Today agility, business and technology, is a must for any organization to survive in any market. The rate of change is exponentially higher now than what it was ten years ago. Traditional management, development and service providing methodologies are crippling growth and innovation for organizations.
A fully agile organization can provide limitless possibilities. An article in the Harvard Business Review discusses some of the obstacles that can create impediments to achieving goals effectively. They will get the expected results, speed, but unfortunately, it is diminished value as the full benefits of agility are overlooked.
An Agile organization is more than a set of processes and sprints; it is an organism that is in sync and flows. Most focus on the “maturity” of their agile frameworks, which will inherently keep traditional practices in place creating clashes on their agile path. There is a different way to approach agility. It should be viewed as an evolutionary path, not maturity.
Issues experienced
With agile organizations
Research showed that over 80% of companies using agile delivery models would not be considered agile and are therefore not experiencing the full value that an agile organization can provide. Mckinsey research showed that only 4% of organizations studied are enterprise wide following agile paths.
Agile methodologies are becoming used more in a broader area of work outside of software delivery. Service development, Marketing, Support and Sales are seeing the value of having the ability to quickly adapt, mitigate risks sooner, and efficiently get work done for internal or external clients.
Unfortunately the majority of organizations get stuck in a Tactical loop due to dealing with “fire, fights”, which takes time away from the Strategical thinking needed to bring the organization to the next level. A continuous Tactical mindset is stressful and exhausting to everyone involved. That stress and need for a large audience to put out these “fires” impact employee satisfaction which in turn will impact client satisfaction.
What most don’t understand about agility is it discipline heavy. One must be disciplined enough to keep to the path and not fall back on the old ways of doing things.
Jacko Willink, author of Extreme Ownership, says it best: “Discipline is the pathway to freedom.” Keeping on the agile path in leadership and development will create a more evolving, successful and creative environment for all stakeholders.
Here to help
Is an evolving agile environment for you?
- Are you tired of doing things because “it is how we always did it”?
- There is a feeling that there is a better way to do something but don’t know where to start looking?
- Struggling with constant issues that pop out at the last minute that creates undo stress and churn within the organization?
- Have better control of the flow of information with increased transparency, so there are productive conversations.
We will work with you to discover your needs, drive out the right personalized path, and help you achieve agility success.
At Berriault and Associates, we have a wealth of experience and knowledge of proven techniques to deliver agile transformation and coaching solutions specific to our clients. We are working with businesses of all sizes to take advantage of the benefits of an agile environment in solving business problems effectively and efficiently.
Why is an evolving agile environment beneficial to any business?
- Higher employee satisfaction scores can lead to increased customer satisfaction scores. In an agile environment focused on empowerment, improvement and employees first noted in studies show they have a higher employee satisfaction score and can be correlated to a high customer satisfaction score.
- More focused on the Strategic – Leaders will get bogged down into tactical matters and less focused on being strategic. An agile environment with fully functioning and trusted self-managed teams allows for leadership focus on strategy to lead the organization into the future.
- Improved value realization – It is not just about the speed of delivery; it is about enhancing value realization with more deliveries, knowing the customer’s needs and keeping pace with a fast-changing market.
How are these benefits of an evolving agile environment achieved:
- Improved reliability and transparency– Have confidence in the work that is planned and delivered while being aware of progress so quick decisions can be made if needed.
- Improved product market fit – With the improved knowledge of customers and their needs, there will be a better understanding of what needs to be delivered or the service provided to satisfy those needs.
- Improved Risk identification and handling – There will always be risks with any endeavour. An agile environment helps identify them sooner and effectively handle them.
What will get you there to achieve the benefits of an evolving agile environment?
- Assessments– Depending on the situation, an assessment can provide helpful information
- About to start an agile transformation – An assessment will provide a baseline, a starting point of where you are. Show potential risky areas that could cause issues while showing locations that will make the transformation smoother.
- Already completed an agile transformation – Root out hidden agile anti-patterns that create clashes or frustrations. It also provides a pathway to create an evolving environment.
- Focused coaching that is there to help – We follow the coaching code of ethics, and we are here to help you succeed. We are there for you and your teams.
Some examples of tactical thinking could be:
Sudden change in the framework
Sudden change in resources
Reliance on tools over the process
Let’s have a discussion on how we can help:
Transform your organization with agile values
Evolve your current organization’s agile methodologies to the next level
Reduce frustrations in software or service delivery
Empower teams so the organization can be more Strategic.
