Perspectives

Fragile to Agile: Launch of White Paper

On 11 March 2019, The Innovation Beehive was hosted by Google at The Academy, their innovative learning space, to launch our new White Paper: From Fragile to Agile: Innovating in Uncertain Times.
On 11 March 2019, The Innovation Beehive was hosted by Google at The Academy, their innovative learning space, to launch our new White Paper: From Fragile to Agile: Innovating in Uncertain Times.

FRAGILE TO AGILE: LAUNCH OF WHITE PAPER

In the White Paper, we suggest a fresh approach to Agile Working. Many orgnaisations have adopted Agile methodologies to great effect, generating new innovations quickly. Yet sometimes the process can become bureaucratic and input focused, with teams managing the stage gates, roles and responsibilities of the Agile methodology, rather than focusing on the outcomes, which add value for customers and end-users..

A Blueprint for Agile Working

Our White Paper outlines three key elements to adopt, to work in an Agile way:

  • Working with a clear Focus
  • Moving at Pace
  • Adopting an Experimental Mindset

Through stories and examples from a wide range of innovative organisations, we show how these three elements can enable people to work with Agility, to generate value and ROI from innovation efforts.

Fragile To Agile White Paper Launch

At our breakfast launch, we welcomed friends from the world of Innovation, HR, Finance, and Procurement to hear from our Founder, MOK O’Keeffe. We livestreamed the presentation on Facebook.

After the presentation, MOK invited participants to break out into small groups to discuss innovation challenges they are facing in their organisations, and how having a clear Focus, moving at Pace, and adopting an Experimental Mindset, could help them to solve these challenges.

Key observations from Participants

Participants identified a number of key observations from their discussions.

Key themes emerging included:

  • Structures and Measures to drive behaviour and practice:

The need for different structures and measures to drive innovation at pace and with focus. These structures could include separate business units for innovation, integrated cross-functional innovation squads, or innovation champions to enable the business to move with focus, pace and an experimental mindset to deliver innovation. These structures should also build in mechanisms to involve the whole business in Agile working and Innovation, to ensure there is buy-in across the organisation.

  • Experimentation and Prototyping in a regulated environment:

It was well-observed by a number of participants that prototyping and testing seems easier in the digital space, and this might require us to rethink the way we do customer research, to ensure the solutions we develop are genuinely solving differentiated customer problems. We may also need to get creative about how we experiment and move at pace, to ensure we can operate within the (sometimes) rigid confines of legislation and regulation.

  • Shifting of mindset and organisational design:

There was a recognition that truly Agile working may require a shift of mindset and organisational structures from hierarchical to flatter structures for sharing ideas, and this would enable organisations to build consensus amongst their people around the Focus for innovation, and the approach of moving at Pace and with an Experimental Mindset.

Discover Agility for your Organisation

Our White Paper on Fragile to Agile delves into more detail, with our perspective, stories, and stimulus. Download your free copy today.

DOWNLOAD FROM FRAGILE TO AGILE

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