Learning to write Agile success stories
Companies are being challenged by ever faster changes, pressure to innovate and increased demands on development and test management. At the same time, the market is fascinated by Agile SW Development Methodology: in this interview, project management experts Benjamin Badorrek – Cargo Lead, Agile project manager and Annika Pilk – Agile coach, Scrum Master, finance industry integration project manager, both at IKOR, an X1F subsidiary, explain how Agile is supported holistically.
In this article, you will learn:
You are working intensively on the concept of “Agile Readiness.” What is behind it? Fanfare and build-up? Or does the hype now have what it takes to become a full-blown trend?
Benjamin Badorrek: Agility is not just about acting faster. Above all, agility helps organizations to act smarter, with increased flexibility and in a more targeted manner. The current fascination can be explained by the increasing challenges for project management: organizations have to react faster to market changes and pressure to innovate. They develop and test products or increments in the shortest possible time, sampling them with selected customers or key users.
Annika Pilk: When we talk about “Agile Readiness”, we mean the focus on learning, optimizing product development and writing success stories. As an Agile skill, “Agile Readiness” lays the foundation for companies to respond more quickly to customer needs, promote innovation, improve teamwork and increase efficiency. As a trend, it is increasingly making companies aware that agility is not only important in times of change, but that agility, essentially applying Agile Management principles, should also become a core competence.
Project management expert Annika Pilk is a consultant and Scrum Master for finance industry integration projects at IKOR, an X1F subsidiary.
Benjamin Badorrek is responsible for Agile project management as a Cargo Lead.
“Agility requires a change in thinking: away from rigid annual plans and towards an adaptive approach that companies continuously evaluate and adjust.”
Agile companies can respond better to disruptions and implement innovative solutions faster…
Badorrek: Exactly. Those who are “Agile Ready” are strategically, tactically and operationally, highly flexible – organizations should proceed accordingly. Fast, empowered and self-organized companies succeed in actively adapting to change and transformation requirements from within the teams. “Agile Readiness” thus goes far beyond pure software development – as a corporate capability to apply Agile at different levels, way beyond just teams. The ability to adapt quickly to market conditions affects the entire company.
What exactly does that mean?
Pilk: A strategically agile company can quickly adapt its goals and priorities to changing market conditions. Strategic decisions should be flexible enough to meet changing requirements. Above all, however, agility requires a rethink: away from long-term, rigid annual plans and towards an adaptive approach that companies continuously evaluate and adapt.
Badorrek: Beyond implementing projects in Scrum or Kanban, for example, agility in the strategic sense requires a profound cultural change. The entire company, or at least one division, should be organized in an Agile way – for example, according to the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe), Scrum at Scale (SaS) or similar methods. Then new structures and processes are implemented. However, it is also about comprehensively rethinking roles, structures and the company’s mindset. Agility does not include short-term solutions, but above all a strategic vision.
Speaking of mindset: you emphasize that the management level must support this change, live it and even set an example. What about tactics and implementation?
Badorrek: Tactical agility focuses on implementing strategic goals. This includes the ability to quickly adapt processes and workflows. It’s not just about product development. A company should be able to act in an agile manner – that is, flexibly, quickly, focused and learning from mistakes – in all areas.
Pilk: However, it should not be implemented with a sledgehammer. Tactical agility means adapting the methodology individually to your own company. A transformation takes time and patience. Employees must be taken along and actively involved.
This means that companies must set clear rules for how they want to apply the methodology individually in their own company…
Pilk: Correct. This is the only way companies can prepare for such far-reaching transformations instead of leaving them to chance. Implementation must be tightly organized and structured. Take Scrum at Scale, for example. Here, the specifications are clearly defined, but they will rarely be 100% applicable to an existing organizational structure.
Can you explain that in more detail?
Pilk: There will always be employees involved in projects, for example, but also in classic line activities such as monthly billing. This can conflict with sprint cycles. However, it is not possible to have two people working on a sprint for one week in a month. So, you have to adapt the Scrum-at-Scale processes here.
These processes also take into account strategic direction, organizational environment and system support…
Badorrek: Exactly. The organization adjusts the sprint length once a month, for example, or finds other solutions to deal with missing resources. To understand and effectively apply Agile principles and methods, employees need training and ongoing coaching.
What about operational agility?
Pilk: It concerns flexibility at the level of individual tasks and teams – with the aim of promoting collaboration, decentralizing decisions and increasing the organization’s responsiveness. Companies can then react more quickly to customer and market requirements. This enables them to continuously improve products, processes and services. Retros and reviews serve to optimize processes and products. Open and transparent communication between the Agile teams is crucial for implementation.
Badorrek: Some companies, for example, organize themselves into so-called tribes or feature teams. In this constellation, the teams can make their own decisions independently; this makes them faster. This does not mean that this is done without any coordination and that management decisions are no longer needed. Quite the opposite: management has to define the overall strategy and vision so that everyone is working in the same direction and coordinated across the board, hand in hand. This is how a common vision is created.
Success factors: What “Agile Ready” means
- Faster response to change: Agile companies adapt to new market conditions swiftly and seize opportunities faster.
- Increased innovative strength: Those who act more flexibly can implement innovative ideas faster.
- Higher customer satisfaction: Continuous improvements and faster solutions better fulfill customer needs.
- Attract talent: Agile companies are often more attractive to highly qualified employees – especially if this target group wants to work in a dynamic environment.
- Holistic view: Not only individual products, but the entire value chain and all areas of the company must be considered.
Your conclusion: What are the actual benefits of being “Agile Ready” for organizations? And where does the concept reach its limits?
Pilk: Agility is the key to helping companies meet the challenges of an increasingly volatile and digitalized environment, but it’s not a panacea. It is also not suitable for all companies in every context. Whether companies actually benefit from Agile practices depends on careful analysis, targeted training and continuous adaptation – coupled with a sensibly planned introduction.
Badorrek: Thinking strategically, tactically and operationally in terms of agility leads to “Agile Readiness” and thus to greater business success. The introduction of the first Agile projects, teams and areas promises tangible success. Right from the start, companies learn on a small scale how best to adapt their processes. The rule here is: keep changing, trying, learning and adapting. Because it is through progressive adaptation that the expansion of agility succeeds; this is how organizations ensure their “Agile Readiness” as an entire company.
This article was first published on the website of X1F subsidiary IKOR in 2023. It reflects the pleasant and agile culture that IKOR and the entire X1F Group stands for.
