Change Management in Agile Teams

Nowadays, companies are tempted to try new ways of conducting their business in terms of Digital Transformation. In this sense, new terms such as Agile are appearing. The technological revolution that we are experiencing together with what we know as Digital Transformation is gaining more and more strength in the technological and business world.

Digital Transformation, a Starting Point for Organisations

In this Transformation, changing the culture of people is the key element and at the same time the most difficult to achieve. In these processes, the focus is often lost, the methodology, technologies and tools are changed many times without taking into account that the attitude towards change comes from the people who make up the company.

When establishing a new culture, it is important to take into account two pillars:

• Change of mentality of the people.
• Getting the company to incorporate this new mentality into its culture and values.

Values and principles of the Agile Manifesto

The values and principles of the Agile Manifesto and its interpretation in the different frameworks or methods with which we work, such as Scrum or Kanban, are the basis on which we can make an Agile team work. If the procedures and objectives of these methodologies are not understood, we will be far from the success of initiatives and projects.

Enthusiasm and motivation are essential when starting new projects. This same attitude must be maintained over time, regardless of possible setbacks that may hinder our path.

In many cases, we do not take into account the moment of uncertainty in the face of possible setbacks that any change entails, which means that, before reaching the state of improvement we are looking for, our productivity will be temporarily affected by the change we are carrying out. During this process, although it is difficult to see it, the competitiveness of people tends to increase and, as a consequence, that of organisations.

Transformation is Part of the Corporate Culture

There are some key factors to start the transformation:

• Know the people who are part of the change, i.e. the people inside the organisation.
• Design an appropriate communication plan, in which all the important points of the change are clarified.
• Define new roles such as Scrum Master or Product Owner and their responsibilities.
• Define a training plan that equips those involved with the knowledge and the ability to put that knowledge into action.
• Training and experiential sessions explaining what to do when things are working properly or when they are not, is crucial to change the mindset.

 Personal effort, also a key element for change

On the other hand, any change requires a personal effort from those involved, so it is necessary to reward the people involved in these processes.

In short, when we talk about Agile Change Management within an organisation, it is not enough to teach Scrum or Kanban as a way of reorganising work. Many organisations today are highly proceduralised and have tools in which they have implemented these procedures.

People or Human Resources areas have to promote this change through tools that facilitate the acceptance, knowledge and internalisation of these changes. Times change, people change and procedures have to adapt. We change our mentality and methodologies with a high frequency, so we must remain open, flexible and tolerant of any change.

Resistance to change will cause organisations not to adapt and lose competitiveness in an increasingly demanding market.

At atSistemas, we help companies from all sectors in their Digital Transformation process. We promote change through our specialist consultants, technicians, managers, engineers…

Do you need a change? We will be happy to hear your case.

📧marketing.en@atsistemas.com