PMflex Agile and PM² Agile: Flexibility and adaptability for dynamic projects

In an increasingly dynamic world, characterized by constant change and growing demands, project management is facing new challenges – especially in the public sector. Flexibility, efficiency and the ability to respond quickly to changing needs are crucial here. Agile working methods play a central role in this development. They enable teams to adapt quickly and manage their projects effectively.

Applying PM² may require adjustments to meet the specific needs of a project. Given the complexity of many projects, an adaptive, hybrid, and agile approach may be necessary to respond flexibly to changes and achieve project goals.

Agile methods can be seamlessly integrated into PM². The following elements are included in PM² Agile:

PMflex is based on the European Commission's PM² method and combines this approach with elements of the S-O-S method from the (Large) Project Management Competence Center. Similar to PM² Agile, PMflex can also be supplemented with agile components to become PMflex Agil. The corresponding guideline was published in June 2023 by the (Large) Project Management Competence Center (CC GroßPM) for version 1.01 PMflex Agil. PMflex Agile is not simply a copy of PM² Agile, but an adapted and extended version that is specifically tailored to the needs of the German public administration. It is based on PM² Agile, but adds additional contextual adaptations and specific instructions that make it more relevant and useful for the German administrative sector.

However, the official guide was created based on the European Commission's PM² Agile Guide 3.0.1. The contents of the methodological additions are identical to the extent that the document only refers to PM² Agile. Accordingly, we will also focus on the PM² Agile variant in this article. However, the statements apply equally to PMflex Agil.

The 12 principles of the Agile Manifesto are the lowest common denominator of all agile process models. PM² has adopted Agile with a few modifications:

1. Satisfy customers by early and continuous delivery of valuable solutions.
2. Changes to requirements are welcome.
3. Regularly generate value through functioning solutions.
4. Experts and the core project team must work together throughout the entire project.
5. Bring together motivated employees and give them the environment and support to work in a self-organized manner.
6. The most efficient and effective means of communication is the personal conversation.
7. The most important measure of progress is the value and usability of what has been delivered.
8. Likewise, constant attention must be paid to quality.
9. Simplicity – the art of maximizing the amount of work not done – is essential.
10. The team regularly analyzes how it can improve, and changes and adapts its behavior accordingly.
11. Agile processes promote sustainable development.
12. And last but not least, agile practices should be business-oriented.

The roles of the project manager and requirements manager change due to the introduction of new roles such as the product owner and team coordinator, as well as due to the self-organization of the development teams:

In agile projects, the project management, together with the team coordinator, assumes responsibility for adhering to the methodology, with the team coordinator being specifically responsible for the agile aspects. The role of the project management shifts to a greater focus on solving problems and obstacles in the project, since agile teams work in a self-organized manner. Furthermore, the product owner takes responsibility for managing stakeholder expectations, while the project management only intervenes when necessary to resolve discrepancies.

The role of the requirements manager is significantly expanded in agile projects because the product owner acts as the permanent “voice of the customer”. This means that the requirements manager is more involved in the project and must actively participate in the iteration review to validate the development team's results. In addition, the requirements manager and the product owner work closely together to effectively coordinate the authority declaration and implementation.

PM² Agile requires adjustments to project management concepts and practices compared to traditional PM² projects due to the different values and principles of agile approaches. These adjustments are summarized in various “themes” that must be considered in the context of agile project management.

• One central component is Lean UX, which emphasizes the importance of rapid prototypes, shared understanding, and continuous improvement. In contrast to classic projects, which work towards a clearly defined end result, Lean UX relies on flexibility.
   
• Another important topic is planning, which requires more effort in agile projects. Effective planning, including work item lists, effort estimates, and stand-up meetings, is crucial to project success.
   
• Adjustments in the area of coordination and reporting are necessary to ensure efficient communication and coordination within the team. Agile practices have their own terminology, rituals and metrics to facilitate team collaboration and meet the information needs of stakeholders.
   
