New manifesto empowers enterprises to adapt faster, stay aligned, turn strategy into action

Michael Olumide

PMI Agile Alliance has unveiled the Manifesto for Enterprise Agility, a bold new leadership guide designed to help organisations navigate frequent disruption, stay aligned, and turn strategy into actionable outcomes.

Global research by PMI highlights a growing imperative for reinvention: 93% of senior executives report the need to rethink and challenge operating models or business approaches at least every five years, and 65% do so every two years or faster.

While recognising the need for change is widespread, converting strategy into coordinated action remains a challenge – and it is here that enterprise agility becomes crucial.

“Most organisations don’t struggle with strategy; they struggle with turning strategy into coordinated action,” says MD, Project Management Institute, Sub-Saharan Africa, George Asamani.

“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.”

Launched in the 25th anniversary year of the Agile Software Development Manifesto, the Manifesto for Enterprise Agility extends agile principles beyond teams and projects to the entire organisation – encompassing leadership behaviour, operating models, governance, and culture.

Unlike prescriptive frameworks, the Manifesto guides leaders on how to build systems that enable enterprise-wide agility – from governing with guardrails rather than gatekeepers, funding intent instead of activity, to delegating authority closer to where value is created.

The Manifesto is built around four core values: Clear purpose realised through adaptive plans – Guiding with purpose and adjusting along the way outweighs over-planning and the illusion of control.

Shared enterprise outcomes over functional optimisation – Prioritising long-term goals and cross-enterprise collaboration outweighs optimising for short-term, departmental KPIs.

Continuous reinvention over preservation – Boldly challenging established operating models and innovation outweighs structural inertia and preserving the status quo.

Human-centricity amidst change – Continuous learning, resilience, autonomy, and leading with empathy and trust outweigh leading change by process alone.

Endorsers emphasize its timeliness:
Greg Beato, co-author of Superagency, explains: “Twenty-five years after the Agile Software Development Manifesto, it’s time to apply similar thinking to entire enterprises. The growth of digital and physical networks globally compels organisations to embed agility in leadership, operating models, governance, and culture.”

CEO of GE Appliances, Kevin Nolan, says: “Agile organisations adapt faster and take the lead. Those not embracing agility risk falling behind as collaboration becomes essential in a dynamic environment.”

Former CEO and co-founder of Rebel Foods, Sagar Kochhar, adds: “Enterprise agility is less about frameworks and more about leadership courage – the courage to reset vision, dismantle legacy assumptions, and trust teams to execute within systems designed for speed. This Manifesto captures the truth: enterprise agility is a leadership mindset, not a transformation initiative.”

Grounded in PMI research – including global C-suite surveys, executive interviews, and insights from senior transformation practitioners – the Manifesto offers practical guidance for leaders to operationalise enterprise agility, helping organisations act decisively and remain resilient in a rapidly evolving world.

The Manifesto for Enterprise Agility is available to organisations and practitioners seeking to align strategy, leadership, and execution across the enterprise while navigating the pace of modern disruption.