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What is a VUCA environment?

There are many different types of project management because there are many different types of environment a project could be happening within. One of these types of environments is VUCA, which is the environment of constant, unpredictable changes and challenges.

What does VUCA stand for?

VUCA is an acronym, it represents Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity.

Volatility for the rapid changes of the environment. These can be unpredictable and brought about due to competition, politics or technology changes. Although unpredictable they can also be dramatic.

Uncertainty for the lack of ability to forecast outcomes or future events. This is likely to lack of information, unreliable information or poor communication of change, which makes making decisions hard in a continuously changing environment,

Complexity due to situations, issues, and problems that are complicated due to multiple factors. The various factors may also be interconnected making understanding and the resolving of issues challenging.

Ambiguity due to unclear information and poor communication, leading to difficulties in interpreting what is actually required and confusion.

Which project management style works best in a VUCA environment?

Agile practices generally work well in a VUCA environment as they allow for businesses to pivot, respond and keep velocity with the changes that are quickly happening. This allows for agile businesses to start competitive and harness change as an opportunity.

A project management style such as the waterfall approach is poor in a VUCA environment, as waterfall often requires budget and scope to be agreed in advance. One study by http://www.enterpriseappstoday.com found that projects using a waterfall approach only had a 49% success rate, compared to agile projects having a 64% success rate.

What impact does an uncontrolled VUCA environment have?

An uncontrolled VUCA environment has impact on both businesses and individuals including businesses struggling to attract and keep skilled talent, individuals becoming resistant to change, poor decision making within the organisation, and a downward toll on internal culture which leads to greater waste.