What it really takes to be successful with Agile
Years ago, I read an article that described Jerry Seinfeld presenting to a leadership conference packed with senior leaders keen to hear the secret of his success. He bounded up the steps to the podium and wrote three words on the whiteboard:
Do the Work
And that was it.
I wasn’t there, so I’m not sure if that’s exactly how it went down. But moving past the need to wonder about how the remainder of the keynote timeslot was used (“anyone know any jokes?”), it’s a powerful message. Agile is a mindset, underpinned by values and behaviours that when done well, can have a tremendous impact. That impact can be diluted when we over-complicate it. We think we’re being clever by engaging in long conversations online (and hopefully face to face) about what the best thing is to do when we just need to do the work.
What does doing the work look like?
It looks like doing something. Anything.
Visualise your work, even if you’re still working in a traditional way with siloed teams, waterfall project plans and hierarchical governance committees. Getting that work onto some post-it notes starts a conversation and leads to collaboration and discussion about how things could be improved.
Have shorter meetings more often. A leadership team I coached recently changed from a weekly meeting to a daily stand up. The driver was the difficulty in finding an hour when they were all free. They could always find 15 minutes. Not in the office? That’s okay, use Zoom, dial-in, nominate a buddy to update the visual board on your behalf.
Pause occasionally and ask: “Is this the best way to approach this?” or “how are we doing? Can we improve the way we’re working together?” The simple act of asking this question, even if it’s not part of an Agile ceremony, can make a huge difference.
Be okay to try. I know Yoda says “there is no try, only do”, but he wasn’t talking about innovation and Agile ways of working. Having said that, Yoda would make an awesome (if not sometimes confusing) Agile Coach. Opening up to the possibility of something not working can be scary if you’re only used to playing in a space you know you can win. The risk is greater, but it’s the only way we can grow.
And then keep going — even when it’s hard
I’m sure if Seinfeld had more time (and whiteboard space), he would have added: “Even when it’s hard”. Doing the work can feel effortless at times. Collaborating with people you admire and trust, smashing out work with people you love being around, solving problems with your favourite problem-solving buddies. But it isn’t always easy. Sometimes we need to collaborate with people who are hard to work with — it feels like walking through treacle and no one is on the same page. But they are the times when it’s even more important to do the work. Daily stand-ups are a joy when everyone is excited about the work and you’re knocking it out of the park. They’re not so joyful when there’s confusion, disruption and despair. But they are the times when it’s most important to turn up. Retrospectives feel easy when everyone is in flow and happy to share their perspective. It’s the times when the flow is not there that we need to be there the most.
And then keep going.
Success with Agile depends on consistency. It acknowledges that our world is fast-paced and changing, so it offers a simple framework to consistently apply day after day. Many of us love drama and change, so we move away from that consistency, choosing instead to skip the stand-up or put the retrospective off for another sprint as “everyone knows what’s happening anyway”. Thereby creating more drama and uncertainty. Whatever the motivation, we’re choosing not to do the work. If you’re hiding in a meeting room with a spreadsheet that needs to endlessly scroll, it’s not because “it’s better this way”. It’s because you’re choosing not to do the work. Toyota claims its success is down to discipline. When things haven’t worked, it’s because the discipline wasn’t there.
There is no magic shortcut to Agile success. There is no ‘secret’, but if I only had a short amount of time to share what it takes to succeed with Agile, I would take a leaf out of Seinfield’s book and say: “Do the work”. And then keep doing it. Even when it’s hard. ESPECIALLY when it’s hard.
Oh, and “You’ve got this!”
