A project manager joins a company transitioning to agile. Some stakeholders want the entire project defined and planned upfront, while the sponsor needs a quick win to secure continuation. Which approach should the project manager use?

The project manager should use a hybrid approach. A hybrid approach combines elements of both predictive (waterfall) and agile methodologies. This allows the project manager to satisfy the sponsor's need for a quick win by delivering early value (agile) while also providing some upfront planning and definition for stakeholders who prefer a more traditional approach (predictive). This balances the conflicting stakeholder expectations and helps manage the transition to agile. An agile approach alone might not satisfy stakeholders who want upfront definition. A purely predictive approach would delay the "quick win" the sponsor needs, potentially jeopardizing project continuation. While a predictive approach demonstrates benefits, it does so later in the project lifecycle, which contradicts the sponsor's immediate need.