Revolution or Evolution?
If your executive committee has a " Top Down "Agile Transformation treated as a "project" using a deterministic approach". Big Bang ", a great planning " upfront "If you think your organization will magically transform itself into an agile butterfly, don't!
From the employees' perspective, the capital 'T' in the word 'Transformation' could be seen as an obligation imposed on them to change and the capital 'A' in the word 'Agile' is the 'how' they will have to change... Fear and resistance in sight...!
The article SUCCESSFUL AGILE TRANSFORMATIONS: 5 KEY ELEMENTS TO CONSIDER was a good starting point for preparing Leaders and sharpening their leadership skills when considering an agile transformation. Above all, it's important to have a case (Business Case for Change) for such a organizational change (The Why?) and consider the human aspect.
Here, we'll look at how agile transformation should be approached so that it can be adapted (" fit for purpose ") to your organization's goals and objectives and not ... "doing what everyone else is doing" ...!
On the road to success
- The right alignment with corporate strategy - Agility is not the necessary transformation, agility fuels transformation.
- The right frame of mind - right thinking
- Focus on efficiency and effectiveness
- Creating the freedom to experiment
- The right rhythm at the right size
- Ensuring communication and collaboration
- The right tools
Agility, Lean, DevOps... not an end but a means
Choose to focus on the results your organization wants to achieve, start your journey with the "Why your organization should change its culture towards agility.
Is the organization's Culture & Values and Leadership really ready for Agility?
Have you taken the time to assess your organization's Culture? If the answer is Yes, where does it stand in the matrix below?
Ref. Schneider culture model https://medium.com/@dubinskysoares/whats-your-organization-s-culture-40d751d9caaa
Start small to achieve great things
Start small to achieve big things with small, isolated experimental pilots (small increments).
This will enable you to limit your risks and the impact of these risks, and to learn & adapt quickly after learning.
By opting for small, sustained increments, you'll reduce the length of the "S-curve" of depression (or "valley of despair"). Don't take your foot off the gas!
Source : Want to scale agile? Don't. Descale the work first. Achieve big through small.
Optimization of "Ways of Working
Rather than a deterministic "Big Bang" approach, why not optimize your "Big Bang"? Ways of Working "starting with the help of a field team of up to nine people who are " willing "?
There are probably a few experienced individuals who are already agile enough to get involved and move forward.
Once the blockers (often organizational) have been removed and the experiment is conclusive, repeat with a 2e, 3e team, " and so on "...
Optimize your " Ways of Working "This is achieved by constantly evolving them in a guided way according to context-environment, complexity (problem-solving/decision-making domains) vs. the rapid delivery of value and in a safe way.
Above all, don't fall into the trap of disguising your ancient traditional practices by Poussant Carrément agile ceremonies ... please nooo!
Instead of "robotizing-mechanizing" agility, like doing "Water-Scrum-Fall", let the teams do it themselves, using job coaching..!
Your teams are much quicker to experiment, as they are often either: "Innovators" or "Forerunners" or "Pragmatists". T
and Leadership, on the other hand, tends to be on the other side of the "Innovation Chasm", i.e. the "Late Majority" and/or worse... the "Latecomers", who are probably still in a "Taylorist" management model from the 19th century.e cycle, or if the opportunity is there in the digital age of the 20e century... LoL!
Take a look at my article LEAN AGILE THINKINGDiscover 7 fundamental factors that will optimize your organization's performance, making it more competitive and successful in the digital age and Industry 4.0.
Plus the Transformation is great, Plus Grande the curve of change... what about the "pain"...!
The Change is registered as pain in the brain... human beings are programmed with habits.
In a context of change, expectations determine reality, and the delta between expectations vs. reality determines the order of magnitude between pain and stress. Like mourning, change is a process...
Bigger is the changethe deeper the plunge for longer...
The depth of the depression and the speed at which a company plunges into this stage depends on the size of the organization's "Bang" that started its Transformation.
The Kübler-Ross or "Five Stages of Grief" model is one of many used in change management, such as in agile transformation. To find out more on the subject, please consult the following web page Kübler-Ross Change Curve
Source : https://www.cleverism.com/understanding-kubler-ross-change-curve/
The "Depression" stage (or "Valley of Despair") is the lowest point on the change curve. This is where teams give up if they don't have the support and/or coaching they need.
To find out what a professional coach can do for you, read this article: UNLEASH YOUR TRUE POTENTIAL WITH PROFESSIONAL COACHING
In the "Depression" (or "Valley of Despair") stage, employees know that change is inevitable and that it will affect them.
People feel vulnerable when they have to unlearn and relearn to rebuild their mastery.
Humans have a low velocity to unlearn and relearn, watch the video below...!
In conclusion
A professional agility coach from England, who recently crossed my path, shared with me a book on Lean-Agile containing a lot of " Been There "(Empiricism), which I loved and on which I based this article. A professional business agility coach, also from England with several transformations to his credit, opened my eyes to the "bigger picture "from transformation to agility
The purpose of my article is really to help your organization if you it is in a process of reflection towards an agile transformation and avoid the pitfalls, a long and deep Depression (or "Valley of Despair") as well as waste in many ways... Leaders, follow this author: Jonathan Smart, you'll thank me later...! 😊
Éric Auger
is a professional IT consultant specializing in Lean-Agile management. His qualifications include Lean Six Sigma Green Belt, Kanban Management Professional, Project Management Professional, SAFe Agilist and Professional Agile Coach. He is a change agent.
It helps teams and organizations that really want to compete and thrive in the digital age - organizations that are open to change and ready to adapt to respond quickly to market changes and emerging opportunities.
