How do you handle pushback when introducing agile?

I like to focus on not using the word "Agile" to start, it sounds lie something new and new is a scary change for many. So, I like to focus on the pain points of the current state and ways of working that make sense (to everyone) to address the pain. Then, once there is buy-in to new ways of working practices and how it will address the pain, we can introduce the terms "Agile" as needed. Many teams were working in a VERY agile ways before the term agile was even a thing over 20 years ago. Much of it is just common sense for complex work. Focus on solving problems, and improving your collaboration over using a new term. ;-)

Identify resistance causes like fear or misunderstandings. Listen and empathize with your team and stakeholders. Explain agile benefits with relatable stories, align with organizational goals, and avoid jargon. Address myths and invite questions. Start with a pilot project, provide training, and show results. Use feedback to improve and share successes. Involve your team in agile practices, encourage their input, and support self-organization. Model agile behaviors by being transparent and adaptable. Build a culture of trust and focus on delivering value. Continuously refine your approach based on feedback, learn from others, and stay engaged with agile communities.

Understanding the pushback will provide the basis for your transformation roadmap. If a consistent theme unfolds during empathy interviews, or key words are repeated across stakeholders, the biggest cultural roadblocks will become evident. Dig deeper - resistance can sometimes be addressed with a greater understanding of or improved implementation of agile... but if there are past failures, it may be a symptom of a larger cultural issue to address before agile ways of working can thrive.

Resistance to agile is often a symptom of deeper organizational challenges, especially in a digital bank that's 24 months into its agile journey. Begin by diagnosing the root cause: is it fear of change, lack of trust, or a misunderstanding of agile principles? Employ empathetic listening; understand stakeholder concerns to tailor your agile narrative compellingly. Illuminate how agile can solve specific issues or enhance certain aspects that resonate with each group, thereby offering a direct benefit in line with their objectives. As we navigate our own agile journey in this digital bank, it's vital to view resistance not as a roadblock but as an opportunity to clarify, refine, and demonstrate agile's transformative potential.

I addressed it by first understanding the source of the resistance, whether it was fear of change or uncertainty. Key Insight: Communicating a clear vision of Agile’s benefits is essential. Starting small with experimentation and quick wins helps ease the transition and build confidence within the team. What worked: Involving the team early, giving them ownership, and leading by example helped shift mindsets. Continuous learning and feedback ensured long-term commitment. Conclusion: Addressing concerns, communicating benefits, and leading by example are key to overcoming resistance and ensuring a smooth Agile transition.

Past failures, as Shannon mentions, are indeed often a source of resistance. Often, the term "agile" is already contaminated, or at best understood very differently by different people. Understanding pain points and gently introducing agile techniques without necessarily naming them as such can be a practical starting point. Another source of resistance is that management still often sees agile as an approach to increase efficiency: do more work in less time. Shifting the focus to effectiveness -- discover and do the right work -- can appeal to both management and project/product teams.

If you are getting pushback, look at yourself first. How are you bringing this change to the organization? How well do you understand the organization? Are you trying to push a change that they are not ready for because of a framework? Then stop and listen to the people who are pushing back. Not to convince them, but to hear what the actual underlying concerns are. How do you address the actual issues rather than force a methodology or framework? When you start by listening, then addressing the actual issues with work in the organization, you can change the people who were pushing back into advocates. As this happens, you gain better traction and create a path to dealing with the antibodies. It all starts with listening and understanding.

The best way to start with the goal the customer is trying to achieve. Working backwards is an incredible way to start with the end in mind. Agreement on outcomes before moving ahead with solutions helps to ge the buy-in from stakeholders and minimise resistance. Once the outcomes are defined, the next step is to co-define the path to agility.

Introducing Agile methodologies can sometimes be met with resistance, particularly if team members and stakeholders are accustomed to more traditional project management approaches. Some strategies to handle pushback effectively are Communicate the Benefits, Provide Education and Training, Address Concerns and Misconceptions, Start Small and Demonstrate Success, Involve Stakeholders in the Process, Empower and Support the Team, Be Patient and Flexible, By addressing concerns, providing education and support, and demonstrating the benefits of Agile through tangible results, you can effectively handle pushback and facilitate a successful transition to Agile methodologies within your organization.

