Initiatives versus Objectives
People working with Objectives (for example, with the OKRs framework) seem a bit confused by the concept of Initiatives. Some consultants put Initiatives below Objectives; others put them above. (And most have never heard of Initiatives.)
An Objection to Objectives
Organizations are addicted to goal-setting. Aiming for what’s new must be balanced with protecting what we have.
You Are a Portfolio Manager (Everyone Is)
If you don't manage your portfolios, you only build but never own.
Initiatives: What Scrum and SAFe Ignored
Anything that you continuously or continually make available to stakeholders is an Initiative. An Initiative never spontaneously disappears. It needs frequent monitoring and regular maintenance.
Hard Agile, Soft Agile, and Not Agile
Labeling every non-pure Agile approach as “waterfall” is not helpful. Big Design Upfront only exists in the first quadrant, which we can indeed label as “Not Agile.”
Yet Another Classification of Backlog Items
There are many ways to organize work items on backlogs. If you begin from scratch, the nine patterns in the unFIX model may offer you a good starting point.