What does agile mean?

Agile literally means nimble, supple and flexible. In a growing number of organisations, agile is a way of thinking, working and organising. Working in an agile way means organisations and teams are able to respond quickly to changes in the world around them. The agile way of working comes from the software development industry. It has long since stopped being the preserve of software developers, though, and can be applied in almost any team and organisation. Agile means breaking projects into small blocks of short duration (between one and three weeks). At the end of each block you look at how far you have come and whether anything needs to change. That makes you far more adaptable and quicker to switch. In agile working, the customer's question is central: how can you add value for the customer right now?

Why work this way?

The world keeps moving faster. Because society used to change more slowly, it was easy to set a goal for a year ahead during the performance appraisal . Another example: software developers would write the entire specification for a piece of software and then get to work. A year later it was finished. Today things are different. With the arrival of technology, everything moves much faster. What is up to date today is out of date tomorrow. You have to switch faster, and that asks organisations and teams for a different approach. Working in an agile way lets them handle constant change easily and keep growing. Because agile organisations are far more adaptable and focus on what the customer is asking for, they can stay a step ahead of the competition time and again.

What are the characteristics of agile?

1. Working in self-managing teams In agile working, it is important that the work is done by self-managing, multidisciplinary teams that work on particular tasks in short periods (of one to three weeks) to deliver a project. These teams can act quickly and independently. The people in them continuously ask each other, the customer or the end user for feedback , so they can improve and adjust easily. 2. The customer's question is central In agile teams the end goal is always to deliver added value for the customer. That sounds obvious, but in practice it is not so easy. Agile organisations develop their products and services from the customer's question, so it is important to be in constant contact with them about it. Asking for 360-degree feedback is one way of doing that

How do you start?

The best way to start with agile working is small, with one team for instance. Have that team work in sprints, looking every two weeks at what they are going to do over the next two. Anything you do not want to take on in those two weeks goes on the backlog so you can pick it up later. Have good ideas during those two weeks? Put those on the backlog as well and discuss them in the sprint meeting.

How can software help you work in an agile way?

In agile organisations, employees, managers and teams are in continuous conversation. Within the review cycle , managers and employees hold the continuous dialogue. For the younger generation it is important that this cycle and their own growth and development are supported by technology. A tool like Treams lets you capture the whole review cycle. You can specify it per target group, for instance, so it becomes personal for everyone. Setting goals is indispensable in agile teams. In Treams you record those goals and can update them at any moment. Treams also makes it very easy to ask colleagues and external people for feedback , so you can ask for input at any time of day and know whether you are on course with your goals. Not on course? Then you can adjust in time. Finally, smart dashboards in Treams give you real-time insight into the data you need to be successful, including insight into the development, performance and engagement of your people and teams, so you can build strong teams with ease.