Root the vision in data that is tangible and leverage the art of story telling to make it relatable. Employing value stream management to baseline the current state of agile delivery - and it's bottlenecks - can inform the vision with a starting point for improvement. Agile transformation is successful due to true cultural change, and a vision that is backed by a clear business case creates transparency, a tenet of good culture. Add the secret sauce of story telling, and people will believe that change is finally possible.

Amidst the complexity of digital banking, clearly articulating the agile vision becomes an imperative. Connect the agile transformation to the organizational strategy and customer needs, showing how it leads to faster delivery, improved quality, and insightful feedback. Favor compelling stories and real-world examples over jargon to illuminate agile's value and impact, making it relatable to diverse stakeholders. Cultivate an environment where questions are welcomed and myths debunked, fostering a more informed and engaged community. Clear, relatable communication transforms agile from a nebulous concept to a tangible strategy, capable of delivering measurable outcomes.

Don't communicate the value of agile. Agile is never the outcome that provides value. Communicate the places where change can add value and ensure that the changes are actually in line with the direction that the company is moving in. Faster delivery doesn't matter to Air Traffic controllers for example and daily changes would actually be life threatening. On the other hand, the stability and resilience are vital for those applications. Make sure that the changes in the new vision align with the needs of the organization that you are working with.

An effective strategy I’ve used is to connect the agile vision to the specific pain points and goals of the organization. For instance, in a previous role, we faced significant delays and quality issues. By clearly communicating how agile practices could directly address these challenges—such as reducing time to market and improving product quality through iterative feedback—we gained executive buy-in and team support. Sharing success stories from similar organizations and inviting team members to pilot agile processes can also demystify agile and demonstrate its practical benefits, fostering a more receptive environment for change.

Partir des sources d'insatisfactions actuelles est un bon point de départ pour illustrer l'intérêt des approches agiles. Cela permet d'être en empathie avec les clients en se confrontant à leur contexte plutôt que d'essayer de leur vendre un produit dont ils ne comprennent pas la valeur. Il est donc important d'éviter le jargon pour limiter la barrière à l'entrée dans la conversation.

Senior leaders and executives may have never had the chance to be part of an agile team, even if conceptually they buy in to the organizational and cultural changes required. Inviting executives to participate in a guiding coalition that operates as an agile team is often one of the smallest, and most impactful ways to initiate the necessary change in culture. Demonstrating servant leadership with senior leaders can be a powerful way to spark true understanding and generate vulnerable discussion that can change hearts and minds, having an organizational ripple effect.

In the realm of digital banking, where rapid change is constant, 'starting small' is often the wisest course in an agile transformation. Select a willing pilot team or project and equip them with proper training and coaching. Consider this the prototype for your agile blueprint. Make the outcomes of this pilot transparent, celebrating both the victories and the teachable moments, as each provides invaluable insights. Utilize data-driven metrics and feedback loops to continually refine performance, and disseminate best practices to create a ripple effect across the organization. Starting small affords us the latitude to experiment, learn, and adapt, thereby laying a more resilient foundation for scaled agile adoption.

Agile transformation is not a big bang approach. It's not possible to get everything right first. There will be resistance from various quarters. To get everyone engaged and bring them into confidence, you will have to show small wins consistently. Start with small projects where there's more acceptance to change and experimenting new way of working. Ensure key stakeholders are involved. Consolidate small wins to create visibility and curiosity. Collect metrics on key business objectives to be presented as case study for wider adoption

From my experience, implementing Agile in a small part of the organization or on a pilot project works well. Seeing or sharing the success in a smaller scope can demonstrate the value of Agile and help build confidence. This helps highlight the successes and benefits of Agile. Also, use metrics and case studies to show improved efficiency, quality, and customer satisfaction.

According to my experience, starting small is the single best way to do. Instead of trying to set up a full methodology, study several agile approaches and take the elements that seem the most promising. In one of my (non-IT) project I divided the project group into pairs and they tried "pair programming". For projects with high uncertainty, I set up a backlog, we groom that and work on that instead of trying to create a project plan. Even in waterfall projects, you get deliver in smaller increments by using progressive elaboration and iterative approaches. If it works, you can introduce something else and expand the agile mindset of your teams. If it doesn't you can benefit from the Agile concept of failing fast.

Starting small with victories is indeed important. And while celebrating learning is vital, don't celebrate failure (or success). It's the learning at this stage that is the most important. Learn fast, not fail fast. The connotations associated with fail may cause issues in your ability to expand. Also, while you may start small, you can't start in a bubble. The bubbles are easiest to kill or ignore in terms of bringing changes to the rest of the organization. Have multiple parts of the organization interacting with the pilot and ensuring that it gets the support not just of a couple leaders and the team, but across all parts. It helps when people see the experiment as something for them to learn from as well.

