The Truth About Agile Change Management

Organizational agility is a hot topic these days as companies manage their transitions to the modern, digital workplace. The use of technology to automate workflows, increase customer responsiveness, and connect a highly distributed workforce has shifted from being viewed as a competitive advantage to standard business operations.

At the same time, employee preferences regarding where they work and how remains an ongoing conversation. Companies have been forced to rethink their definition of the “business office” and speed up their strategic plans to streamline systems and automate back-end processes to support a more flexible work environment.  

Customer needs and preferences have changed, too. From buying goods online to getting virtual healthcare, the use of technology has shifted expectations around convenience and the end user experience.

To build an environment that meets everyone’s needs, many organizations are reevaluating the role of technology in their business strategies and doubling down on digital investments. According to a recent study by McKinsey, nearly 65 percent of companies increased funding for technology initiatives this past year, even as they cut resources from elsewhere in the business.

The perpetual state of workplace changes and tech-enabled transformations has paved the way for the conversation around organizational agility, Agile delivery, and what many in the industry are now calling “Agile change management”.  What does this mean for change leaders using “old” models and methods for accelerating adoption? The good news is likely not much, considering change management has never been about adhering to one specific approach.

Change management, at its core, has always prioritized people over process. Effective change leaders use strategies and tactics that make the most sense for the situation, the environment, and the individuals impacted by the change. While understanding Agile development and delivery is useful, it is important to remember that “agile” isn’t a verb when it comes to leading and influencing change, it’s an adjective.

The Truth About “Agile” Change Management

In the software development world, Agile is a methodology used to improve multidisciplinary team collaboration, efficiency, and the value of the product produced. The premise is that by building features and functionality in increments and working closely with end users to make continual improvements, developers can deliver working software that meets customer needs quickly and effectively.

In the project management world, Agile has been adapted into frameworks such as Scrum and Kanban to help members of the team stay organized, accountable, and on task for their specific deliverable, even as the needs of the business change. Whether it’s for software development or project management purposes, Agile work occurs in “sprints” and updates (releases) happen frequently. Agile guides the approach, with release train engineers (or project managers) holding everyone accountable to the process.

Because of what Agile represents – the ability to implement change faster and respond to issues sooner – the term is now being applied to almost any business practice or function that aims to deliver value in a constantly changing workplace – including change management.

Robert Martin, author of the Agile Manifesto and Clean Agile: Back to Basics, says “Agile has become muddled over the intervening years. It’s been mixed with the concepts of Lean, Kanban, LeSS, SAFe, Modern, Skilled, and so many others. These other ideas are not bad, but they are not the original Agile message.”

The truth is that Agile is a methodology with specific roles, processes, and desired outcomes, and that change management is a framework all on its own. While change leaders can align with Agile development and delivery timelines, there is no such thing as Agile (with a capital “A”) change management.

Even so, the shift in terminology has created confusion when it comes to strategy and decision-making, with many practitioners wondering what they need to do differently to align with the “new way” of leading and influencing change.

All Change Management is Agile Change Management  

Change management, as a practice, is designed to be iterative and collaborative. Change programs should never be created in a vacuum or delivered from an ivory tower. Instead, change leaders roll up their sleeves and work side-by-side with stakeholders to plan and implement change, no matter how or when it is delivered.

Change management is unique in that it borrows from cognitive and behavioral science to inform the strategy and tactics used to support the individual transition process. The focus on the human side of change – how a person feels, thinks, and behaves – underpins the entire practice. Success isn’t defined as “done” but instead describes a journey that starts with acceptance, includes adoption, and ends with sustainment of the change. 

Change management is never a one-and-done activity, but a continual process that requires change leaders to work collaboratively with end users from start to finish, from ideation through close. The role of the change leader is to keep a pulse on the needs and perceptions of the people who are impacted by what’s occurring in the workplace and maintain the vision so regardless of what happens along the way from current to future state, they can link the required new beliefs and behaviors to the big picture goals and outcomes. 

No matter what outcomes are desired or how the change unfolds, practitioners meet people where they are at, adapt change plans as needed, and stay focused on helping stakeholders thrive in an ever-changing environment. At the end of the day, it is less about how the work gets done, more about the mindset and culture cultivated by caring for the human side of change. That's the value change management delivers. That's agile change management.