Agility - Respond to Your Market

You may have heard the term Agile in reference to new philosophies around product development.  Agile methodologies have not only revolutionized the way we make products, but even the way in which we think about doing it.  These basic principles can be applied to any industry universally.  The reason for this is simple - the principles focus on people rather than a product.  If you work with people, Agile methods are for you. At its core, Agile helps you pivot.

So what can Agile do for your team?  People who employ Agile experience the following:

  • Higher employee engagement and productivity

    • Engaged employees are "present" in their work.  They have ideas.  They share.  They help.  They love coming to work and are more productive there.  But it's more than that.  They shape the business for the better.

    • We have seen 2x and 3x speed improvements.  

  • Higher quality

    • Delivering fast may be important, but there is no need to cut corners.  Fast at the expense of good isn't the goal.  We want both.

  • Problems identified and remedied quicker

    • Agile quickly exposes the challenges facing your business.  It also helps you remedy them.  Two simple concepts help this happen - increased communication and prioritization.

  • Increased predictability

    • Stable processes result in predictable results including being able to predict deadlines

The goal the Agile principles principles is to to help your team create the most value for your organization.  

There are four basic values that help your team.  

  • Customer Interaction 

    • Bringing in the customer to provide real time feedback and partnership is brings about cheaper and faster results.  To do this, building trust is essential.

  • Finished Product

    • Working is important.  Delivering a finished product is even more important.  Work can be a waste if it doesn’t lead to a value for your customer.

  • People and Interactions

    • Too often, people can get too comfortable with tools and processes such that they lose crucial communication.  We help with methods that help increase communications.

  • Responding to Change

    • Plans are essential for progress.  Responding to change allows for pivoting and responding to unforeseen events.  There is a balance between these planning and responding. Moving too far in each extreme is very expensive.  There are simple rules to help stabilize in the middle to make plans and then respond to change appropriately.

This seems simple, right?  On the surface, it is intuitive.  There is much more to it and the many books that cover the topic can attest to the fact.  The real challenge is not the principles employed but the people that employ them.  We bring the knowledge needed to change your business and apply a wealth of Agile knowledge.