XPDAY7: Have you compromised your agility?

Well, we did our XPDay session: Have you compromised your agility?

The run-up to the conference was a bit manic because we thought XPDay was a week later than it actually was. Our thanks go to Steve Freeman for spurring us into frantic action. We burnt the week rushing around buying props (coloured table cloths, battery powered candles, lollipops, etc), preparing posters and handouts, and putting together a chilled-out music playlist. We pretty much knew what we wanted to say in the session but it was delivered mostly on a wing and a prayer. Despite me getting over a cold and Gus being hungover, we thought it went reasonably well and we had lots of fun. There must have been around 60 people in the cafe, probably twice the ideal number, but it went smoothly enough. More people arrived, some turned around because we were at capacity on the tables, others stayed and formed a circle on the floor.

We wanted to do the session because we're worried about the state of affairs. We're seeing more organisations trying to be agile but, when you hold them up to the light, the standard is often poor. Agility is being compromised for corporate fit. We want organisations trying to be agile to raise their game. There needs to be both organisational change and cultural change. And we want people to expect better and do more.

We think arguments about dogmatism versus pragmatism, or one approach over another, detract from the real issues:

• Organisations value the wrong things.
• People do not maintain a high-level of craftsmanship.
• Organisations adapt Agile for corporate fit rather than to improve.
• People accept mediocrity to maintain the status quo rather than strive for excellence through continuous improvement.
• Organisations focus on efficiency and don't worry about achieving effectiveness first.
• People are not empowered to do the right thing.

Agility is partly about process and practices, and these are the parts that organisations typically latch onto, but its capability is rooted in the culture established by the values and principles and peoples' behaviour. These are often in conflict with the organisation.

In the session, each table was given a real issue to discuss. A mind-map for each issue provided a 'starter for ten' and was used to spark a debate. The IT industry is perennially failing 'the business' and while there's no silver bullet, agile approaches can, at least, help us make improvements and do better. Our aim was to hopefully raise awareness of declining standards and inspire people to help us raise the bar.

I've included the mind-maps and doodlings. The debates were engaging and pretty intense and consequently it's difficult to distill too much from the doodlings.

1. Misplaced values?

value-mindmap Originally uploaded by sjb140470 value-output-1 Originally uploaded by sjb140470 value-output-2 Originally uploaded by sjb140470 value-output-3 Originally uploaded by sjb140470

2. Adapting for fit?

adaptation-mindmap Originally uploaded by sjb140470 adaptation-output-1 Originally uploaded by sjb140470 adaptation-output-2 Originally uploaded by sjb140470

3. Accepting mediocrity?

excellence-mindmap Originally uploaded by sjb140470 excellence-output Originally uploaded by sjb140470

4. Doing the right thing?

conscience-mindmap Originally uploaded by sjb140470 conscience-output-2 Originally uploaded by sjb140470 conscience-output-1 Originally uploaded by sjb140470

5. Is the process adding value?

process-mindmap Originally uploaded by sjb140470 process-output-1 Originally uploaded by sjb140470 process-output-2 Originally uploaded by sjb140470

6. Managed or led?

leadership-output Originally uploaded by sjb140470

Only 15 people left feedback but it was the last session on the last day and everyone wanted to get to the pub. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive. 13 people said "they loved it" and that it was "a great format with interesting topics"; 2 people said it was "a good session"; nobody said they "wouldn't recommend it to others".

Here's the poster show and here are some photos of the event:

The Conversation 'World' Cafe Originally uploaded by sjb140470 Half the room Originally uploaded by sjb140470 Discussing when adaptation compromises Originally uploaded by sjb140470 Discussing valuing the right things Originally uploaded by sjb140470 Discussing excellence vs accepting mediocrity Originally uploaded by sjb140470 Circulating between tables Originally uploaded by sjb140470

Tags: xpday, compromised agility

posted by Simon Baker @ permalink
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