Stop Trying to make Agile Happen
How to run an Agile Transformation by focusing on the agile and ignoring the transformation- Part 2 (of 2)
In the last post I discussed why transformation is hard - so hard, in fact, that perhaps we shouldn’t try? Perhaps we should just give up?
Well, not quite. The benefits of a transformation, even a partially successful one, can be tremendous. The secret is in the implementation and approach. Succinctly, we need to take an agile approach to agile transformations. An agile approach has 3 elements to it - driving for incremental improvements, a compelling case for change, and focusing on behaviors, not mindsets.
Incremental Improvement. To start, incremental improvement is critical to continually renewing the organzation’s trust and grit.
A few years ago I spoke with a C-level leader at ING. I was surprised to hear that they considered their transformation to have taken 9 years and to have failed 3 times before they unlocked the right formula for them.
What made that third attempt successful is that they insisted on transformation activities showing benefits every quarter, even at the expense of the “long term vision.” Improvements in one area drove others, and sharing successful tactics could then be applied across teams, portfolios and divisions. The flywheel of transformation spun faster, and ING finally achieved its goals.
Compelling case for change. The other key is a compelling case for change–a big why that illustrates both the criticality of the change and everyone's place in this new world.
Consider Netflix moving from DVDs to streaming. In 2011, the company separated their DVD and streaming services, and saw a huge loss of profit, going from $226m in 2011 to $17M in 2012. It wasn’t until 2014 that Netflix eclipsed that number.
Reed Hastings, CEO, continually drove home that streaming was the future of the company, painting a picture of a future without physical inventory, and with that the ability to serve any entertainment to any customers, anywhere. His vision drove triple digit growth for years and along with their compelling original content, it remains a north star for Netflix today.
Behaviors not mindsets. Finally, focusing on behaviors not mindsets makes the changes measurable, and doing so gives every person something they can control as they move through the changes.
One of the most successful frameworks for driving engineering effeciveness is the DORA framework with its 4 key metrics (Deployment Frequency, Lead Time for Changes, Mean Time to Restore, and Change Failure Rate). These 4 metrics, used in combination, allow an organizaton to effect change by focusing on behaviors that drive those metrics, rather than a “quality” or “devops” mindset.
An IT department I coached adopted DORA as a way to understand how they were improving. The behaviors that could make deployment faster (just ship it) had to be coupled with those that impacted the change failure rate (better testing).
As a result we started seeing more automated testing, staging environments that more closely mirrored production, and the inclusion of customer support and customers in testing. Those behaviors were variously described as “quality”, “customer centric”, and “agile” mindsets by those outside the group. But inside, they were just how we work.
And that is the whole point of a transformation, right? It’s to alter the way we work, to better achieve the goals of the organization. By focusing on behaviors, driving incremental improvements, all towards a compelling case for change, we can sustain the energy, drive, and grit to transform.
After 30 years of building software in orgs from startups to Fortune 100s, in virtually every role, I believe agility is about praxis - the methodological, considered application of theory.