Abstract
For decades, organisations have relied on both predictive and iterative project
management approaches to achieve their objectives. Predictive approaches are often
criticised for their rigidity in adapting to rapid market shifts, whereas iterative
approaches are praised for their ability to swiftly yield tangible results. Nonetheless,
organisations are still experiencing some challenges with both of these approaches.
Furthermore, both approaches have their benefits and challenges, suggesting that
none is better than the other. This then poses the question of whether a hybrid
approach would be the best solution. This research aimed to investigate how
predictive and iterative project management approaches facilitate the implementation
of IT projects; it evaluates the characteristics, benefits, and challenges of these
approaches to establish how these two approaches can be combined to form an
inclusive (hybrid) approach. Utilising both predictive and iterative project management
approaches, the researcher surveyed professionals in the software industry. The study
aimed to explore iterative and predictive approaches employed by experts in
completing IT projects, while also assessing the characteristics, benefits, and
challenges of these approaches. Furthermore, the researcher examined the practices,
processes, activities, and goals that should be incorporated into a new hybrid
approach. The results reveal that although organisations have been enjoying
numerous benefits such as a focus on quality, better team collaboration, and
increased knowledge sharing, there are still challenges with the approaches. These
challenges include too many meetings, insufficient time for a careful design during the
project life cycle, and specialised knowledge in silos. Moreover, the results reveal the
practices, processes, activities, and goals to be considered in the development of a
hybrid (predictive and iterative) project management approach. Thus, these findings
serve as the foundation for proposing a novel hybrid model.
Keywords: Project management, Predictive project management, Iterative project
management, Hybrid model