Agile Ideas
Agile Ideas. Agility in thought. Agility in action. Where amazing things happen. Helping you think outside the box.
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#192 | Building a PMO That People Actually Need with Hussain Bandukwala
<p>If your PMO disappeared tomorrow, would anyone notice, or would they celebrate?</p><p>That question sits at the heart of this conversation with Hussain Bandukwala, PMO and AI enablement advisor and founder of Parwaz Consulting. With more than 20 years of experience and enterprise PMO transformations across multiple industries, Hussain shares how organisations can build PMOs that people trust, value and genuinely need.</p><p>A PMO should be more than process and compliance. It needs to solve real business problems. Hussain explains why there is no universal blueprint for a successful PMO, how to define its purpose around...
#191 | How Boards Can Turn Sustainability Into Better Decisions with Desiree Lucchese
<p>What does good governance look like when the risks facing organisations are becoming more complex, interconnected and difficult to predict?</p><p>In this episode, Fatimah is joined by Desiree Lucchese, a governance and sustainability professional with extensive experience across responsible investment, climate governance, enterprise risk and sustainability strategy, to explore how leaders can make better decisions in an increasingly uncertain environment.</p><p>Together, they unpack why sustainability and climate risk can no longer sit on the sidelines of organisational strategy, and what it means to move beyond compliance towards governance that genuinely supports decision-making. Desiree shares how...
#190 | People, Culture, Psychology & Technology Change with Anton Roe
<p>What happens when technology moves faster than people are ready for—and how do leaders build organisations that can keep up?</p><p>In this thought-provoking episode, Fatimah is joined by Anton Roe, recruitment and talent solutions leader with more than 25 years of experience across the UK, Europe, the US, and Australia, to explore the changing relationship between people, culture, psychology, and technology in today's workplace.</p><p>Drawing on his background in organisational psychology and executive recruitment, Anton shares why successful organisations look beyond résumés and headcount to focus on culture, capability, and the environments that help...
#189 | Endurance In Entrepreneurship – What 10 Years in Business Taught Us
<p>What does it really take to build a business that lasts?</p><p>In this special episode, the tables are turned as our team member Sarah Nielson interviews Agile Ideas host and AMO Founder & CEO, Fatimah Abbouchi, reflecting on the highs, lows, and lessons from ten years of building a consulting business dedicated to helping organisations close the strategy execution gap.</p><p>From a conversation in a café to leading a consultancy working across transformation, governance, capability, and delivery, Fatimah shares the pivotal moments that shaped both her business and her leadership. Together, they explore why so many o...
#188 | Leading a Global PMO, leveraging AI & messy data with Mark Abdelmalek
<p>What does it take to lead a global PMO in an increasingly AI-enabled world—especially when your biggest challenge isn't the technology, but the quality of the data behind it?</p><p>In this insightful episode, Fatimah is joined by Mark Abdelmalek, Head of PMO APAC at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer, to explore how modern PMOs can embrace AI while staying focused on the fundamentals of leadership, governance, and organisational capability.</p><p>Drawing on more than 30 years of experience, Mark shares his journey from software developer to PMO leader, reflecting on why successful delivery has always been about pe...
#187 | The Execution Gap: Why Capability Is the Missing Layer
<p>In this special episode, we explore one of the most common organisational challenges: the gap between strategy and execution.</p><p>Many organisations invest heavily in transformation, governance, delivery frameworks, and planning — yet execution still breaks down. Decisions stall, ownership becomes unclear, delivery slows, and teams become overwhelmed.</p><p>At the centre of these recurring challenges is something many organisations talk about, but few define clearly: capability.</p><p>In this webinar recording, Fatimah Abbouchi unpacks why capability is often the missing layer between strategy and delivery — and why organisations that misunderstand capability frequently struggle to operationalise change sust...
#186 | Accidental Project Manager with Eva Pareja
<p>What happens when a journalist accidentally lands in project management — and discovers the same skills that drive powerful storytelling also drive successful delivery?</p><p>In this thoughtful and honest episode, Fatimah is joined by Eva Pareja, Integrated Project Manager, communicator, and multicultural marketing specialist, whose career journey spans journalism, media, advertising, public relations, and nearly 30 years of cross-functional project delivery.</p><p>Born in Spain and now based in Chicago, Eva shares how her early career in radio and television unexpectedly shaped her approach to leadership, stakeholder engagement, and project management. From understanding audiences and navigating deadlines to tr...
#185 | Why Governance Fails (And What It’s Really Meant to Do) with Ross Garland
<p>What if governance isn’t slowing your projects down—but the very thing protecting them from failure?</p><p>In this powerful episode, Fatimah is joined by Ross Garland, President of P3GQA and global expert in Project, Programme and Portfolio Governance (P3 governance), to unpack why so many delivery challenges have less to do with project management—and more to do with how organisations design governance.</p><p>With over 25 years of experience across billions of dollars in global investments, Ross brings a grounded, no-nonsense perspective on what actually breaks when governance is treated as administration instead of invest...
#184 | Why Regulatory Programs Stall After Approval - and How to Design Ones That Actually Run
<p>In this special episode, we explore a challenge many regulated organisations face but rarely articulate clearly: why regulatory programs often struggle long after approval has been secured.</p><p>Most regulatory initiatives don’t fail because the obligations were misunderstood. They fail because the delivery model was never designed to operate sustainably once the program transitions into business-as-usual.</p><p>Using AFSL regulatory programs as a practical reference point, Fatimah examines the structural patterns that repeatedly undermine regulated change. From delivery models optimised for approval rather than operation, to obligation-led planning that fragments accountability across teams, the episode highlights wh...
#183 | Why “target operating models” fail without capability clarity - Capability Unboxed Mini Series (powered by CIAB+) Part 7
<p><b>Capability Unboxed Mini Series (powered by CIAB+) #7</b></p><p>Organisations invest heavily in Target Operating Model (TOM) design.</p><p>New structures are defined. Governance is redesigned. Processes are mapped. So why do so many of the same problems still remain?</p><p>In this final episode of Capability Unboxed, Fatimah Abbouchi explores why operating model redesign often fails to deliver real change — and why the missing piece is capability clarity.</p><p>Most TOM exercises focus on what is visible: structures, reporting lines, decision forums, and processes. But these elements don’t create performance on their own...
