PMI Agile Alliance Unveils Manifesto to Drive Enterprise Reinvention

PMI Agile Alliance has introduced a new leadership guide, dubbed the Manifesto for Enterprise Agility, which seeks to help organisations succeed in a disrupted world and accelerate enterprise reinvention.

The development comes at a time when organisations, regardless of industry, are increasingly under pressure to transform traditional ways of doing business and respond to changing market conditions in a more agile manner.

According to PMI global C-suite research, reinvention is no longer optional but an ongoing necessity, with 93 per cent of senior executives acknowledging the need to, “rethink and challenge assumptions of their operating models or business approaches at least every five years.”

Nearly 65 per cent of executives say they are already undertaking such reinvention efforts every two years or faster, underscoring the pace of change.

However, the report highlights a persistent gap between strategy formulation and execution, with many organisations struggling to translate vision into coordinated action.

“Most organisations don’t struggle with strategy; they struggle with turning strategy into coordinated action. Enterprise agility is about building organisations that can adapt quickly without losing alignment, so leaders can respond to disruption while keeping their people and priorities focused on delivering value,” said George Asamani, Managing Director for Sub-Saharan Africa at the Project Management Institute.

Bridging the Strategy-Execution Gap

Despite widespread recognition of the importance of enterprise agility, implementation remains limited.

The research shows that while 85 per cent of C-suite executives consider enterprise agility critical, about 65 per cent admit they have implemented it, “to a limited extent or not at all.”

The newly unveiled manifesto seeks to address this disconnect by moving agility beyond individual teams and projects to encompass the entire organisation.

It emphasises leadership behaviour, governance structures, operating models, and organisational culture as key levers for transformation.

Launched during the 25th anniversary of the Manifesto for Agile Software Development, the new framework deliberately avoids prescribing rigid methodologies.

Instead, it outlines principles for building adaptive systems, advocating for governance “with guardrails instead of gatekeepers” and funding “intent instead of activity,” while pushing decision-making authority closer to value creation points.

Also Read:Ruto Appoints John Mbadi to New Role

Core Values that Guide Enterprise Agility

The manifesto has been anchored on four core values, which will be instrumental in guiding organisational agility.

These values include:

Prioritising organisational purpose through adaptive planning rather than too much control, and
Prioritising organisational outcomes rather than departmental optimisation.

It also calls for continuous reinvention instead of preserving legacy structures, encouraging organisations to challenge entrenched systems and embrace innovation.

In addition, the framework also highlights the value of human-centric leadership, which includes concepts such as resilience, autonomy, and trust, as essential drivers of change.

Also Read:NPS Breaks Silence on DCI Boss Tenure Speculation and Abduction Claims

Industry Leaders Back the Initiative

Industry leaders and endorsers of the manifesto have emphasized its relevance in the current dynamic business environment.

Greg Beato, co-author of Superagency, noted that the evolution mirrors earlier shifts driven by technological change.

“Twenty-five years after the Manifesto for Agile Software Development presented a new way to think about software development, it’s time to apply similar thinking to enterprises as a whole, not just to projects or products,” he said.

He added that, “the growth in both physical and digital networks around the world compels enterprises to incorporate and deploy agility to their entire organisational systems.”

Kevin Nolan, CEO of GE Appliances, highlighted the competitive imperative for agility, stating: “Today’s business landscape demands rapid adaptation and greater agility. Agile organisations adapt faster and take the lead, while those not embracing agility risk falling behind as collaboration becomes essential in a dynamic environment.”

Sagar Kochhar, former CEO and co-founder of Rebel Foods, framed enterprise agility as a leadership challenge rather than a procedural shift.

“Enterprise agility is less about frameworks and more about leadership courage – the courage to reset the vision, dismantle legacy assumptions, and trust teams to execute within systems designed for speed,” he said.

He added that, “enterprise agility is not a transformation initiative, but a leadership mindset required to continuously reinvent vision, structure, and execution in a volatile world.”

Follow our WhatsApp channel for instant news updates