What is working for a startup with 15-20 employees won’t work for a medium one. Once it has been identified that the company won’t be able to grow without working in a more structured way the decision has made; let’s try to improve the processes.
Well, great but how to start it? Since it is a cutting edge technology driven company it would make sense to start it from the bottom; changing the way how the development teams function. Is that enough? There is tension between the way the teams operate and the way the rest of the organization is run. The whole organization has to be made Agile.
An agile manager enables those doing the work to contribute their full talents and capabilities to generate value. The manager trusts in their judgment and wisdom. The manager also trusts in the talents and capacities of those doing the work to figure out how to do the work in the right way. The focus is on delivering value to the stakeholders.
The traditional manager act in pretty much the opposite way. The managerial function is to identify what needs to be done, to tell the employee what to do. The role of the employee is to follow the directions.
Changes in organization culture, which is based on command and control style leadership, can be really challenging; not only for the top management but for mid-level managers including team leaders. It is really important to commit to change on organizational level.
Core principles of Agile can be applied quickly, but mastering them can take a lifetime, which is hard work for leaders and a life-long journey.