Design your own path to agile at scale

A few weeks ago we talked about the impact of consciously picking a narrative to guide your scaled agile transformation.

In this post, we’ll discuss the next step of the journey. Specifically, how the narrative you choose can impact how your transformation unfolds. We’ll also cover a range of transition approaches so you can find one that best fits your situation, including your resources and obstacles.

 

Are we there yet? What agile at scale looks like

Embarking on a large-scale transformation is like going on a trek. We need to find our way from where we currently are to where we’d like to be.

You know your current state best. But where are you trying to end up? What does agile at scale look like?

Regardless of which scaled agile model you end up using, whether it’s a standard framework or a custom design, the goal is to end up with an organization that performs well in these nine areas:

 

 

• “Empowered teams” represents all of the benefits of agile teams. Teams that are self-organizing, cross-functional, and empowered to take action locally.
• “Enterprise visibility” means that everyone has the information they need to make decisions in their role.
• “Strong networks” include knowledge sharing and social bonds both within a team and across teams.
• “Rapid flow of value” means delivering value quickly as both a team and an enterprise.
• “Collaboration for complex initiatives” means a group of teams is able to achieve something greater than what teams could do by themselves.
• “Iterative learning & experimentation” means that your organization is constantly exploring and incorporating new findings.
• “Motivated employees & happy stakeholders” are two markers of your business’s impact on the people involved.
• “Effective & efficient use of resources” means reducing waste but also making sure that the time, money, and energy you invest result in impact.
• “A resilient organization” can react and adapt to both positive and negative changes quickly.

 

Exploring potential paths

There are many ways to complete the journey to a scaled agile organization.

You can follow a transition roadmap that others used or recommend. You can plot your own. Or you can apply a mix of both. Like hiking, you could follow a trail for a while and use your “wilderness” skills to get back on track if you need to swerve around an obstacle or leverage an opportunity.

One way to close the gap is by breaking down the journey into three steps. In the first step, “tell the story,” you pick a narrative for framing the transformation, which we discussed previously.

Then in the second step, you select a phased approach that best fits your situation within that narrative.

Finally, you consider how your chosen narrative will influence the remaining work.

The rest of this post will focus on step two. We’ll talk about seven potential paths you can follow. Four that fit a process-based narrative and three for a mission-based narrative.

Clarifying some terms

When we discuss the paths, you’ll see references to three different levels. Consider how these three levels map to your organization. You may need more if you work in a larger organization, so adjust your final approach as needed.

 

Plot the path- Pick a phased approach

Here are seven potential paths you could take to go from where you are to a scaled agile organization:

 

Reference this quick guide to find the one that will best match your organization and situation:

Jump to the details of each path:

• • Start small and build your coalition
  • Get buy-in from the top
  • Start in the middle
  • Build toward the center
  • Organize agile teams around a problem
  • Pick a mission and extend from there
  • Review your enterprise design to inform your agile approach

 

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Start small and build your coalition

What to do

1. Existing agile teams coordinate with other teams and help them shift to agile when they see the benefits.
2. Align demos and releases. Add shared services, release planning, and scrum of scrums.
3. Connect program work to enterprise goals and investments. Move to an agile enterprise portfolio.

 

Choose this path if you’re hearing

“We can accomplish a lot as an agile team, but we could accomplish more with some outside support.”
– Agile team leaders

Great when

• You personally don’t have a lot of influence.
• Projects don’t involve a lot of dependencies between teams.

Not great when

Important changes require coordination between many teams.

 

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Get buy-in from the top

What to do

1. Secure buy-in from organizational leaders.
2. Work from there with mobilizers to outline the agile teams, programs, and portfolio.
3. Launch the teams. Continuously expand and improve.

 

Choose this path if you’re hearing

“We’re going to be an agile organization and we’re willing to support whatever is required.”
– Enterprise leaders

Great when

You have influential leaders who want to go all in with a scaled agile transformation.

Not great when

Enterprise leaders are hesitant to change their own actions.

 

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Start in the middle

What to do

1. As a program, support the launch of agile teams with training, shared services, product management, and program-wide activities.
2. After showcasing success, add more teams. Work with the enterprise to build an agile enterprise portfolio that supports the teams.

 

Choose this path if you’re hearing

“As a program, we want to scale agile to improve our outcomes as a group.”
– Program & team leaders

Great when

• Teams are dependent on each other.
• Teams could benefit from shared services.
• You don’t have complete higher-level support yet.

Not great when

• There aren’t a lot of dependencies between teams.
• Teams have different release types and cadences. Ex. Internal technology and marketing projects.

 

 

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Build toward the center

What to do

1. Set up a basic program to support training, coordination, and release activities. Launch multiple agile teams.
2. Create an agile portfolio to handle large investments outside of the budget or scope of a team.
3. Build out program capabilities to support the Product Owners with a Product Management function.

 

Choose this path if you’re hearing

“Each team can hit the ground running right now, but we have some big goals on the horizon we’ll need to prepare for.”
– All leaders

Great when

The work that teams are completing is being bombarded by outside forces.

Not great when

The work teams are completing require sorting out a lot of dependencies. In that case, fold in Product Management sooner.

 

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Organize agile teams around a problem

What to do

1. Identify a problem or objective that requires multiple teams to resolve. Either one team takes the lead or set up program activities.
2. Link that problem to a strategic goal or portfolio initiative to encourage higher-level buy-in.
3. Expand from there into other problems and teams.

 

Choose this path if you’re hearing

“Why are customer complaints so frequent in this part of our business?”
– Any leader

Great when

• There’s motivation to solve a problem and people recognize that coordination is a sore spot.
• If you don’t have a lot of higher-level support.

Not great when

You’re working on a problem that requires enterprise-wide visibility and support to solve.

 

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Pick a mission and extend from there

What to do

1. Select a mission within your business and set up the agile teams, program, and portfolio activities to support it.
2. Expand from there into other missions.

 

Choose this path if you’re hearing

“How might we transform the customer experience with this offering?”
– Any leader

Great when

There’s motivation to solve a larger problem and openness to try a new approach.

Not great when

You have a lot of interconnected goals, processes, and systems.

 

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Review your enterprise design to inform your agile approach

What to do

1. Consider where you are and where you might want to go as an organization. Your business model, value streams, the market, and multiple time horizons.
2. Outline where teams, programs, and the portfolio roles could fit in.
3. Set up the teams and connection points.

 

Choose this path if you’re hearing

“How might we design an enterprise that solves problems now and a century from now?”
– Enterprise leaders

Great when

• You can work with people with high-level knowledge to design and execute the approach.
• If you’re tackling an enterprise-wide transformation.

 

Not great when

• There isn’t a business/enterprise architecture function or role willing to support you.
• If stakeholders aren’t bought into the value of changing how they operate.

 

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Like following a trail map, these paths can help you identify an approach that will be a better fit for your current resources and obstacles.

Which approach do you think would be effective in your organization?

Looking for more support and guidance? Recharted Territory has a track record of helping companies develop their own scaled agile practices, even if they’ve tried in the past and ran into roadblocks. Check out our services and book a complimentary session to discuss your situation.