Hybrid project management does not mean "anything goes"

Illustration: Traditional (waterfall) project management versus Agile. Hybrid project management blends the two approaches for flexible, value-focused delivery within a temporary project setup.

When “hybrid” becomes a label for uninformed choices 

The worst case within hybrid project management we have experienced involved a project attempting a hybrid setup by combining the most “easy to apply” elements from both sides without looking at the entire picture and without considering what the project expected to obtain with the blend. The project called itself “hybrid”, but it served more as a label and an excuse for not following the project standards in the organisation than being a deliberate choice to optimise performance.

The project combined a request for control and close follow-up from traditional project management with a flexible backlog of deliverables from Agile. However, it failed to ensure time and resource estimations and clear prioritisation based on cost-value assessments. The output was a project with a fixed scope to deliver, consisting of the full backlog.

Regular “stand-ups” focused purely on status and backward-looking follow-up. Without timelines, milestones or clear definitions of “done”, deliverables were dragged out, consuming significant budget due to constant tweaking. Moreover, the unprioritised backlog led to delivering the “easy” or “fun” tasks first rather than the most important ones. This resulted in severe budget, time and scope overruns, with stakeholders feeling shortchanged despite the team’s belief they had delivered high-end solutions.

When hybrid is a way to tune project performance 

So, what does a good hybrid setup look like? First, you need to outline the purpose of choosing a hybrid model. Are you aiming for speed, flexibility, higher impact, lower cost or something else?

Illustration: How traditional project management, Agile and Half Double (as a hybrid project model) relate to the scope triangle.

Fixed scope and plan 

You have a fixed scope and a fixed order in which tasks need to be implemented. This is common in scenarios like implementing a cloud IT system or building a house, where certain sequences are non-negotiable. 

In such cases, agile tools can drive progress and ownership among project participants while adhering to a waterfall plan. This approach improves flow and progress through shared planning sessions, regular stand-up meetings focusing on future milestones, dependency mapping and emphasis on collaborative leadership. 

Value focus and flexible scope, but fixed resources and time 

You focus on delivering maximum value for a fixed amount of money within a given time plan and thus have a flexible scope, but still must report on progress and milestones. This could be the case in situations where your budget allocation processes are still project-based, but your delivery model is agile. 

In such a case, we have built a milestone plan based on “effort to impact” rather than “time to scope” and applied resource and risk control mechanisms from traditional project management. The project was broken into small value-adding deliverables, which were delivered according to agile principles and measured according to the milestone plan. We kept the customer very close in order to approve any value versus cost trade-offs, thereby ensuring that we provided the highest value for money. 

Fixed scope and budget 

You have a fixed scope to deliver and a fixed budget. Here, we have benefitted from the agile focus on breaking down the plan into minimum value-adding products for early value creation. We have applied strict change management and risk management to ensure that the agreed scope was delivered.

To drive effectiveness, we have applied all the agile flow elements from Half Double² to drive constant progress and local ownership to all deliverables. These include visual planning, a fixed project rhythm and team co-location, enabling frequent interactions between project members.

The possible combinations in a hybrid model are numerous, but not all combinations will be effective. You need to know what you are doing to turn your project into a high-performing project rather than an uncontrolled monster. So, what questions should you ask yourself before tailoring your hybrid approach to success?

How to choose which hybrid mix you need 

There are many parameters to consider when creating your hybrid blend. In our opinion, the two most important ones are: your ambition with your change of project model and clarification of your project constraints. These elements provide the sample space for your hybrid blend. 

Choosing the right blend for your project or organisation can be challenging if you are not clear on what you want to achieve. For example, we helped a client implement Half Double as a hybrid project model. Their top priority was to increase the speed of project execution and shorten the time to value creation. In this situation, it was key to focus on project flow by assigning the right number of team members to ensure constant progress and applying processes and tools to reduce waiting time and increase frequent interaction. We kept many of the controlling and planning elements from their current stage-gate model but changed their way of allocating people, driving everyday deliverables and coordinating dependencies. 

Organisational or industrial constraints will also impact how you build your hybrid blend. You may have to adhere to several control or quality gates – both external and internal – or your budget and resource allocation processes may depend on certain criteria, timelines and documentation of output. Some of these can be adjusted to be more flexible, whereas others cannot. 

For example, you may be dependent on external funding for your project. That funding will come with certain criteria to be met, including milestone plans, documentation of output which are typically concrete deliverables, quality gates etc. In that case, you may keep your waterfall structure of the project plan and metrics, but you can still benefit from improved flow and collaborative leadership. 

We recommend you start with Half Double

Creating an effective hybrid blend of project models can be challenging, and you risk ending up with an ineffective mix. Therefore, we recommend starting with the mindset and toolbox provided by Half Double. 

Half Double is a proven hybrid project methodology, where university researchers have found that more than 80% of Half Double projects perform better than comparable traditional waterfall projects³. 

When applying Half Double, you focus your project on impact generation rather than predefined deliverables. You focus on securing flow in the project rather than resource optimisation, and you focus on strong leadership and ownership at all levels rather than status and control. 

Half Double provides a selection of tools for each element that will help you focus on impact, flow and leadership and guidance on adjusting the tools and methods to the local context of the organisation and the project. 

The more tools you use and the better you are at focusing on the three elements, the more measurable impact your approach will have.

Conclusion 

Hybrid project management offers a flexible approach but requires careful consideration to be effective. Not every blend is equally good, and starting with a proven methodology like Half Double can help ensure that your hybrid approach delivers the desired outcomes. By understanding your project’s unique needs and constraints, you can create a tailored hybrid model that optimises performance and provides real value.

References 

1. Antonio Nieto-Rodrigues: Hybrid Project Management, First Global Survey, 2024

2. To learn more about Half Double, visit: https://halfdoubleinstitute.org/

3. Half Double Institute - Success with Half Double Projects