What’s your next level? If Agile doesn’t work…

The manager is always right. I grew up with this belief, which is not surprising since my father and mother have always worked as production workers. The following statements are also familiar to me: ‘There is just hierarchy, work doesn’t have to be fun as long as it brings in money’. In short, it soon became clear to me that things on the shop floor are just the way they are. It was the very beginning of my drive to do things differently, to do things Agile. So how bad is it that I now have to acknowledge that even with Agile we haven’t fully lived up to it?

Don’t be shocked. Estimates of what percentage of your life you work vary, but numbers like 30% of your time during your working life do! ‘Then you better make sure that that 30% is really worthwhile,’ has always been my belief. So that working life is not always fun and worthwhile is something I experienced up close with my parents. During my studies, therefore, I found the evolution of labor mightily interesting. What leads us to today’s systems that do not always bring out the best in people and organizations? How can we change that? To understand history is to be able to shape the future differently.

The work is too complex

Dive with me for a moment into the influential work of Adam Smith (free market and division of labor) and the Industrial Revolution/Taylorism (further division of labor and specialization) and the Digital Revolution (increase in knowledge work and far-reaching automation). Without creating the illusion here that I can summarize the history of labor in two sentences, you can see that division of labor no longer works best to organize labor. Simply because knowledge work requires a different solution. This is because the work is too complex, requires more creativity and interdisciplinary thinking. The context is constantly changing and decision-making needs to be faster. This requires a different way of working and organizing. That is why I started to specialize in other ways of working together. The principles I embrace come mostly from the Agile and Lean philosophy.

‘I have been concerned about Agile developments in business for some time’

When Agile gets watered down

Thus, over the past several decades, I became a firm believer in the power of Agile and Lean. And yet something has changed. I have been concerned about Agile developments in business for some time, because I see that the original principles and values of Agile are often diluted or misapplied. In many organizations, Agile is implemented in a superficial way, focusing on following certain methodologies or processes without fully understanding or embracing the underlying philosophy. This then quickly leads to a situation where the benefits of Agile are not fully realized and where teams get bogged down in a rigid way of working that is at odds with the very flexible nature of Agile. Consequence? The entire way of working is called into question.

Back to the essence

I want to avoid “throwing out the baby with the bathwater” by helping organizations preserve and strengthen the core principles of Agile. I am not advocating starting all over again, but rather returning together first to the essence of Agile. So: fostering collaboration; being able to respond quickly to change and creating value for the customer. By embracing these core principles, you prevent the principles from ending up in a situation where Agile is just a buzzword. By taking the next step from that essence, choosing the next level, companies will soon reap the true benefits of Agile.

Your next level

In short, my concern is that Agile degenerates into a collection of empty rituals with no real impact. I want to help companies avoid this trap by reminding them of the true meaning of Agile and Lean. Basically just a modern way of working together that fits this zeitgeist. Hence, we are launching the new campaign with the title “Your next level? With which we want to inspire you to breathe new life into processes and collaborations that have become stuck. Without starting from scratch, but starting with clear principles that you are already working with. And to further develop them together to your next level.

Recognizable?

So if Agile working has not yet brought you what you expected from it, return to the principles. Chances are you don’t disagree with the principles at all, but perhaps you do disagree with the way they have been translated into practice in your way of working and your organization. Let’s tackle your challenges from the essence of Agile and Lean and finally reach your next level.

Sparring? I’d be happy to join you on the air. You can make an appointment with me through this link.