At Startups, how do you deliver faster? Question I am asked as I concentrate on a AI startup. Great question, I thought. Then I start digging. Great leadership, great minds, great techies, its like the All Start team. However, even though all the Agile rituals are there, the mission and vision were not disseminated, terms of engagement not quite clear, geographically dispersed teams missing the purpose of this great effort - Let's see if we can make some sense of belonging, identify the whys and orchestrate the hows - Agile is a mindset, rest is experiment and see what works :-). Enjoying every moment, love the startups - Will bring this to the Federal Government again, soon :-)

Handling pushbacks in agile adoption takes time and patience. Position yourself as an agile evangelist within your organization, leading by example and proving the effectiveness of what you practice. Demonstrate the tangible benefits of agile methodologies through "lighthouse projects" — select initiatives that showcase real results, such as improved productivity, faster delivery times, and enhanced team collaboration. These projects serve as beacons, illuminating the value of agile and encouraging wider acceptance and adoption by showing rather than telling.

Introducing Agile can face resistance within your tea and from the organization as there is always the fear of unknown and insecure about the uncertainty. Implement Agile in a limited way initially, perhaps in a single team or project. This allows for learning and adaptation while minimizing disruption. Demonstrating success in a smaller scale can help build confidence and encourage wider adoption.

Empowering staff and teams to learn about how agile ways of working can achieve their goals more effectively and efficiently can help to ensure that agile adoption is inclusive, and can encourage teams to take ownership. It's likely that the team will require time to iron out challenges with shifting to a new way of working. Give them that time. Allow them to learn from 'safe to fail' mistakes and to adapt their techniques to optimise progress and outcomes. Demonstrate the progress that they are making and recognise positive outputs and progress.

Resistance is a natural response from fear of change. Communicating benefits, addressing concerns, and showcasing success stories can help ease pushback. It's crucial to emphasize the value Agile brings, such as adaptability, quicker delivery, and improved collaboration. Open discussions and involving the team in the transition process can also address resistance.

Senior leaders and executives may have never had the chance to be part of an agile team, even if conceptually they buy in to the organizational and cultural changes required. When I have invited executives to participate in a guiding coalition that operates as an agile team, it has become one of the most impactful ways to initiate the necessary change in culture. Demonstrating servant leadership with senior leaders can be a powerful way to spark true understanding and generate vulnerable discussion that can change hearts and minds, having an organizational ripple effect.

To handle pushbacks in adopting agile practices, actively involve more stakeholders, especially decision-makers, in the process. Demonstrating real, tangible results from agile methodologies can be a powerful way to garner support. Share success stories, improvements in efficiency, and enhanced product quality directly linked to agile practices. Engaging key stakeholders in this way helps build trust in the methodology, addresses concerns through visible outcomes, and encourages a wider acceptance and support for agile transformation within the organization.

In the transformative arena of digital banking, involvement and empowerment are more than buzzwords; they are prerequisites for agile success. Actively solicit team and stakeholder input on agile processes, tools, and roles, allowing them to co-create a tailored agile environment. Encourage self-organization and decision-making within the agile framework, fostering an ecosystem of collaboration and agility. Acknowledge and reward progress, and continually offer avenues for professional growth and development. Empowering stakeholders not only enriches the agile journey but also engenders a culture of ownership and continuous improvement.

What you need to pay attention to is that empowering a project team may not be that easy. The concept of self-organizing and self-governing project group can be very intimidating in certain corporate cultures. Be patient, pay attention and provide support to the group until they can perform with great confidence.

The only push back is on how will work.. on parper in description & theory you can win any one on Agile. How focus on the data and matrices you will use to justify success and faliures. Keep in mind this is just not enough because will agile works or not is a resultant of continuous efforts to build trust, inspect and adapt to improvise. So be persistent in your efforts and reflect with transparency.

Involving and empowering teams and key stakeholders can counter pushback when introducing Agile. Change is uncertain and uncertainty leads to anxiety. So be ready to have push back. Don't push back the push back, but rather embrace the push back and involve the people resisting for them to experience the fruits of the change. Holding collaborative planning sessions where everyone can contribute their ideas and expertise is a great start to involve team. Use tools like Kanban boards to visualize the workflow and keep everyone informed about the project's status. Empower teams to make decisions about their work. This gives teams a sense of ownership and accountability, which can lead to increased motivation and buy-in.

