Agile Methodology is cutting into
Management from Software: Insights from Top PGDM Colleges in Delhi NCR
Ishan Institute of
Management & Technology, one of the top PGDM colleges in Delhi NCR has been
exploring possible inroads into process engineering, enterprise management and productivity
management for some time now. Given that India is a proven software and
information technology power house in the world, we pondered and deliberated
upon some of the industry best practices in software and information technology
and objectively assessed the possibility of integrating agile development
methodology into mainstream business management. The reason that we the
academicians of the top PGDM colleges in Delhi NCR thought of introducing agile
development methodology in the first place was because of the impact that it
created in terms of performance goals not just result goals. Agile development methodology
combines the best of looking at the big picture and then executing effective
action. In essence there are two problems that managers face in terms of
prioritizing work. First managers lose the vision of the big picture when
engrossed in action. This breaks the alignment between strategy and action and
weakens strategy. Second those managers that tend to obsess with strategy go
weak in execution. This weakens operational efficiency. There are two essential
metrics that we need to be mindful of: operational efficiency and long term
effectiveness. The first metric is best assessed in short sprints and modules
of action on a daily basis. The second metric is best assessed in terms of
quarterly, bi-annual and annual reports.
Why Agile Development is Important?
Agile development
methodology is a process. It is an essay in persuasion and not an end in
itself. The implementation of agile development methodology in mainstream business
and corporate sector is based on the following reasons. First, the mantra to
operational efficiency success lies in reducing wastage. Some of the major
wastages observed in the Indian context are wastage of time, wastage of effort,
wastage of capital and resources and wastage of redundant inputs. Second, the
objective of corporate enterprises being shareholder value maximization, there
has to be sustained effort to create and maintain a streamlined work culture
that acts on strategic planning to align enterprise and team goals, on short
sprints of action followed by operational and strategic control and on corrective
action. As such then strategic management process assumes the form of river
rafting with a cyclical pattern of the PDCA cycle-plan do -check and act. Each
cycle should lead to a forward motion towards the achievement of goals. This
has the impact of shaping up the strategic management process on the lines of
total quality management. Third, agile development works on the plank of speed.
It lends flexibility in work and top level decision making, streamlines
processes and teams and most importantly reduces the time to market, thus
enabling organizations to compete on faster cycles of innovation, customer
oriented services and resolution of challenges. The organization that solves
problems faster grows faster.
The Three Approaches to Agile in Corporate Sector
There are three
approaches to implementing agile in business. These are scrum, lean development
and Kanban. At Ishan Institute of
Management & Technology, one of the top PGDM colleges in Delhi NCR, we opt
for a combinatorial innovation in integrating these three approaches.
Scrum works on the
basis of solving big complex problems that require lot of strategic planning,
corrective action and process discipline in the execution phase of work. The scrum
approach work very well in circumstances that require strong project
management. This is the case in verticals of infrastructure, real estate,
software, information technology, ecommerce development, automobile, heavy
engineering and consumer durables. In fact there are public sector enterprises
in India that get approvals and stamps from the authorities at the highest
level and then gets grounded or stuck in coordination failure as the project
seeps through from the central government or PMO to the ministry level or state
government level or municipal and local government levels. Scrum can be of
great use in these scenarios.
The second approach is
that of lean development that works on the basis of continuous elimination of wastes
muri, mura and muda. To a great extent we
Indians can borrow a leaf out of the books of the Japanese who are masters at
reducing wastages. This has the impact of increasing operational efficiency by
saving on avoidable wastages. Such an approach to agile shall work well in scenarios
that require process discipline. To maintain process discipline it is important
to match goals with actions and identify wastages. In the most generic sense
wastages are those that shall not have an impact on the goal when removed.
Situations that require business leaders and managers to squeeze out margins in
verticals where growth prospects are sluggish are fertile grounds for the usage
of such an approach based on lean.
The third approach to
agile is based in Kanban that aims to reduce lead time and efforts required in
completing processes. Such an approach is best suited for marketing
assignments, new product launches, entry strategy into virgin markets and in
general scenarios that require the execution of campaigns where in on-time
delivery is the ultimate challenge. Moreover this approach is very effective in
the implementation of governance systems and structures, financial reporting,
compliance and standard operating procedures (SOPs) for regulation.
