agile managers

MANAGERS IN AGILEANDY BRANDT

CHALLENGES

• BASIC CHALLENGE OF TODAY: INCREASING PACE OF CHANGE (TECHNOLOGY, MARKETS, REGULATIONS ETC.), MEANING MUCH LESS STABLE ENVIRONMENT:

CONSTANT CHANGE• INCREASING COMPLEXITY OF APPLICATIONS AND

SYSTEMS COMPOSED OF THEM, CONSTANT CONNCECTIVITY MEANING CONTANT INTERDEPENDENCE, INCREASINGLY ABSTRACT PROGRAMING LANGUAGES:

INCREASING COMPLEXITY

WHAT IS SUCCESS?• IN LIGHT OF CONSTANT CHANGE AND INCREASING COMPLEXITY PLANS

ARE ONLY TEMPORARY FORECASTS – COMPLETING SOMETHING AS PLANNED IS NOT A SUCCESS.

• SUCCESS IS A STATE IN WHICH SYSTEM/ APPLICATION/

PRODUCT/ORGANIZATION/TEAM ADEQUATELY RESPONDS TO THE NEEDS OF THEIR ENVIRONMENT.

• MAINTAINING THIS STATE OVER TIME IS MUCH MORE DIFFICULT THAN ATTAINING IT ONCE - IT REQUIRES CONSTANT INSPECTION OF BOTH THE EXTERNAL CONDITIONS AND THE ORGANIZATIONS’ STATE THEN INTRODUCING CHANGES AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.

• TRADITIONAL METHODS AND STRUCUTRES ARE NOT ADEQUATE, BECAUSE THEY DON’T HARNESS THE FULL BRAINPOWER OF TEAM(S)

MENTAL SHIFT• OLD PARADIGM: MANAGER TELLS PEOPLE WHAT TO DO

(„POINT-AND-TELL MANAGEMENT”) AND HOW TO DO IT

• NEW PARADIGM: MANAGER INDICATES GENERAL DIRECTION & CREATES CONDITIONS FOR SELF-ORGANIZING TEAMS TO EMERGE AND WORK

• IT IS STILL A LOT OF WORK, BUT THIS WORK IS PEOPLE-ORIENTED (AS OPPOSED TO BEING CONCENTRATED ON PLANS, PROCESSES AND PRODUCTS)

SELF ORGANIZATION MYTH

SELF ORGANIZATION REALITY

GoalPrinciples Pres

sure

SELF ORGANIZATION REALITY

BacklogScrum

rules

Tim

eboxInspect &

Adapt

SELF ORGANIZATION & ENVIRONMENT

Inspect & Adapt

ENVIRONMENT FOR AGILE• ORGNIZATION’S CULTURE – AGILE NEEDS A CULTURE OF

OPENNESS AND TRUST. CULTURE OF INFORMATION RATIONING (COMPARTMENATLIZATION) AND DISTRUST IS INHERENTLY INCOMPATIBLE WITH IT. IT ALSO NEEDS A CULTURE THAT VALUES CRAFTSMANSHIP – „ART MUST NOT SUFFER” – AND ALLOWS PEOPLE TO ERR.

• PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT – SUPPORTS AGILITY IF IT IS TEAM-CENTERED, HELPING TEAMS WORK TOGETHER AND COLLABORATE, SUPPORTING VISUALIZATION

• VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENT – ENGINEERING TOOLING NEEDED – CI SYSTEMS/SERVERS, TEST/STAGING SYSTEMS, CODE REPOSTIORIES, ETC.

MANAGER’S ROLE• CREATES AND SUSTAINS A WORK ENVIRONMENT THAT IS

ROOTED IN TRUST AND TRANSPARENCY

• CARES FOR TEAM CULTURE – MANY FACTORS SHAPE IT, BUT LEADER’S EXAMPLE & INFLUENCE IS SIGNIFFICANT

• „TEAM GROOMING” – SELF-ORGANIZING TEAM DON’T CLASSING „POINT-AND-TELL” MANAGEMENT, BUT THEY NEED GENERAL OVERSIGHT AND OCCASIONAL INTERVENTION

• REMOVING IMPEDIMENTS AND DYSFUNCTIONS – MANAGER MUST STEP IN AND HELP WHERE TEAMS CAN’T RESOLVE PROBLEMS

• MENTORING – ONE OF KEY ASPECTS OF A MANAGER’S ROLE, TAKING CARE OF PEOPLE’S DEVELOPMENT, SHARING EXPERIENCE, ASSISTING IN LEARNING

MANAGEMENT

THEN

•TELLS PEOPLE WHAT TO DO (TASKS)

•MEASURES PROGRESS

•ASSESSES INDIVIDUALS

NOW

•MOTIVATES THROUGH CHALLENGE

•SUSTAINS SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT

•ENSURES RIGHT PEOPLE ARE IN

THANK YOU!