Multi-criteria decision analysis in project development: evidence from an urban air mobility context

This paper investigates the applicability of agile methodology in the urban air mobility (UAM) ecosystem, characterized by Vertical Take-off and Landing (VTOL) vehicles for urban freight logistics and cargo transport, focusing on challenges and opportunities in project management. The research applies the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to compare agile and traditional project management methodologies, assessing multiple decision criteria relevant to UAM development. Findings show that agile is considerably more suitable than the traditional approach. The criterion “achievement of results” had the greatest impact. Agile outperformed traditional methods across most criteria, including adaptability and flexibility, efficiency in resource and personnel use, among others. The analysis is restricted to a comparative evaluation within a specific methodological framework, which may limit generalizability to other contexts in UAM. The results demonstrate the robustness of agile practices in delivering flexibility and responsiveness for UAM development, guiding managers toward adaptive approaches in logistics-driven UAM ecosystems, highlighting the responsiveness view as a relevant theoretical lens for adaptive project management in logistics-driven UAM. This research contributes by applying multi-criteria decision-making techniques to evaluate project management methodologies, providing empirical evidence that agile practices are more effective than traditional methods in supporting the development of urban logistics and supply chain solutions.