One of the keys to a successful enterprise Agile transformation is the support of executive leadership, which is more than simply providing approval. The Agile executive enables, empowers and engages rather than controls. According to one recent survey, more than one in three organisations claim that the lack of leadership engagement within their businesses is plaguing their journey towards sustainable organisational agility. With a special focus on executives and leaders, this presentation will be draw upon more than a decade of Agile transformation experiences in multiple organisations across eight countries, and will share real-life case studies and insights to illustrate the key things that Agile leaders need to do differently. Be inspired by knowing what serves to catalyse and nourish progress – and what does the opposite.

1. @DipeshPala
@DipeshPala
7 Things That Agile Leaders and
Executives Do Differently
Dipesh Pala
Agile Capability Leader - Asia Pacific
Agile Australia 2016

2. @DipeshPala
Agile Cake

3. @DipeshPala
Cannot
change the
Organisational
Culture
Lack of
Agile Experts
or Experience within
the organisation
Lack of
Management
Support
for Agile
Concerns
around
implementing
non-IT programs
using Agile
Cannot Change
Pre-existing
rigid Waterfall
Framework
No Barriers
Concerns around
Scaling or
Distributed Agile
Which one is the number 1 Barrier?

4. @DipeshPala
Source:
VersionOne.com
-­‐
state-­‐of-­‐agile-­‐report-­‐agile-­‐2016-­‐survey-­‐results
Barriers for Agile Adoption

5. @DipeshPala
What Makes Changes Challenging
*
IBM
Global
Making
Change
Work
Study
explored
differences
in
how
change
was
implemented
by
over
1,500
practitioners
world-­‐wide

6. @DipeshPala
*
IBM
Global
Making
Change
Work
Study
explored
differences
in
how
change
was
implemented
by
over
1,500
practitioners
world-­‐wide
What Makes Change Successful

7. @DipeshPala
Can’t
Create
or
Change
Culture
It
just
happens…

8. @DipeshPala
• Stop
Starting,
Start
Finishing
• Slow
Down
to
Go
Faster
• One
Team,
One
Dream
• Foster
Fully
Capable
Teams
• Fail
Early
&
Fail
Small
• Deliver
Business
Value,
not
just
Projects
• Servant
Leadership
7 Things Agile Leaders and Executives will do differently

9. @DipeshPala

10. @DipeshPala
P
P
P P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P PP
Done
In
Progress
Backlog
PP
P
P
P P
P
P
P
P
P
PP
P
P
P
P
PP
P
P
P
P
PP
P
P
P PP PP
P PP PP
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
PP
P
P
P
P
PP P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
Minimize
WIP
Slow
down
to
go
faster!
1. Stop Starting, Start Finishing

11. @DipeshPala
2. Slow Down to Go Faster

12. @DipeshPala
If
you
can’t
fly,
Run.
If
you
can’t
run,
Walk.
If
you
can’t
walk,
Crawl.
But,
by
all
means
keep
moving.
-­‐
Dr.
Martin
Luther
King,
Jr.

13. @DipeshPala
3.One Team, One Dream

14. @DipeshPala
Doing The
Right Work
Doing The
Work Right

15. @DipeshPala
Doing The
Right Work
Objectives & Goals
Mission & Vision
Strategy
Pattern
Portfolio Funnel
of Work
Strategic Initiatives
Strategic
Programs
4
56
7
3
1
2
8
Customer Requests

16. @DipeshPala
Team 1
Pull
Pull
Team 2
Team n
Strategic
Programs
4
56
7
3
1
2
8
Program Pattern
Operations
Pattern
Governance
1 2 3 4 5 6
1 2 3 4 5 6
1 2 3 4 5 6
Doing The
Right Work
Doing The
Work Right
Objectives & Goals
Mission & Vision
Strategy
Pattern
Portfolio Funnel
of Work
Strategic Initiatives
Customer Requests

17. @DipeshPala
Team 1
Pull
Pull
Team 2
Team n
Strategic
Programs
4
56
7
3
1
2
8
Program Pattern
Operations
Pattern
Governance
1 2 3 4 5 6
1 2 3 4 5 6
1 2 3 4 5 6
Doing The
Right Work
Doing The
Work Right
Objectives & Goals
Mission & Vision
Strategy
Pattern
Portfolio Funnel
of Work
Strategic Initiatives
Customer Requests

18. @DipeshPala
Using Agile practices to “cascade” strategy

19. @DipeshPala
4. Foster Fully Capable Teams

20. @DipeshPala
AS
IS
Capability
that
has
both
depth
and
breadth
across
the
domain
providing
greater
scalability
and
flexibility

21. @DipeshPala
IDEAL
More
Accountability
Less
Coordination
More
Transparency
Reduced
Cycle
Time
Capability
that
has
both
depth
and
breadth
across
the
domain
providing
greater
scalability
and
flexibility

22. @DipeshPala
5.Fail Early & Fail Small

23. @DipeshPala
Teams
thrive
and
innovate
when
they
are
provided
environments
where
they
feel
safe
to
trial
things
Promoting
anonymity
actually
underscores
the
risk
of
speaking
up
Source:
HBR
Jan-­‐Feb
2016
Issue
–
Can
your
employees
really
speak
freely?

24. @DipeshPala
6. Deliver Business Value rather than just Projects

25. @DipeshPala
PDD
Points
Driven
Development

26. @DipeshPala
7. Servant Leadership
Shift
from
managing
for
results
to
designing
environments
that
create
results

27. @DipeshPala
The
power
of
our
greatness
lies
in
matching
our
words
and
language
to
our
destination
The
words
you
use
impact
the
attitude
of
others
Inspired
by:
Tanya
Lacy
–
How
to
change
your
world
with
your
words

28. @DipeshPala
Agile Cake

29. @DipeshPala
Progress
Setbacks
Daily
Checklist
for
Agile
Leaders
Toxins
Nourishers
Catalysts
Inhibitors
www.ibm.com/au/devops/agile_checklist

30. @DipeshPala
Dipesh Pala
Agile Leader
IBM GBS Asia Pacific
dipeshpala@au1.ibm.com
@DipeshPala
slideshare.net/DipeshPala
au.linkedin.com.com/in/dipeshpala