Imagine a ship sailing in a vast ocean of unpredictable waves and constantly shifting storms.
What would you, as a captain of the ship, do?
Would you take the carved path you were taught to take or adapt to the changing conditions?
Your answer to the above question determines your leadership style. If you are an agile captain of the ship, you will steer the vessel toward the destination while co instantly adapting to the changing weather conditions, work hand in hand with the crew, make quick but informed decisions, and adjust course to meet goals.
There’s a difference between a boss and a leader. A boss strictly adheres to what they have in mind and follows the plan to the T without considering the team’s opinions.
A leader, on the other hand, has an opinion or a plan to follow. However, they will be open to listening and trying to understand the views others have on the team. A leader will then decide after collecting all the viewpoints and perspectives.
An agile leader needs to be nimble and responsive, flexible and resilient in the face of uncertainty.
If you wish to be not just a good leader but an agile one, read on and find how you can be one!!
We will also cover the fundamental characteristics of an agile leader and how you can implement agile leadership to get the most out of your teams and strive toward success!
What Is Agile Leadership?
Agile Leadership Definition:
Agile leadership is a leadership style that emphasizes on flexibility, collaboration, and adaptability. Commonly associated with agile methodology and originating in software development, agile leaders experiment with new ideas, encourage teams to work together, and adapt to changing circumstances.
Agile Leadership Principles
The White Paper by Agile Business Consortium in 2017 mentioned nine agile leadership principles. Let’s discuss them in detail ahead.
Be the Change You Want To See
People pick up characteristics from others when they see you doing the action you mentioned earlier in the meeting.
As an agile leader, when you lead by example, your colleagues are more likely to follow in those footsteps.
Work on yourself before asking everyone else to change.
Viewing Problems From Different Angles
Agile leadership is all about valuing high-quality thinking to reach meaningful action. Agile leaders give priority to viewing problems from different angles. They also consult members closest to the problem and do not rely only on the numbers to make an informed decision.
Feedback Is Key
Feedback helps organizations improve significantly, and agile leaders are well aware of that. They stand by the line of giving open, honest, and respectful feedback. Agile leaders take meaningful and timely feedback and don’t forget to close the feedback loop by responding to their colleagues.
Understanding the Meaning and Purpose of Your Employees
Having a common goal and purpose will lead your employees to work better. Agile leaders try to understand what their employees think about and bring those goals together with action.
Emotions- Atlas of the Heart
Agile leaders work with their colleagues to bring everyone’s best selves to the table. They know very well that people work better when emotions are in sync. It is because emotions are an essential part of the human experience.
Sowing the Seeds of Agile Leadership Today
Agile leaders see how their leadership style will spread across the organization by learning, adapting, and leading. Agile leaders must realize their colleagues’ leadership potential and mentor them to keep the chain of agile culture further thriving.
Keeping the Spirits High
The power of people’s work comes to the forefront only when they are enabled, engaged, and energized with what they do daily.
Foundation of Community
Agile leadership has its foundation in working together by trusting individuals, respecting them, and giving them space to grow.
Creating a healthy work environment is pivotal to the work that results from it. Agile leadership is all about creating safe environments while balancing performance and output for the betterment of the organization.
Ideas Pop up Anywhere
Agile leaders are open to listening to and collecting ideas about how to solve a problem coming from colleagues closest to the problem.
Even if they may not consider an idea coming from other colleagues, they’ll still encourage the flow of creativity by letting people know which ideas were helpful and which did not make it to the end.
Key Characteristics of Agile Leaders
- Understanding the Agile principles
- Flexibility and adaptability
- Collaborative and team-oriented
- Customer-focused
- Innovative and open to experimentatio
- Results-oriented and accountable
- Mentoring team members
- Becoming comfortable with uncertainty
- Responding to change
- Continuous learner
- Servant leaders put the needs of the team and organization first.
Benefits of Agile Leadership
Business ability is essential in a work culture that is constantly evolving. When external factors are not in our control, agile leaders borrow from agile methodology, pivoting quickly.
Some of the benefits of agile leadership are as follows:
- Having an agile leader will develop self-organization, and organizational best practices will be implemented.
- Teams can solve issues without having to rely on leaders all the time.
- An organization that follows agile practices is more creative, value-driven, and empowers its employees.
- Agile leadership plants the seeds of collaboration and support between team members.
- Teams can better face problems head-on with better communication, time management, and quick response.
- Every team member feels a part of the team because they are allowed to be more involved.
- All the team members can become eventual agile leaders because they are open to voicing their opinions and sharing insights and ideas.
- Agile leadership leads the way to accept and adapt to change by overcoming obstacles as a team.
Common Challenges in Agile Leadership
Resistance To Change
Only some people are comfortable with change and growing out of their comfort zone. However, agile leadership requires adapting to change, which can be a feat for some team members and leaders.
Lack of Alignment
With agile projects come various teams and departments. Keeping everyone in the team aligned can be a challenge.
Overcoming Silos
Most organizations have a structure and functional departments. Agile leadership emphasizes on collaboration and breaking down silos. This can be a task for such organizations with structures already in place.
Balancing Flexibility and Structure
When you are an agile leader, finding the right balance between flexibility and structure is necessary. Some leaders find it challenging to be both.
Managing Stakeholder Expectations
It can be challenging to be an agile leader when your stakeholder expectations have projects that don’t require frequent changes and iterations.
Scaling Agile
When you decide to scale agile leadership to larger teams, it will require buy-in from all levels of the organization. It may involve significant changes to existing processes and structures.
Case Studies of Successful Agile Leaders
Jeff Sutherland, Scrum
Jeff is one of the co-creators of Scrum and is often referred to as the “father of Scrum.” He is a veteran of the software industry and has led numerous successful agile teams over the years.
Jeff has written several books on agile, including “Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time.”
Satya Nadella, Microsoft
Nadella has led a major cultural transformation at Microsoft by embracing Agile principles and empowering his team to take risks and experiment.
This has resulted in a more innovative and customer-focused company. They have also regained their position as a leader in the tech industry.
Jeff Bezos, Amazon
Bezos was an early adopter of Agile methodology and was the one to bring Agile practices to Amazon.
By prioritizing customer value, experimentation, and continuous improvement, Amazon has become one of the most successful companies in the world.
Conclusion
Agile leadership is like conducting an orchestra in the middle of a changing melody. Only a skilled conductor can harmonize the different instruments and adjust the tempo as the music evolves.
Just like a conductor must be attuned to the nuances of each musician, an agile leader must be in sync with their team’s needs and strengths.
Together, they can create a symphony of innovation and collaboration that brings their vision to life.
So, let the music of agile leadership begin!