\u201cWelcome changing requirements, even late in development. Agile processes harness change for the customer’s competitive advantage\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe most ef\ufb01cient and effective method of conveying information to and within a development team is face-to-face conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAt regular intervals, the team re\ufb02ects on how to become more effective then tunes and adjusts its behavior accordingly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I talked about why those 3 captured me several years ago and why I adopted them by heart. Truth told is\u2026I loved more than just those 3 and I promised to write about the next ones. I love these ones because it\u2019s all about the team and their collaboration within the team and so-called \u201eexternal stakeholder\u201c. So, here they are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Business people and developers must work together daily throughout the project.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n „If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.“<\/strong> – African saying<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n What a lovely expansion of the word \u201eteam\u201c – don\u2019t you agree? I personally think, that the 17 thought leaders of software development, who met back in 2001, to write the Agile Manifesto, expanded the definition of team. It wasn\u2019t anymore the development team talking to some marketing, sales, or management people\u2026it was about talking and collaborating all together for the benefit of the product and the client. Even the client became an intrinsic part of the development cycles when clients got asked to visit reviews, give feedback, and express changes they wanted to be included. Compared to the \u201eold ways\u201c this was really revolutionary. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Regretfully, when I visit companies that have started an introduction of agile methodologies, exactly this principle seems to be one of the most difficult ones to cope with. The mindset of old structures and ways of working does not help when it comes to inducing a more collaborative way of doing things. Hierarchies and power structures within the company seem sometimes to be unbreakable barriers. What is required in such cases is a good approach to transition management and a combination of external and internal experts to help people overcome their own pre-conceptions about change. The proper message for each person needs to be discovered and delivered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Build projects around motivated individuals. Give them the environment and support they need, and trust them to get the job done.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.\u201d<\/strong> – Henry Ford<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n This is the next principle, which I believe is an intrinsic part of the agile mindset. On the one hand, this principle when truly lived by is just amazing, however, on the other hand, it is a pitfall if the organization has not moved away from old structures and hierarchies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Organizations with succeeding agile teams have this mindset. It is a thing of trust. Trust in your team, give them an environment and respect it. Give them the tools and resources they need to find the FLOW. Team building and cohesion are key components to it but don\u2019t get me wrong\u2026not the same approaches to building a team do function for all teams. It is not a universal equation, that will give you a guarantee. It is more a combination of factors that depend on the individuals in your team. So yes, you will have to deal with every single person in the team and treat them as the individuals they are, that gain the best for the team. Again it is an exercise of communication with the team, with each individual, and between them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The best architectures, requirements, and designs emerge from self-organizing teams.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n „Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.“ <\/em><\/strong>– Henry Ford<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n One thing is team building, another is team cohesion as we just saw, however, there is one thing that gets lost when time passes by\u2026it is volition. A team is a system of individuals working together to reach a goal\u2026an objective\u2026or several for that matter. In this case, I am making an emphasis on the word „individuals“. Some people have the intrinsic behavior of being determined\u2026they have the desire to see things through. Many others do not have this innate behavior, however, we at The Evolving Zone believe, that every single person has the power within themselves to overcome any obstacle on their way and evolve. I am truly convinced, that any person can learn how to develop the determination, and the volition needed to see things through. It is a matter of gaining new perspectives and learning new tools to develop it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So once you have built the team, once you have given the team the environment and the support they need and they start doing the job, it is your task as well to maintain the trust in the team, so that they will be able to develop their solutions to their problems. If they are not, then it is your task to ensure that they get the help needed. It is not your task to micro-manage them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Remember:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Agile is the ability to create and respond to change. It is THE way of succeeding in, an uncertain and turbulent environment\u2026in other words the VUCA world. See also https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/pulse\/overcoming-social-distancing-through-agile-methods-times-schimmel\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Erich Schimmel<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Erich is an internationally experienced systemic coach, senior management consultant, and speaker. He is the founder of The Evolving Zone. Erich has a track record of over 19 years in running operations of organisations of different sizes and business models. He knows from his own experience how to balance comprehensive with pragmatic solutions. He loves helping people gain new perspectives, define new objectives, and evolve.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Last posts<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/evolving.zone\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/robert-collins-DrUguS1oBGU-unsplash-horizontal-1024x665.jpg\")
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