A Roadmap for the Implementation of Agile in Corporate Sector
The end question: how do we implement agile development in corporate
sector? At Ishan Institute of Management & Technology, one of the top PGDM
colleges in Delhi NCR we have formulated a simple roadmap for the implementation
of agile in business for beginners. Here are the constituents of the road map.
CONDITIONS
|
FAVORABLE
|
UNFAVORABLE
|
Market Environment
|
Customer preferences and solution options
change frequently.
|
Market conditions are stable and
predictable.
|
Customer Involvement
|
Close collaboration and rapid feedback are
feasible.
Customers know better what they want as the
process progresses.
|
Requirements are clear at the outset and
will remain stable.
Customers are unavailable for constant
collaboration.
|
Innovation Type
|
Problems are complex, solutions are unknown,
and the scope isn’t clearly defined. Product specifications may change.
Creative breakthroughs and time to market are important.
Cross-functional collaboration is vital.
|
Similar work has been done before, and
innovators believe the solutions are clear. Detailed specifications and work
plans can be forecast with confidence and should be adhered to. Problems can
be solved sequentially in functional silos.
|
Modularity of Work
|
Incremental developments have value, and
customers can use them.
Work can be broken into parts and conducted in rapid, iterative cycles.
Late changes are manageable.
|
Customers cannot start testing parts of the
product until everything is complete.
Late changes are expensive or impossible.
|
Impact of Interim Mistakes
|
They provide valuable learning.
|
They may be catastrophic.
|
Many business leaders work with a very defensive approach that counts on
the stick for not being able to push through reforms. A first time experiment to
look at an issue with a new perspective, try new processes, alignments and
resource allocations requires a strong risk taking appetite. But the
institutionalization of innovation on a sustainable basis is a tougher
challenge. The implementation of agile starts with the selection of a process
owner who is accountable for the implementation and the results. The process owner
must have a specialization or expertise in a functional role. His experience
and expertise in a functional role is likely to determine the choice of the
three approaches that we have discusses above. A process owner with a technological
background is likely to focus on product development, design thinking,
reduction of wastages, streamlining of processes. A process owner with a
finance background may conceive of agile as a project to increase economic efficiency,
reduce capital blockage, implement cost cutting and control on a recurring
basis and suggest steps for better achievement of KRAs in departments by
treating them as profit centres.
Second there has to be a process trainer who has mastered agile practice
and can show the way to teams and employees in the implementation of agile for
the first time. The process trainer may not have authoritative powers and
control but must have mastery on agile. This person should ideally have a
mastery on agile along with a strong people orientation.
Third, it is advisable to create new roles for managers and senior
executives than change the structure. Changing the structure alters power equations
and can significantly affect reporting and performance.
Fourth, systems need to be implemented for measurement of metrics,
comparison of departmental metrics and the effect of achievement of these metrics
on overall enterprise goals. This shall involve rank ordering components and
functions that create value to the existing and new customers. Prioritize functions
in terms of financial value created for the enterprise. Enable managers and
senior executives to realize the linkage between their achievement of
departmental goals and the achievement of enterprise goals. Streamline metrics,
define team goals, throw questions at them based on challenges and ask managers
to come up with solutions instead of instructing them. It will foster
innovation. Agile is about innovation.
Fifth, identify the barriers to agile and devise ways to dilute speed
breakers. This starts with the creation of small cross functional teams that consist
of people from diverse functional areas like sales, marketing, information
systems, accounts, human resource and customer relationship. Focus on teams not
individuals. Teams work in agile not individuals. These agile teams forge the
link between departmental and enterprise goals. The process owner should
ideally tackle team meetings with a short frequency and divide large complex
issues into small sprints. The completion of each sprint should be followed by
a meeting for the next sprint. For this to happen the process owner should be
in charge of the agile framework and take initiative and responsibility. There
should be one process owner not two. Uniformity
of command is a must for addressing agile barriers.
