> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://urd.gitbook.io/compass/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://urd.gitbook.io/compass/learning-and-adapting/practising-adaptive-management.md). # Practising adaptive management What is adaptive management ? The CHS asks organisations to continuously adapt and improve based on feedback and learning, but it does not tell you how. Adaptive management is the practical answer: a **structured way of making decisions and adjusting action in the face of uncertainty**, rather than assuming everything can be planned in advance. This page introduces the core concepts. The following pages show what this looks like in practice, at each stage of the project cycle. *** ### **Definition** Adaptive management — sometimes called "agile management" in French-language practice — is **a structured and iterative decision-making process in response to uncertainty.** Three elements run through almost every definition of the concept: * A **structured and iterative process** — not improvisation, but a deliberate way of organising short cycles of action, observation and adjustment * **Decision-making and adjustment** — the purpose is to make the right decision, at the right moment, at the right level * **In response to uncertainty** — relevant specifically when the context and/or the objectives of an intervention cannot be fully known in advance *** ### **Core components** Whatever the source — humanitarian practice, natural resource management, or software development — most descriptions of adaptive management share the same building blocks:

Uncertainty is accepted, not denied

What will work is not known in advance, and the approach explicitly acknowledges this rather than pretending otherwise.

The focus is on the "why" more than the "how"

Adaptive management defines the intended change as precisely as possible, while staying flexible on the activities and resources used to get there. The question is not "did we do what we said we would do?" but "did we do what was needed to achieve the goal?"

Short cycles and iterative decisions

Rather than one long planning phase followed by execution, adaptive management runs on repeated short cycles of analysis and adjustment.

Continuous, rapid learning

Since not everything can be known in a complex situation, adaptive management learns by testing — trying an approach, observing what happens, and adjusting quickly.

Strong attention to people and relationships

The more complex a situation, the more skills, motivation and interpersonal trust matter to whether adaptation actually happens.

*** ### **How this differs from a "classic" approach**

Classic project management	Agile / adaptive approach
"We propose this solution to meet our objective"	"Solutions are not known in advance and it is ok"
"Let's plan as much as possible from the start"	"Let's plan gradually throughout the intervention and revise the plans"
"We will try to follow the plan, and adjust if needed"	"The plan will change — possibly completely"
"We track activities and costs first, then effects"	"We track effects first, then activities and costs"
"We learn at the end of the project, for future interventions"	"We learn throughout the project, for this intervention and future ones"
"We must try to succeed at everything"	"We cannot succeed at everything — failure is part of an intervention. It is ok to fail as long as we learn from it"
"We build one overall strategy for the whole project"	"We start small, test, and learn"

> This is not a call to abandon planning altogether. It is a different way of planning — one that assumes the plan will need to change, and builds that expectation into how the work is organised. *** ### **When is an adaptive management appropriate?** Adaptive management is not always the right method. Whether it is appropriate depends on two factors: {% stepper %} {% step %} ### **How well the context is understood** {% endstep %} {% step %} ### **How well the problem and the right response are understood** {% endstep %} {% endstepper %}

> The practical implication: do not apply adaptive management by default. Ask first whether context and/or problem understanding are genuinely uncertain. If both are well understood, a more linear approach may simply be more efficient. *** ### **Why is this discussed now?** Adaptive management is not a new idea — it has roots going back to the 1970s in natural resource management. It has gained renewed attention in the humanitarian and development sector for two converging reasons: **Operating contexts have become more unstable and complex**, multiplying the triggers that require a project to change. **Institutional systems — internal and donor — have become heavier**, reducing the practical options available for making that change happen. The result is a widening gap between the need for adaptation and the actual capacity to adapt. > #### **Related approaches** > > **Problem-Driven Iterative Adaptation (PDIA)** > > Developed at Harvard University's Building State Capability programme, PDIA starts from a locally defined problem rather than a pre-designed solution. It works through small, rapid iterations — test, reflect, adjust — driven by local actors rather than external experts. PDIA is particularly relevant for governance and institutional reform challenges, where the "right" solution is rarely known in advance and where local ownership of the problem-solving process is itself part of the solution. {% file src="/files/tBCM4KUhqdAq1o3zNQJm" %} > **Human-Centred Design (HCD)** > > Human-centred design is built around a repeated cycle of divergence and convergence: broadening understanding of a problem (divergence), narrowing down to a shared definition (convergence), broadening again to generate possible solutions (divergence), then narrowing down to what will actually be tested (convergence). HCD puts the people experiencing a problem at the centre of both defining it and designing a response — making it a natural complement to adaptive management's emphasis on participation and iteration. #### **What these approaches have in common** Despite different origins and vocabularies, adaptive management, PDIA, human-centred design and related approaches converge on a shared set of principles: 1. There is no known or unique solution 2. Context matters for understanding a problem 3. Active participation and listening to people are essential 4. It is necessary to interact with the system or complex problem, not just analyse it from outside 5. Start modestly and test 6. Be willing to learn, search, and test hypotheses 7. Measure primarily to learn — not just to report 8. Build in regular moments for reflection and learning 9. Work in loops rather than in a straight line, so that planning, implementation and learning are no longer separate processes 10. Be pragmatic: do what is necessary, not what looks best on paper *** ### **In short, what is adaptive management ?**

### **Key points** * Adaptive management is a structured, iterative decision-making process for situations of genuine uncertainty — not a licence to improvise * It is appropriate when context and/or the right response are poorly understood; a simpler linear approach may be more efficient otherwise * PDIA and human-centred design are closely related approaches that share the same underlying principles * The growing relevance of adaptive management reflects a widening gap between increasingly unstable contexts and increasingly heavy institutional systems ### **Links and toolbox** {% content-ref url="/spaces/8VQvJtfuTFNUeSv1dIbV/pages/r0ZYgBncaIZwoiOnEFjd" %} [Adaptive management](/compass/documentation/adaptive-management.md) {% endcontent-ref %} {% content-ref url="/spaces/562GtvqEOvyIu9GuSK3W/pages/njH9eu74kH4nq2PaW1uB" %} [Q\&A Watch](/compass/qanda-watch/readme.md) {% endcontent-ref %}