The business agility results have shown that this journey is a necessity for organizations more than a buzzword. The results achieved by agile teams, which masterfully implement agile values and principles in their projects, are a stimulus for the entire organization.
After all, what company does not seek to improve its ability to adapt to the environment, make its business viable with less waste, and delight its customers? What if for that, it radicalized agile practices at the organizational level? Then we come to the practice of the principles of what is known as business agility.
Business agility is nothing new. It answers a central question: what does enterprise-level agility mean? Many companies are asking themselves this question and, in their way, giving practical answers to it. But they also wonder what the potential of an agile transformation at the enterprise level is and what results they can achieve.
In this compilation, you will have a dimension on the adhesion of organizations to business agility, where they act to become agile at scale, who drives such initiatives, what results in corporate agility provides, and what difficulties they face.
Organizations’ Adherence To Business Agility
Suppose there was an interest in scaling the application of agile from the team level to the entire organization to gain flexibility today. In that case, there is a consensus that business agility is, more than interesting, essential. The greater the instability of a market, the greater the perception that organizations need business agility.
However, few are mature enough. 65% of the organizations surveyed in the Business Agility Report are less than three years into their journey. Still, they do not fully obtain the results of business agility, which according to the survey, grows with maturity. McKinsey reiterates this finding in its survey: 70% of the organizations surveyed are on the business agility journey or are looking to get started.
Where Organizations Work To Achieve Business Agility
There is no framework for business agility in the organization, such as Scrum and Kanban for teams. If the organization is a complex and unique system, there cannot be a prescriptive model. Each company will take a particular journey in business agility, which can make one company utterly different from the other, even though the results of business agility are similar in the end.
For this reason, the Business Agility Institute talks about dimensions of business agility – leadership, individuals, relationships, and operations –, each with three domains, involving board, employees, and partners, and having customers as their center:
According to the Business Agility Institute, all these domains will have to be addressed within a business agility journey. For example, if the organization only focuses on transforming its processes but not touching other aspects of the business, it will not get as many results with business agility.
However, these dimensions allow the organization to direct its gaze to its most acute pains and prioritize actions. They will also assess the impact of a transformation on business agility.
Who Is At The Forefront Of The Quest For Organizational-Level Agility?
Depending on the organization, business agility initiatives can be driven by the board, the C-level, senior executives, and leadership. But according to Business Agility Institute research, business agility results are best when the C-level and the board lead the way.
Top 4 Results In Business Agility
Employee Motivation And Satisfaction
According to McKinsey’s research, employees are 20% to 30% more engaged in organizations that are mature in business agility. The constant search for alignment, accountability, and transparency generates good collaboration and communication environments. This results in employees who feel they have more apparent missions and purpose, feel empowered and autonomous and are very directly focused on customers, positively impacting satisfaction and engagement. In short, employees of agile companies feel they are on a critical mission, not just a cog in gear.
Operating Performance
McKinsey’s results show a 30% to 50% increase in operational performance. This business agility result is based on an engaged and purpose-oriented team: speed of decision-making, action, learning, correction and launch, visibility, and deliveries.
Better Response To The Impacts Of The Pandemic
According to the Business Agility Report, organizations that work with self-organizing teams underwent a smooth transition to the home office and also increased the organization’s business agility and maturity after the first wave of the pandemic.
Greater Customer Satisfaction
McKinsey’s research shows an average increase in customer satisfaction of 10% to 30%. This is related to an attitude focused on generating customer value regarding the ability to change according to consumer needs and providing an excellent end-to-end purchase journey.
Also Read: Business Intelligence: Learn To Make Strategic Decisions
