Rising to the Agility Challenge
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The document discusses the importance of achieving agility within organizations, emphasizing the need for aligned autonomy while balancing managerial and cultural constraints. Key themes include overcoming organizational debt, addressing gaps that create friction, and fostering leadership at all levels through commitment, confidence, communication, and curiosity. It advocates for a strategic approach to agility that encourages initiative, collaboration, and responsiveness to external and internal changes.
Rising to the Agility Challenge
- 1. Rising to the Agility Challenge Agile on the Beach 2016 Dragan Jojic part of BeLiminal network Dragan@Capagility.com Dragan@BeLiminal.com @DrJojic
- 2. 2 “Build your organization into an engine of possibility“ Dave Gray, “Experimentation Is The New Planning” (FastCompany.com, 2012)
- 3. 3 Where did this talk come from? • My article published in InfoQ in February 2016 • That often referenced Swedish streaming service • Following a link from a tweet to a blog to a book • A chance meeting with a popular public speaker at an event many years ago
- 4. 4 Balancing alignment with autonomy Spotify: “Loosely coupled, tightly aligned” Autonomy (what to do & how) Alignment (what to achieve & why)
- 6. 6 The Agility Challenge Everybody in the ‘agile enterprise’: • Knows what they need to achieve and why • Can decide by themselves how best to do it • Genuinely cares that it gets done Source: htpps://www.infoq.com/articles/agility-challenge (InfoQ, February 2016)
- 7. 7 Organisational debt* Customer needs & market realities Organisation’s strategy & its delivery capability * Source: steveblank.com/2015/05/19/organizational-debt-is-like-technical-debt-but-worse/
- 8. 8 What else holds us back? “...structural inertia, with layers and layers of management, and cultural inertia, which is the ‘this is how things are done here’ attitude” Prof. Costas Andriopoulos, Cass Business School Source: “Wake up call to big business as tech-savvy newbies set the pace” (The Times, 8 September 2015)
- 9. 9 If the rate of change on the outside exceeds the rate of change on the inside, the end is near Jack Welch
- 10. 10 Three gaps that cause ‘friction’ Knowledge gapEffects gap Alignment gap Actions Outcome s Plans Source: Stephen Bungay, “The Art of Action” (2010)
- 11. 11 Actions Usual approach: more detail & control Outcome s Knowledge gap more detailed info Effects gap more detailed controls Alignment gap more detailed instructions Plans Source: Stephen Bungay, “The Art of Action” (2010)
- 12. 12 Actions ‘Directed opportunism’ Outcome s Knowledge gap limit direction to defining intent Effects gap give freedom to adjust actions in line with intent Alignment gap communicate intent & allow ‘each level’ to define how they will achieve it Plans Source: Stephen Bungay, “The Art of Action” (2010)
- 13. 13 Wise words of a public speaker Three Cs of success in life • Commitment • Confidence • Communication Tony Ball MBE
- 14. 14 The Agility Challenge & 3 Cs of success Everybody in the ‘agile enterprise’: • Knows what they need to achieve and why • Can decide by themselves how best to do it • Genuinely cares that it gets done Communication Confidence Commitment
- 15. 15 The Agility Challenge & 4 Cs of success Everybody in the ‘agile enterprise’: • Understands external environment, and organisation’s delivery capability • Knows what they need to achieve and why • Can decide by themselves how best to do it • Genuinely cares that it gets done Curiosity Communication Confidence Commitment
- 16. 16 Actions Three gaps of friction & 4 Cs of success Outcome s CuriosityConfidence Commitment Communication Plans
- 17. 17 “Agile makes organisations work; Leadership makes Agile work” Michael Short & Guy McDonnell
- 18. 18 But what kind of leadership? Leadership at all levels in the organisation In a truly agile enterprise, everybody has the right and responsibility to lead “Leadership is about taking initiative and influencing those around you” John Kotter “…being a leader from the position you are in” David Marquet
- 19. 19 4 Cs of success = 4 Cs of leadership Everybody in the ‘agile enterprise’: • Understands external environment, and own delivery capability • Knows what they need to achieve and why • Can decide by themselves how best to do it • Genuinely cares that it gets done Curiosity Communication Confidence Commitment
- 20. 20 ctions Outcome s Plans Curiosity “In an agile organization the mantra should be ‘Do Less’” Jim Highsmith • Look, listen and learn • Develop strategic options, run experiments & measure impact • Keep everything visible • Convert ‘push’ to ‘pull’: what is possible with the means we have at our disposal?
- 21. 21 Communication Actions Outcome s Plans “Knowing why we’re doing something is the key to making good decisions” Gojko Adzic • Communicate the ‘ends’ • Leave the ‘means’ to those closest to the customer • Identify useful metrics that show we are/aren’t successful
- 22. 22 Actions Outcome s Plans Confidence “It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission” Grace Murray Hopper • Articulate norms / delineate authority • Keep each other honest • Take initiative (OODA loop): – Observe: look for risks & opportunities – Orientate: check alignment, communicate intent, gather input – Decide (hypothesis) & Act (test) • Seek and provide input • Ask for and offer help Sources: John Boyd’s OODA loop; David Marquet, “Turn the Ship Around”; Chris Collison & Geoff Parcell, “Learning to Fly”
- 23. 23 “When you’re surrounded by people who share a passionate purpose, anything is possible” Howard Schultz Commitment • Tell stories (SUCCESs*) • Agree, model and evolve desired behaviours • Recognise contribution • Show respect * Source: Chip Heath & Dan Heath, “Made to Stick” (2008)
- 24. 24 Think big, start small, move fast Thank you!
- 25. Rising to the Agility Challenge Questions / Comments? Dragan@Capagility.com Dragan@BeLiminal.com @DrJojic
Editor's Notes
- #3: “Let’s be honest: you have no idea what’s going to happen to your industry. That’s why you build your organisation into an engine of possibility.”
- #8: Customer needs / market realities: difficult to figure out and changing fast & in an unpredictable way
- #21: Henry Mintzberg: “Deliberate strategy is goal-oriented. It asks: “What do we want to achieve?” Emergent strategy is means-oriented. It asks: “What is possible, with the means we have at our disposal?”
- #22: ‘Ends’ = desired outcomes (what do we want to achieve / can achieve with the means available) and why these are important ‘Means’ = what needs to be done to achieve outcomes and how to do it Useful metrics Support decision making Highlight the need for intervention Encourage desired behaviours
- #23: Brian Robertson of Holacracy One In an agile organisation, everybody has the right and the responsibility to lead
- #24: Howard Schultz is the CEO of Starbucks and the former owner of Seattle SuperSonics Simple Unexpected Concrete Credible Emotional StorieS