nevertheless, additional content has been put into various development approaches.
Predictive
This is another approach, which is mainly plan-driven. While going for the fully predictive approach (remember it’s a spectrum), one can follow the ITTOs (Inputs, Tools and Techniques, and Outputs) of the earlier mentioned 40 processes.
In the PMBOK 6th edition, there are 49 processes. You can watch it here. If you have understood the processes clearly in PMBOK6, it won't be very hard for you in PMBOK8. However, the most important part is the sequencing, flow and understanding of the key ITTOs.
Now, considering PMBOK7, there have been big changes in the performance domains, which are governed by a set of principles. As noted in my earlier articles on PMBOK Guide, 7th edition (Part – 1 and Part - 2), the following one is still valid.
Principles guide the behavior. Performance domains are broad areas of focus to demonstrate that behavior.
In addition, there have been changes in the ITTOs. Completely new T&Ts are added for the first time. For example, new T&Ts have been added such as:
- Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Machine Learning (ML), which is part of AI
- Natural Language Processing (NLP)
The advantage with AI is that it can use vast amounts of project data/information, past data such as historical information, and can also take current, real-time data to make informed decisions or can augment your ability to make decisions.
In addition, schedule optimization, resource optimization (supply and demand), schedule compression, detecting overallocations etc. can make use of Artificial Intelligence.
Adaptive (Agile)
Agile is both iterative and incremental. It’s a change-driven approach.
As you go through the PMBOK, 8th edition, you will find a number of tools and techniques (T&Ts) such as:
- Daily Coordination Meetings
- Retrospective Meetings
- Project Canvas (yes, can be used in Agile too!). In fact, the concept is used in Lean approaches.
- Backlog Management,
- Backlog Refinement, among others
Coming to the inputs and outputs (I&Os), a number of them are newly introduced, such as:
- Backlog,
- Skill Matrix (can be used in all approaches),
- User Stories, among others.
Hybrid (Adaptive and Predictive)
This is a combination approach using both predictive and adaptive, but is used across industry verticals. In one of my earlier articles, I noted the following:
As per PMI report, Hybrid usage (31.5%) is more than Agile (24.6%) among project professionals.
Now, the PMBOK, 8th edition (with the standard) outlines four popular hybrid-agile methods:
- Agile Development Followed by a Predictive Rollout
- A Combined Agile and Predictive Approach Used Simultaneously
- A Largely Predictive Approach with Agile Components
- A Largely Agile Approach with a Predictive Component
The Certified Hybrid-Agile Master Professional (CHAMP) course, as informed in the previous linked article, provides a large number of hybrid models with explanations in a hands-on, practical and in-depth manner using all three: Hybrid-Scrum, Hybrid-Kanban and Hybrid-Scrumban. This dedicated certification understands the high importance of Hybrid-Agile management in the real-world.
Conclusion
As the PMBOK Guide changes and brings in new content, of course, there will be an impact on the future Project Management Professional (PMP) exam. It takes time to build on the new exam, which is effectively based on the exam content outline (ECO).
I’d also strongly recommend that you take the PMP exam as soon as you can, if you’ve prepared on the earlier editions of the PMBOK and APG guides. That way you don’t have to go through an entire set of new content.
References
[1] Article - PMBOK, 8th edition: Process Groups, Performance Domains and Artificial Intelligence (AI), by Satya Narayan Dash
[2] Certified Hybrid-Agile Master Professional (CHAMP) course - Unique hands-on, practical certification, by Management Yogi
[3] PMP Live Lessons – Guaranteed Pass or Your Full Money-Back, by Satya Narayan Dash
[4] PMP 35 Contact Hours Online Course, Full Money-Back Guarantee, by Satya Narayan Dash
[5] Book, I Want To Be A PMP – The plain and simple way, Second Edition, by Satya Narayan Dash
