Almost everyone and every company is talking about agile working. Often you hear the word “agile” being thrown around, without people even realizing its actual meaning. Fair enough, people love buzzwords — they help make you part of the conversation. However, let’s not jump straight on the bandwagon here! Instead, let’s find out what agile working actually means, and what you and your company can gain from it.

Agile working simplified

If you ask the majority of Management Consultants “When do you use agile working?”, their answer would probably be “Always!”. Yet is this statement true? In order to understand the role of agile working, let’s have a look at one of the most common statements you’ll find out there:

“Agile working gives companies the ability to have a competitive advantage over their competitors through a high degree of adaptability to the environment.”

The statement is absolutely correct, but unfortunately not very tangible. However, let’s touch upon that part in another blog. To put it in simplified terms, agility makes it possible to move successfully in a complex environment.

Complex environment

To know whether or not you’re in a complex environment, we’ll use the simplified representation of the Cynefin framework to help you recognize which method is best suited for you. This framework shows the five domains or environments in which a system (person, team, group, organization, etc.), i.e. you and your company, can move. Ordered areas have a causality, i.e. a clear assignment of cause and effect, this is not possible in the disordered area. Let’s go through the five different areas one by one to understand what each field says:

1. Simple - best practices

If you face challenges in a simple environment, you can easily identify them if there is a clear connection between cause and effect. In this field, there is a clear right answer to the challenge – a best practice. Something that works here will usually work again.

Example: Lego sets or Ikea furniture. Any Billy shelf will be buildable with the instructions, and it will always be a Billy shelf.

2. Complicated - technical & expert knowledge

In a complicated environment, there is also a connection between cause and effect, but it is much more difficult to identify and there are usually many influencing factors and different responses to the challenges.

Example: Cars, computers, or Swiss watches. If you assemble a computer yourself, ideally you work together with an expert, as there are countless possible combinations. A Swiss pocket watch should be built by an expert.

3. Complex - agile working

In a complex environment, cause and effect cannot be clearly identified in advance and can usually be determined afterward. The art in such an environment is to try things out and analyze the outcome in order to move on.

Example: The development/introduction of new technical systems, products, or services. Do you want to innovate or become truly customer-centric? And it is not clear what exactly is required at the end of the goal changes over time? Then you are in a complex environment.

4. Chaotic - just do it

If no causality can be identified, either in advance or afterwards, the only thing left to do is to act and react (“Just do it”). You will probably (hopefully) not often have to deal with such challenges in your everyday business life.

Example: Unpredictable and extraordinary events like the Corona pandemic (chaotic at the beginning, later changing to complex). At the beginning of the pandemic, no one knew exactly what would happen and how the environment would react; each environment could also react differently to the same measure.

5. Disturbance/disorder

The fifth field of the framework lies separately in the middle of the graphic and symbolizes the state of disturbance. Here everything is unclear, neither the challenge can be assigned or there is still a lot of information missing to be able to classify it. You are in an area where you do not know what the challenge is and what environment there is that could react. You will not usually work in this area either.

So, when does agile working make sense? Nowadays, the world has become “VUCA” (more volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous). Most companies will likely find themselves in a complex environment, whether it’s now or in the future. Think of topics like the technological development, digitalization, climate change, etc. Or another example like the famous five-year plan; no one exactly knows what will happen in five years and whether one’s current business model will not have become out-of-date by then.

Focus on values & principles

So, everything is agile after all? The answer is: it depends! In every company, there are always tasks that are either simple or complex, and there are also other more suitable methods. However, the focus of agile working is not on the methods, but on the values and principles. Is the company’s own structure and culture compatible with its agile counterparts? If this is not the case, the methods will not work and will meet with strong resistance.

Also important is the question of whether the team or the employees find the agile values and principles desirable or not. Most of the time, the management or the employees know little or nothing about it and lack the view from the outside to really deal intensively with agile transformations. Getting help from an external Agile Coach is the best way to analyze the company. By doing this, you ensure that agile works and make the mindset behind it tangible for everyone in the company. An agile transformation is primarily a change of attitude, in which the entire company changes culturally and structurally, and not an introduction of tools. Only when all challenges, values, wishes, structures and stakeholders are known, you can then move to the part “Which agile method suits us?

Conclusions

There is almost no market participant who is not in the “VUCA” world. Accordingly, every company should carry out an agile transformation in order to continue to exist and gain speed. Also remember that generation Y and the next generation largely demand self-determined and meaningful work, both of which are fulfilled by agile working. This is why it is crucial that you get the right help from an expert in this area.

An Agile Coach picks you and every single member of your team up from where they are. Bringing the view from the outside and helps you to broaden your horizon with knowledge about agility, the values, and principles as well as the methods. Are you ready to give agile working a try? Our team of experts is always ready to help you!

This blog is written by Dirk Börnert – Agile Coach and IT Consultant at Mediaan.