Adaptive Project Management (APM) was introduced about a decade ago and aims to produce a framework within which effective management can take place. In effect, it aims to be an iterative process which relies on the project goals to be known and clearly stated and where the sort solution is not known. It provides an approach without using planning for the unlikely scenario. What is hoped for is a solution to emerge during the execution of the project itself.
With that in view, Robert Wysocki, who is well experienced in management, sets himself the task of explaining what APM is and how it aims to achieve results. He gives the five recognisable phases of the process in some detail and then discusses how it can be utilised in projects which may be difficult to approach because, for example, they may be very risk prone or conjectural. The author gives a clear account of APM with plenty of relevant case studies and the use of illustrations. The studies chosen indicate the potential of the methods used for real‐life practical applications.
Wysacki repeatedly indicates to the reader that this is but one approach which does not make our traditional approaches unnecessary but rather aids management by providing another weapon in our armoury to attack the project. It is focussed on bringing “business value” to a project and to improve upon it within the constraints of for example, time and budget.
As a result, the book is structured to appeal to a variety of readers who may be project and programme managers, or to those involved in the software element of a project, as well, of course, as the designers, analysts and developers who all form the conglomerate which is the project team. In consequence, this is a well‐written book which anyone involved in project management should study and use when appropriate. It may not produce the required solution, but APM, as the author maintains, should at least compliment the well‐tried traditional approaches.
