• Agile Transformation

Agile working: why you think you’re in a race car, but you’re only doing 50 mph

Agile working promises speed and agility. Many organizations therefore switch to Agile with the expectation of flying through projects like a race car. But what if, after switching to Agile, you feel like you’re barely doing 50 kilometers per hour? That everything goes syrupy like you’re stuck in first gear. Instead of that expected speed and smoothness. Why is that? And more importantly, what can you do to harness the power of Agile working?

1. The fallacy of speed: more than just faster delivery

One of the biggest misconceptions about Agile is that it is simply about delivering faster. And while Agile is indeed focused on increasing throughput, it is primarily about delivering value to the customer quickly. If you find that your team is barely making progress, it may be that the focus is too much on speed and not enough on adding value. Agile is not just about driving faster; it is also about finding the shortest and most valuable route to the destination.

2. Processes that inhibit: are you really Agile?

Recognize this feeling: you want to drive off in the car, but it’s still on the handbrake. This can happen when teams are named Agile, but are still stuck in old habits and hierarchies that limit speed. This phenomenon, known as “Agile in name only,” occurs when you adopt Agile methods but do not fully adapt the processes. To achieve true speed, organizations must not only embrace ceremonies such as stand-ups and sprints, but also overhaul the underlying culture and processes.

3. Lack of autonomy: is your team inhibited?

Agile teams are meant to be autonomous, with the freedom to make decisions and respond quickly to change. However, if teams are constantly waiting for approvals from higher up or depending on other departments, their speed is limited. This is like being in a fast race car but constantly having to stop at red lights. Giving teams more autonomy and decentralizing decision-making increases their speed and agility.

4. Insufficient focus and prioritization: are you racing in the right direction?

Even the fastest car doesn’t win if it doesn’t follow the right route. Agile teams lose speed if they try to do too many projects at once or if they don’t have clear priorities. Without focus, energy is spread across a variety of initiatives, leading to little progress on each individual project. It is crucial to set clear priorities and ensure that teams focus on the tasks that deliver the most value. Here, working with quarterly goals and schedules helps considerably.

5. Technical debt: beware of sand in the engine

Technical debt is a common culprit that slows down Agile teams. These are the small, often invisible, problems that creep in and grow larger over time, hindering the speed of development. If teams have to continuously deal with, for example, bad code, inefficient processes or technical constraints, they never reach their full speed. First of all, ensure quality work, be transparent about goat trails that may break you down sooner or later, and schedule occasional space to clear debris so that you keep your team’s velocity high.

6. Insufficient team dynamics: are you really working together?

An Agile team works like a well-oiled machine, with each team member playing a crucial role. But if there is poor communication, unclear roles or a lack of trust within the team, this can greatly reduce speed. This is like being in a race car whose parts are mismatched. Investing in team cohesion, clear communication and a culture that is psychologically safe can make the team work as one and increase speed.

7. Avoiding micromanagement: hand over the wheel

Nothing slows down an Agile team more than micromanagement. Agile works best when teams are in control and free to make decisions. However, when leaders want to maintain too much control, they create a bottleneck that reduces team velocity. By coaching leaders to let go and trust their teams, teams achieve their maximum speed.

Racing down the highway of value creation

If you feel that your Agile transformation is not delivering the expected speed, it’s time to look under the hood. Speed in Agile working is not just about working harder or delivering more functionality, but primarily about delivering value quickly in an effective and efficient way. By focusing on autonomy, technical excellence, team dynamics, and setting up your organization Agile, you transform your team from a vehicle stuck in a traffic jam to a race car that smoothly whizzes down the highway of value creation.

Release the handbrake, sharpen the focus, and unlock the true power of Agile working. With the right approach, your team can not only go faster, but drive smarter, right on target, at a pace that makes a real difference.

Do you see obstacles on your route for the foreseeable future? Give me a call or shoot in for an appointment. I’m curious about your current Agile challenge.