• Requirements play a crucial role in agile projects, especially when requirements are unclear or frequently changing. Agile approaches offer a better solution here compared to pre-defined planning approaches.
   
• Other topics, such as estimation and prioritization, risk management, quality assurance, evolution and change, architecture, compliance and security, as well as development, software configuration management, testing, deployment and rollout, also require specific adaptations and measures to ensure the success of the agile project and meet stakeholder requirements.

In PM² Agile, the system is continuously developed in CIR-rhythm, which stands for “Coordinate, Implement, Review”. All aspects of the system are processed in each cycle.

• Coordinate: There are three events that serve this purpose: iteration planning, daily stand-up meetings and release planning. These help to organize the team and plan the work.
   
• Implement: The focus here is on creating the solution itself. There are no special events, as this task is carried out continuously throughout the project.
   
• Review: Activities and events focus on evaluating the effectiveness of the developed solution. Two main events are the iteration review and the iteration retrospective.

Iteration planning aims to create a plan for the next phase based on team capacity and available resources. The Daily Stand-up is used for daily communication and an overview of project progress. Release Planning discusses changes that may affect the solution strategy.

The iteration review assesses whether the iteration goals have been achieved by demonstrating the team's work and receiving feedback from stakeholders. The retrospective captures the experiences from the iteration and makes recommendations for future improvements. It is recommended that this feedback be continuously collected and implemented throughout the project.

1. Two artifacts are created during the initiation phase: the system architecture overview provides an overview of the planned software architecture, while the business model describes aspects of the architecture, in particular the system infrastructure.
    
2. Four artifacts support the planning phase: The development manual contains important control processes and project guidelines. The development work plan contains the work element list, the release plan and the iteration plan. The test plan describes the test objectives, scope and required resources. The provisioning plan defines how the information system will be provided, operated and managed.
    
3. Execution phase: Here, the development status report and various logs are used to document and communicate the state of development. Area-specific risks, problems, decisions and changes are recorded in project logs.
    
4. Closing phase: An project close-down report is also created in the agile project. This contains experiences and recommendations for the time after the project, such as for follow-up systems or extensions.

PM² Agile uses typical tools and techniques from agile contexts to increase agility and improve quality in product development, for example:

Projektron BCS is the ideal platform for comprehensively mapping the specific requirements of PMflex Agil and PM² Agile. The software is characterized by its open-method flexibility, which makes it possible to seamlessly integrate agile principles and traditional approaches. With Projektron BCS, teams can take full advantage of agile methodologies by taking advantage of features such as flexible scrum and kanban boards, detailed role management, and comprehensive requirements management.
 

Projektron BCS's agile role management allows you to define specific roles such as product owner, scrum master, and agile team members and to clearly manage their responsibilities. At the same time, Projektron BCS makes it possible to adapt to specific requirements and comply with standards such as PMflex Agile and PM² Agile by providing iterative work cycles, flexible backlogs, and integrated reporting tools.
 

Another highlight is Projektron BCS's ability to combine both agile and traditional approaches within a single project into a hybrid methodology. This offers a great deal of freedom in project planning and execution, which is particularly advantageous for complex projects in the public sector. Extensive security features and access controls ensure that compliance and security requirements are met.
 

Experience for yourself how Projektron BCS can take your agile projects to the next level. Start your free trial now and see for yourself the wide range of possibilities offered by this powerful project management software.
 

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PM² Agile and PMflex Agil represent two essential approaches to successfully meeting the challenges of modern project management in the public sector. Both methods offer the necessary flexibility and adaptability required in an increasingly dynamic and complex work environment. PM² Agile integrates agile principles into the established PM² framework of the European Commission, making it possible to combine the advantages of agile working methods with the proven structures of PM².

PMflex Agile goes one step further by being specifically tailored to the requirements of the German public administration, thus providing an even more precise solution for local projects. Both approaches promote an agile mindset that enables teams to respond quickly to change, increase efficiency and ultimately achieve project goals. This underscores the growing importance of agile methods in public project management, which not only increases the adaptability of organizations but also their ability to operate successfully in the long term.