5. UNCERTAINTY: THE ENGINE OF INNOVATION

Uncertainty is the lack of complete knowledge or a complete picture of a situation, resulting in unpredictable outcomes that affect the decision-making process in business and life. While the previous definition may suggest that uncertainty is frustrating and negative experience, I believe that uncertainty is an engine of learning, knowledge, and then innovation.

The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche says: "There are no Facts, only Interpretations,” - by the way it is one of my favorite quotes - by understanding this quote deeply we discover that it emphasizes uncertainty as a positive concept, and encourages its application in science (either natural,social, or formal), in business environment, and even in life.

In science, uncertainty led Albert Einstein to develop the theory of relativity leading to a new advanced view of the universe compared to the old Newtonian view. Similarly, in business, market fluctuations, technological changes, and unforeseen events can affect the best organizations plans, however, organizations that can adapt and thrive in uncertain environments are the ones that stay ahead of the curve compared to their competitors, this adaptability is the catalyst for success, improvement, and innovation.

Even in our personal lives, uncertainty keeps things interesting and allows us to grow, learn, and understand life more and more. By acknowledging the limitations of our knowledge, uncertainty can be turned into a way for personal growth and for being open-minded to broader horizons. Personally, in my life and work, I feel my gun when someone says "I'm sure 100%" without using phrases like "I think" or "May be," because absolute certainty often makes me doubt their confidence and then distrust them and their way of thinking. The more you know, the more hesitant and less confident you become, as the saying goes: "Donkeys are always sure."

Article by Amr H. Abayazeed - May 24, 2024.

4. AGILE PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Agile projects are currently the trend in project management practices, transitioning from being used primarily in small projects with undefined scopes and low budgets, mostly in software development, to being used as an alternative method to traditional waterfall projects with defined scopes and requirements.

The definitions of agile projects and waterfall projects are determined by the phases (lifecycle) that a project goes through from start to completion. These phases can be either "Predictive" or "Adaptive" in nature. The predictive (waterfall) lifecycle is a plan-driven approach that allows for upfront planning of a well-defined scope and requirements, aiming to deliver a big final outcome at the project's end. The adaptive (agile) lifecycle is a change-driven approach that permits modifications to the scope and putting clients' feedback in consideration at each phase of the project, aiming to deliver a cumulative and incremental outcome throughout the project lifecycle.

So why are projects nowadays preferable to be agile in nature compared to the old traditional waterfall approach? The answer to this question in one word is "Adaptation," to cope with unpredictable and rapidly changing nature of the modern business environment, from the economical, technological, and political perspectives, as we actually live in a VUCA world.

VUCA stands for Volatility (rapid and unpredictable changes), Uncertainty (events and outcomes are difficult to predict with confidence), Complexity (interconnected factors influence situations, making cause-and-effect relationships unclear), and Ambiguity (multiple interpretations of information or situations, leading to confusion). In a VUCA world, organizations and project management face challenges such as sudden market shifts, technological advancements, geopolitical instability, and ambiguous or unclear situations. Then VUCA concept highlights the need for organizations and project managements to be agile, adaptive, and resilient in order to thrive in such dynamic conditions.

Strategists argue that creating long-term plans for three to five years is difficult nowadays, even sticking to a plan for even one year is nearly impossible. Therefore, upfront planning in projects may not be effective and will likely need to be reviewed, adapted, and updated continuously, due to the VUCA concept. This necessitates an agile approach; focusing on launching and iterating rather than on strict adherence to a fixed scope, time, and cost.

 

Article by Amr H. Abayazeed - May 10, 2024.

3. ARE LEADERS ANGELS?! ARE MANAGERS DEVILS?!

Leaders focus on people, managers focus on things. Leaders create a vision, managers execute a plan. Leaders look into the future, managers focus on the present. Leaders empower, managers control. Leaders develop change, managers manage change. Leaders use influence, managers use authority. The previous are commercial comparisons that are widespread in human resource courses and materials, and the result of these comparisons are Leaders are angels, we should take them as an example, and managers are devils, we should avoid them.

In my opinion, leaders and managers are not in contradiction; they complement each other. Leadership has various styles and hats, such as autocratic (leader takes all the decisions), democratic (decision-making is shared with team members), transformational (inspiring employees to produce change in the organization), Laissez-faire (hands-off style), transactional (punishment and incentives are used to motivate employees), servant (puts the needs of the employees first; strongly recommended in project management institute; PMI), charismatic (leader use communication skills, persuasiveness, and charm), interactional (combination of transactional, transformational, and charismatic), visionary (leader has a clear vision for the future), and bureaucratic (rule-based style).

Effective leaders can wear all the previous hats and adopt all of these styles according to situation, team, and organizational goals and culture. Also, there are somehow common traits with managers as commercial courses stated. I believe that, beyond classifications, loose organizations may need autocratic and bureaucratic style to enhance the essence of processes and procedures in work (managers role in commercial courses). However, mature organizations need a sense of motivation and prioritizing people to make a significant impact and differences (leaders role in commercial courses).

Thus, Leaders and managers are not opposites and they are not two types, they are fall under an academic concept called "Managerial Leadership," that depend on both direction and coordination. Actually, every manager should develop leadership skills, and every leader have to be a manager, using the best approach depends technically on the situation.

Article by Amr H. Abayazeed - May 03, 2024.