In digital banking, leadership is not an attribute but an ongoing action, especially when steering an agile transformation. Embody transparency, humility, and adaptability as the cornerstone values, thereby setting the standard for the entire organization. Champion a culture that prioritizes trust and psychological safety, creating a fertile ground for candid feedback and innovation. Maintain a laser focus on customer-centricity, ensuring that every agile endeavor translates to palpable value and impact. Leading by example makes you not just a figurehead but a catalyst, propelling the organization towards agile maturity and sustainable success.

Probably not accurate to call this the final step, since, well there is no final step. There is only continued evolution towards a more adaptive organization.

Stop doing agile transformations! Agile is one tool for an organization to use as part of their implementation of a strategy. It is not a strategy or destination or goal for any entity. The market doesn't reward you for being more agile, they reward you for the results that may have resulted from some of the changes that were made. The public doesn't love the IRS because they became more agile, but the results of better service and catching more tax cheats are important to the public and the country. So don't make an agile transformation a thing and worst of all, don't make it a thing that is separated from the rest of the org. I have seen too many places create an agile transformation that tries to do it's own thing and fail.

I think the pushback comes from misuse of Agile. Agile is supposed to solve our software engineering problems and fix all the bad techniques associated with Waterfall. The issue is in many cases Agile has become the beast of waterfall it tried to replace. Agile becomes dictatorial and mandated versus applied. Best example is the Daily Stand Up (DSU). Agile defines the action of the DSU and its goal of only being 15min. But many orgs that “practice” Agile make the DSU into an engineering design review, a technical architecture discussion, or worse a bitch session lasting over an hour. The DSU suddenly becomes the burden to production versus the means to collaborate on actions. Agile works when applied, not specified.

Every change is hard & scary at first , so its natural that many times you encounter a pushback when introducing agile. In order to handle it as a leader we need to communicate the "WHY" behind the change and also convey that what will happen if we do not adapt to this change & How this change will be beneficial for organization, for team & for each individual. Allow people the time to adopt the change and provide them with coaching and training to make it simpler for them.

When introducing agile & facing pushback, I handle it by first listening to the concerns & understanding the root causes of the resistance. I ensure open & transparent communication, explaining the benefits of agile practices & how they align with the organization's goals. I share success stories & data from other teams to illustrate the positive impact of agile. Additionally, I start with small, manageable pilot projects to demonstrate quick wins and build confidence in the approach. I also offer training and support to help the team transition smoothly and address any skill gaps. By involving stakeholders in the process & being responsive to their feedback, I foster a collaborative environment that gradually embraces agile methodologies.

Treat your agile transformation like a strategic product of your company. Account for the foundational work in your roadmap. Implement the integrated tools. Create the baseline metrics to measure for improved efficiency and quality. Be intentional with the customer data experience captured. Most importantly, treat your co-workers as customers.

Adopt the growth mindset and agree on a way you all feel comfortable, then fine tune "it" every so often - pretty soon you will be able to live with what you end up with - but do not stop there, keep reaching for the higher goals/achievement - feel better and better while at this incredible journey of improving your game - developing working software :-)

Don’t introduce agile. It’s not about agile. It’s about finding better ways to discover and deliver the next right thing sooner. Look at your challenges in achieving that. Find gaps and fill them. Use parts of frameworks if it fits, but be pragmatic, not dogmatic. If you’re working on digital solutions then think from a product mindset. It exists to help users do their jobs better. It never ends. Keep solving for the need. Experiment and learn quickly with limited risk. Find ways of working that support that. Organizational leaders want better outcomes, sooner. Users want products that meet their needs. No one cares about “agile.” Agile ways may help you achieve those things, but agile is merely an enabler, not the end all be all.

Be patient and persistent. Change takes time, and there may be setbacks. Continue to communicate the benefits and stay committed to the Agile journey. Consider bringing in external Agile coaches or consultants to provide guidance and support during the transition. Remember that Agile is not a one-size-fits-all solution. You may need to adapt Agile principles and practices to suit the unique needs and challenges of your organization.

In my opinion, always be open to feedback. Create channels for ongoing feedback and make adjustments based on the input received. Show that the organization values input and is willing to make improvements based on lessons learned. Take every feedback constructively and belief that there is always room for improvement.