Agile Development : The Unforgiving

Pivot is perhaps one of the most overused terms in discussions about tech startups. It is, however, one of the most important and has valuable lessons to physical development, as well.

As a startup gets ever closer to launch they are refining their business model constantly, seeking as much feedback as possible, and making adjustments to their actual business. In a number of instances the final launched product or service may bear little resemblance to the initial mission. By proving and improving their model before launch they set the stage for success. In order to achieve this they have to build on a flexible framework so they can change direction rapidly without having to start over from scratch. When a startup changes directions based on the information gleaned from their feedback loop it is their pivot.

When looking at previous patterns of physical development it is easy to see which areas chose a flexible infrastructure which allowed them to pivot, and which did not. While not every grid based city or town has been a success but they do have the flexibility to reinvent themselves and adjust as needed to serve a useful purposed. The mechanism for this is a form based code which allows mixed-uses. While the political process required to pivot takes years instead of hours, as is the case with tech companies, the flexibility exists.

Those that chose large parcel conventional suburban patterns are locked in place. When the market changes they cannot adapt. The result is that extremely large parcels will remain underutilized until such time that the land increases in value to the point it is financially viable to demolish the existing building and infrastructure and start over. This is a very unforgiving form of development. If you do not get the market and the timing correct the development will fail. To attempt a zoning change will take years and the market may move yet again. The expense of redesigning the development may be prohibitive and the project funding may have dried up. The only option in many cases is to wait and see.

The tech companies have chosen a framework that allows them to make corrections as they go. They can even be completely wrong about their market and still manage to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. This ability to be wrong yet find success is one of the main reasons that the tech sector is doing well and continues to attract billions in equity investment in these trying times.

The ability to pivot and reinvent are key to long term viability. The evidence can be seen in all of the major financial centers of the world which are based on flexible patterns. Even micropolitan areas based on flexible patterns are surviving and thriving in these tough times. I would suggest that any form of physical development look to patterns that are flexible so that they can change with the times. The alternative is not so forgiving.

Posted via email from Kenneth Hitchens