Sometimes I picture an Agile transformation as an abnormal load being transported down a highway. One of those enormous trucks carrying something that is simply too big for the road. Everything else has to make way. Escort vehicles surround the truck, sometimes even with police assistance. The route has been carefully planned, and the journey often takes place at night because everything becomes too complicated during the day.
And the bigger the load, the more arrangements need to be made.
Sometimes I wonder whether Agile transformations suffer from the same problem.
What starts as a desire to improve the way people work can gradually grow into something so large that the transformation itself becomes the biggest obstacle to change.
I see some familiar patterns.
An enormous load heading for a new destination
An organisation decides that things need to change. More agility, a stronger capability to deliver value, shorter feedback loops, greater ownership and better collaboration. An ambitious programme is launched, a transformation team is assembled, and a roadmap is filled with initiatives.
The load keeps getting bigger. New roles, new processes, new meeting structures, training sessions, frameworks and dashboards. Everything gets its own place in the programme.
Before you know it, the transformation has become so large that it needs an organisation of its own to manage the change.
I have seen organisations spend years building the transformation machinery while teams were still struggling with the original problems the transformation was meant to solve.
The focus slowly shifts from improving outcomes to managing the transformation itself.
Everything else has to make way
When an abnormal load moves through a town, the environment is adapted to accommodate it. Roads are closed, traffic lights are temporarily removed, and other road users have to wait.
Something similar can happen during an Agile transformation. Teams have to adjust their work to accommodate the transformation programme. New meetings appear, new ways of working are introduced, and everyone is expected to follow a growing set of agreements.
Meanwhile, the people doing the actual work are spending much of their time dealing with the transformation itself.
And that is quite remarkable.
You want teams to become better at delivering value, yet more and more of their time is being taken up by making the transformation happen.
Escort vehicles for protection
An abnormal load does not simply hit the road without preparation. It needs an escort to make sure the journey goes smoothly and safely.
Agile transformations often come with a substantial amount of support as well. Consultants, programme managers, transformation coaches, steering committees and working groups. All with their own roles and responsibilities.
Support can be incredibly valuable, especially when people need help changing the way they work.
But sometimes I wonder how much support is needed to keep the transformation moving. And what happens when that support eventually disappears.
Can teams continue on their own? Or has the transport become so complicated that it will always need an escort?
Why do we have to travel at night?
Large loads often travel when there is less traffic. It makes sense, because during the day they would cause too much disruption.
In organisations, I sometimes see a similar approach to change. A large programme is set up alongside the regular work. Teams are still expected to deliver as usual, so the transformation becomes an additional responsibility.
People work extra hours, more meetings appear, and everyone tries to fit everything into an already busy schedule.
The question is how much room there really is for change.
Change requires attention. People need to experiment, make mistakes, talk to each other and occasionally stop to see whether they are still heading in the right direction.
When everyone is focused on keeping daily operations running, change becomes something that has to be squeezed in on the side.
A slow journey
An abnormal load does not travel particularly fast. The route has to be right, obstacles need to be resolved, and sometimes the journey has to stop before it can continue.
Agile transformations can be pretty slow too. Decisions have to pass through several layers, dependencies need to be coordinated, and every next step requires approval.
Meanwhile, documentation grows and plans become increasingly detailed.
I understand perfectly well that a large organisation cannot change overnight. There are dependencies, regulations, systems and interests that need to be taken into account.
Still, I think we should regularly ask ourselves whether we are making change unnecessarily complicated.
Does everything need to be designed in advance? Does every department need to take the same step at the same time? And do we really need a large programme to get started?
Perhaps the load is too big
For me, it starts with asking what we actually want to achieve.
What problem are we trying to solve? What difference will the change make to employees, customers or citizens? And what could we do differently tomorrow to take a step in that direction?
Perhaps the entire organisation does not need to travel at once. Perhaps teams can start in different places, learn from their experiences and help each other move forward.
That also requires something from leadership. Giving people room to act, trusting them and accepting that not everything can be planned in advance.
In my view, an Agile transformation does not have to be an abnormal load that requires an entire road to be closed and a full escort team to get moving.
I would much rather see an organisation that learns to move. Where people discover what works together, where change becomes part of everyday work, and where less support is needed over time because the ability to change independently continues to grow.
Because ultimately, it is not about the transport itself.
It is about the destination.
More importantly, it is about solving the problem that made us start the journey in the first place.
So perhaps the real question is not how well we organise the transformation.
Have we become so busy transporting agility that we forgot to become agile?
