One of the techniques that we learn from Scrum.org and apply in every consulting process we do is “ Why Agile?”. This practice is the starting point of our work within an organization and you can also apply it in your day-to-day to be more successful in agile transformation.
But why the answer to “Why Agile?” is that important? Because if you don’t clearly define why you’re looking for Agility for your business; if you don’t establish what the expected benefits of this initiative are, the big chance is that this work will be done only by the method and not by the results.
So when we start an agile transformation process within an organization, we do a series of dynamics and this involves several steps, bringing together several stakeholders to understand the “why agile?”.
At first, there is no consensus, nor much clarity of the reason, and these are one of the dynamics that help us to build this, consolidating and landing…
Five common reasons for those seeking Agility
Among the many answers we hear when we apply this dynamic of “Why Agile?”, in this text, I want to introduce you to the five most common and that can help you to be more successful in the agile transformation. Check out:
“Because the market is doing this, so are other companies and I need to do it.”
The “why it’s fashionable” is one of the answers we hear most when asking why you want to implement Agility in an organization. Maybe that’s not the answer we like to hear the most, but, without judgment, it’s a pretty common reason.
“Because I want to be more agile.”
Okay, but what is being more agile for you? This is another common response, but one in which many people don’t have a clear definition of “being more agile”. To better understand this scenario, we do a coaching process to understand the real reason behind this answer.
Is being more agile to deliver more value? Is it delivering more tasks in less time? Is it to have more productivity? With these feedbacks, it is possible to better define what Agility is for that organization and for that group of leaders. Most people want to be more agile to be more productive and deliver more value.
“Because I want to have better deliveries.”
It is common to hear that teams work too much, work overtime, have a super exhausting routine and some even end up leaving the company. This has a huge impact on deliveries, which could be better and with less suffering. Therefore, they want to implement Agility to have a more fluid routine and deliver more quality.
“With the agility I will be able to better govern teams and projects.”
In many companies, the main reason Agility is being pursued is to have more transparency, more visibility, remove the impediments and be able to help unlock people’s potential and make things flow better.
“I want to mitigate the risks in my area.”
Finally, this is also a very common response… Many leaders want to be more agile to take control of risk. Likewise, they want to have shorter deliveries, they need a clearer definition of the product objective and good interaction between the stakeholders.
These are the main reasons we see in our daily lives why companies seek agile transformation. In short, when you clearly define what it ispoint B, that is, the place where you want to go and what you expect results, it is much easier to trace the path to get there.
“If you are not clear where you want to go, any path will do.”
I hope this technique can help you start your agile transformation process. If you want a little more details about this dynamic, how we do it and how long it takes, or something related, send a message here for us!
Having this answer is very important to help you not only to have a clear purpose when implementing agility in your organization, but to reach another level of productivity and get the maximum benefits from this process, in a much simpler way.
Now, if you want to apply this technique in your area to really know your objective with agile – and thereby shorten the path to transformation, we provide expert advice that will help you successfully make the agile transformation, getting more value with less pain.
