Scrum Isn’t a Software Thing
It never was.
One of the most common objections I hear when talking about Scrum goes something like this:
“Sure, Scrum works in software—but you can’t use it in construction.”
That belief sounds reasonable.It’s also wrong.
In my latest podcast episode, I sat down with Felipe Engineer-Manriquez, who has been quietly proving that wrong for nearly two decades—using Scrum in construction projects ranging from $10 million to multi-billion-dollar programs.
Not experiments.Not theory.Not post-its for show.
Real projects.Real contracts.Real consequences.
What Happens When Scrum Shows Up on a Job Site
Felipe shared story after story of what happens when Scrum and Lean principles are applied to construction work:
* Projects finishing months early
* Zero claims, zero litigation
* Every contractor making money
* Leaders reclaiming nights and weekends
* Teams planning better in weeks than traditional schedules do in years
One university project even finished early with no legal disputes—something the owner said had never happened beforein over a decade.
That alone should make us pause.
The Real Problem Isn’t Scrum
It’s How We’ve Framed It
Scrum didn’t originate as a “software framework.”
It emerged from studying complex product development—work with:
* Uncertainty
* Dependencies
* Long lead times
* Many stakeholders
* Humans making decisions under pressure
Sound familiar?
Construction has all of that.So do healthcare, manufacturing, education, nonprofits, and leadership teams.
What Filipe walks through in this episode is how Scrum aligns naturally with Lean Construction practices like the Last Planner System, rolling planning horizons, visual work management, and continuous learning loops (PDCA, OODA).
Different vocabulary.Same foundation.
Why Traditional Project Management Keeps Failing
Filipe also explains why classic waterfall schedules and Gantt charts struggle in environments like construction:
They assume predictability where none exists.
Critical path schedules optimize the plan, not the work.Scrum optimizes learning, coordination, and decision-making.
That distinction matters when supply chains shift, conditions change, and people—not spreadsheets—do the work.
Scrum Works Where Complexity Lives
If your work includes:
* Cross-functional teams
* Changing constraints
* Long feedback loops
* High cost of rework
* Human judgment
Then Scrum isn’t a stretch.
It’s a better fit.
This conversation isn’t about “doing Agile” or rolling out another framework.It’s about rediscovering why Scrum exists in the first place.
And it’s about reclaiming better ways of working—far beyond software.
If this challenged your assumptions, I’d love to hear your take.
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