Pic Credit: PartnersInLeadership and Agile42
“Agile transformation is not just about doing daily Scrum or using a tool like JIRA, it is a cultural change”. How often have we heard this in the last 15 years. And there are only handful of companies that have really succeeded in reaping the benefits of Agile transformation. And those are the ones who are fully committed to the cultural transformation. They are the ones who have understood the importance of overcoming the behaviours based on the conditioned belief system. There are many reasons why it is so tough to make cultural change:
- Not many companies acknowledge this: In most of the organizations, Agile is brought in as an initiative for a year or two. They try with a few teams and believe it is for teams to adopt some practices. They see Agile more as set of practices for the teams rather than a culture for the entire organization.
- Sense of pride in the existing culture: A lot of companies take pride in their existing culture. They believe that is what brought them all the success. However, what they do not understand is what brought them here will not take them there. This may also bring an attitude of maintaining the status quo.
- Do not understand what it takes for a cultural change: Though, some organizations acknowledge that Agile is a cultural change, they do not know how to go about it. A large part of the culture is below the iceberg. It is not part of the rationalistic part of the organization’s functioning but more of the aspects that happen without conscious awareness.
Let us dwell more time on the last point mentioned above. i.e. what does it take to make a cultural change. A good starting point will be to understand the belief system that pervades. This is depicted in the third point in the Results Pyramid that is attached above. The concept of Organizational Ideology (Janice Beyer, 1981) would help us in gaining some understanding of this common belief system that impacts large part of the Organization. It is defined as – “Relatively coherent sets of beliefs that bind some people together and that explain their worlds in terms of cause-and-effect relations”. A large part of this ideology is influenced by the Leadership in the organization. And hence in this article, I am going to compare Ideology of Traditional Leadership to Agile Leadership. I am considering their ideologies in 5 relevant topics for Agile transformation – Agile, Work, Growth, Team, and Customers.
1. Ideology about Agile
| Traditional Leadership Ideology | Agile Leadership Ideology |
| Agile is for the team and not for us | Agile is for everyone across the organization |
| if teams self-manage, we will be jobless | Our jobs will be redefined when teams self- manage |
| Deliveries come first, Agile comes next | Agile is for better deliveries. There is no separation between Agile and deliveries. |
| Agile is an initiative this year, for the next year there would be something else | Agile has been there in the industry for the past 20 years and is the established new way of working |
| We need to do Agile because the Leadership has said so | If I as a team member see value in Agile, I would adopt the same |
| Our work does not suit Agile, it is only for New Product Development | Basic principles of Agility are applicable across wide areas of different industries |
2. Ideology about Work:
| Traditional Leadership Ideology | Agile Leadership Ideology |
| Once we plan something, that need to be followed to perfection | Conditions change all the time, hence the planning as a process should be continuous |
| Design, development and testing is done once in a project, each of these are phases | All of these are continuous processes and would be done in each Iteration for all features |
| Deliver at the end of everything | Deliveries happen frequently at the end of every iteration |
| Work hard during the release schedules | Work happens at a sustainable pace and no special attention is required during the release |
| Need comprehensive documentation | Working software is a better documentation |
| Postmortem at the end of release | Retrospectives happen at the end of every iteration so that there is a chance to implement what we learn |
| Budget and scope are fixed. Time is variable. | Budget and Time are fixed. Scope is variable. |
3. Ideology about Growth:
| Traditional Leadership Ideology | Agile Leadership Ideology |
| I grow and develop only if I do more | I can grow if I help my team grow and develop |
| It is more about PPTs, I need to be more visible | When the working software gets showcased, that is best visible work one can produce |
| My growth is indicated by the number of people reporting to me | My growth depends on how I help my organization maximize the business value |
| I would only be recognized if I make my team-work harder | I would be recognized if I can create an environment where my team thrives and if I empower them |
| What matters is the amount of time that the team member puts in office | What matters is how the team utilizes its time to maximize value for the organizations |
4. Ideology about Team:
| Traditional Leadership Ideology | Agile Leadership Ideology |
| Teams just need to listen to me since I am the Authority | Teams can think. I should not mask the same by using authority |
| We are like the internal customers for the team members | I am only supporting the team so that they do their best |
| I rate the team members and hence they better listen to me | Team members rate me as well. It is a 2-way feedback |
| Team members are resources | Team members are people with emotions, aspirations and energy |
| They need to be managed | They may need coaching |
| Process and Rules are important. Any deviations would be punished | Individuals and interactions are more important. That is what leads to problem solving and innovation |
5. Ideology about Customers:
| Traditional Leadership Ideology | Agile Leadership Ideology |
| Customer is the king and we just need to comply or listen to him | Customer can also be wrong. It is important to challenge his wants and understand his needs |
| We need a sign off from the customer at every stage. He defines the problem and we provide a solution. | Customer is part of the solution and we (IT) are part of the problem definition as well. Our relationship is more about collaboration |
| Any change needs to go through a lot of approvals and the customers may be charged extra | We need to be more welcoming of change. Iterative development allows for the same. |
| They are very tough hence we need to be good negotiators | We need to apprise them of our challenges and software development is a co-creation of IT and Business |
| My Business does not believe in Agile and hence there is no point in IT following the same | Agile is about reducing breaking communication barriers between Business and IT. We need to focus more on that and not on following a methodology |
These ideologies have become part of the organizational culture and would usually be transmitted to the new members through the socialization process. These ideological differences clearly present 2 opposite sides of the spectrum. Hence it provides a guideline on the amount of work that is required to make the shift happen. Understanding these ideological differences and where does an organization stand in this spectrum would be the first step in Leadership Coaching. Once this awareness sets in, then it is about creating new experiences that reinforces these new ideologies as depicted in the Results Pyramid. It requires safe environment to practice new skills and ongoing coaching to ensure that the new habits are sustained.
One Response
Excellent thoughts. Better results would drive adaption of Agility across!!!
Thank you Guru