How Successful Hybrid Project Management Works

Project management strategies strive to create more productive teams that use their time and resources as efficiently and effectively as possible. With projects becoming increasingly complex and demanding more flexibility, finding a management strategy that works across your range of projects can feel impossible. However, hybrid project management aims to provide a new, more adaptable solution for your business.

39% of respondents are now turning to hybrid or multiple system approaches for their project management, showing that sticking to one strategy is no longer meeting the needs of teams. However, that doesn’t mean scrapping these methods altogether. By taking a hybrid approach, project managers are more frequently using the best parts of various strategies together to suit the projects they are working on.

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What Is Hybrid Project Management?

As suggested by the name, hybrid project management is a combination of multiple styles of management, picking out the elements that work and applying them to the relevant projects. These methods are being used by jobs in London and businesses globally. Typically, it refers to the use of agile and waterfall methods being used together in some capacity. To understand what practices each strategy uses, let's look at them individually in more detail:

Agile

Agile solutions aim to allow flexibility by including features that clients ask for throughout the production and development process. This approach is ideal with highly personalized projects or where continuous feedback is provided. Also, agile project management methods boost efficiency by completing multiple tasks simultaneously and sharing out responsibilities within the team, looking for straightforward solutions.

Waterfall

Taking a more traditional project management route, waterfall methods tend to focus more on planning and strategizing to ensure the process is done once and done well. This means once production and development are in progress, they can move forward efficiently knowing what the next steps are. Likewise, tasks happen in sequence to avoid mistakes or miscommunication, reducing risk-taking.

Although seemingly opposite approaches, elements of both can be isolated to tackle the project management triangle, creating thorough plans for efficient projects whilst also allowing flexibility throughout. Hybrid management can be adapted to include more elements of one or the other, depending on your teams and the projects you have. Shorter-term projects may include more agile elements, whereas larger projects may need more initial planning and structure.

How to Succeed With Hybrid Project Management？

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1. Plan First

Having noticed the different aspects of waterfall and agile project management, identify which elements you want to use at which stages. Whether this is running multiple sprints at once, including more research, or using and responding to applause testing during the development stages, your team needs to be on the same page. Deciding your approach before starting the project enables everyone to know their responsibilities to complete and the timescale of tasks.

2. Check Your Software

Different software is suited to various management strategies. What works for agile or waterfall projects may not have the features needed for a hybrid approach. Your project may want SEO software, project boards, and calendars for content marketing campaigns. Find a solution that offers this, rather than poorly fitting your project into your existing software. Using external application integrations also adapts the software to your hybrid project management needs.

3. Train Your Team

If your team hasn't worked with hybrid project management before, it’s going to be different from what they’re used to. Some processes need to be learned entirely, especially in regard to how they integrate with your existing ones. Setting aside time for training ensures your team understands and can complete the tasks and sprints in the way required. It also provides an opportunity to answer any questions before issues arise, helping your project to run smoothly.

4. Practice Skills

Although the ratio of agile to waterfall elements used in your hybrid strategy may vary, some skills are essential for your teams to master. Communicating effectively helps progress your project swiftly and keeps everyone updated. Documentation skills using screen and camera recording along with planning skills also give the project direction and help reach its goals. Practicing these skills and others helps your team to succeed with hybrid project management.

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5. Review Your Projects

The best way to improve your hybrid management is by reviewing what works well and what could be done better. Reflecting on your project management allows you to see where additional support or planning is needed and how this can be delivered in future projects. Likewise, it highlights the successes of your team, from QA testing to cyber security setups happening in tandem, effectively using software, or meeting customer expectations and briefs.

6. Find What Works for You

Hybrid project management is more of a sliding scale between agile and waterfall methods, rather than something static. If one combination of features doesn’t suit your teams or projects, it’s okay to try something new. By experimenting with different approaches, whether it is entirely remote work or a hybrid approach, you learn what works well with your situation and optimizes your project management. Once you discover this, you can complete projects more efficiently and better serve your customers’ needs.

Have You Tried Hybrid Project Management?

Changing your project management tools and strategy can be a risk, but it can also be highly beneficial to your team workflow, productivity, and project outcomes. Using hybrid methods takes the best of agile and waterfall approaches, combining them to optimize your processes. This will take some adjustment and learning from your previous projects, however, once you find your balance, you can tailor your strategy to your team and projects to bring out the best in both.

Whether you’re starting a business and looking for a way to manage your projects or have been in the industry for a while, hybrid project management could be the solution for you. As a strategy that can take on large projects with simultaneous sprints alongside managing smaller projects with strict processes, hybrid adapts to your project. Transform your method of management today and discover how hybrid project management could improve your teamwork.

Need more help? Check out the Zentao blog. They have more articles on project management tools, software management, building cross-functional teams, and so much more.

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Author bio :

Kate Priestman - Head Of Marketing, Global App Testing

Kate Priestman is the Head of Marketing at Global App Testing, a trusted and leading end-to-end functional testing solution for QA challenges. Kate has over 8 years of experience in the field of marketing, helping brands achieve exceptional growth. She has extensive knowledge on brand development, lead and demand generation, and marketing strategy — driving business impact at its best. She has also written for great sites such as VMblog and Dealavo.