chapter 4

Use an agile mindset for a can-do attitude

“Anyone can train to be a gladiator. What marks you out is having the mind-set of a champion.”

Manu Bennett

A sneak preview of Chapter 4

Agile tools and techniques are brilliant but it’s the mindset that sets it apart from the crowd – an innovative way of thinking within a positive, can-do culture:

• Tune into agile values and characteristics: There are traits that underpin agile behaviour which can be recognised and nurtured.
• Promote good behaviour: There are ways to actively nudge people in the right direction within the daily routine.
• Build a supportive culture: Armed with the right mindset, the supporting culture must encourage confidence, self-belief and ambition.
• Seek expert guidance: When necessary, mentoring and coaching can fast-track the agile process and help avoid classic tripwires.

Be a half-full glass

There are many different ways of working out there, all promising a brighter new tomorrow. There’s no cure-all solution, so debates continue to rage about the various pros and the cons of what’s on offer. But regardless of the approach preferred, the outlook of the people involved is of paramount importance. Mindsets always make a big difference.

It’s easy enough to extol the virtues of a positive outlook but what does that mean in practical terms? It’s often a fairly vague notion used during a rallying call or as an aspirational target at salary review time. It’s rarely backed up by anything substantial – no checklist of traits that defines the optimum mentality with guidance about how to get there.

Mindset is the final piece of the agile golden triangle. The working practices provide the foundation and a learning environment is a wrapper around them. Underpinning all of this is the pursuit of a culture where, among many other things, transparency is the norm and new ideas are embraced. Where an upbeat perspective is pretty much standard.

There’s nothing new about being a glass-half-full type of person and for some it will be like a duck taking to water. For others it’s a bit of a cultural shift and, as we’ll see, there’s plenty of supporting help around.

Encouraging good behaviour

Agile flourishes when there’s a can-do vibe and although there’s no definitive type of person suited to the lifestyle, there are certain behaviour patterns which are close to mandatory. This isn’t about a vague notion of always being positive and looking on the bright side of life – these are traits to help get the job done better. They don’t require a personality transplant and are attitudes which can be easily cultivated if the heart is willing:

• Committed: Aware of what’s achievable and going the extra mile when the going gets tough:
  • •Sign-up to stretching, yet realistic, targets.
  • •Deliver on promises even if it requires going the extra mile.
  • •Dedicated to the cause and determined to get the best out of agile.
• Focussed: Able to concentrate on what’s important and not get distracted by tempting nice-to-haves and general noise:
  • •Keep the business end game, the Vision, in mind at all times.
  • •Consistently deliver business value.
  • •Stay agile even when the going gets tough.
• Flexible: Capable of operating in imperfect conditions and working outside the comfort zone:
  • •Adaptable, pushing the boundaries of personal skills.
  • •Embrace change when needed instead of fighting against it.
  • •Adapt to plan B if things don’t go as expected.
• Courageous: Not only pushing boundaries and going for it but also not being afraid to fail, as that’s bound to happen sometimes too:
  • •Think how can it be done rather than it can’t be done.
  • •Go for what’s right and not for what’s convenient.
  • •Say no to suicide missions.
• Openness: Transparent, honest and willing to learn from everything life throws our way:
  • •Be transparent even when things aren’t going well.
  • •Tell it how it is and resist any temptation to spin.
  • •Declare issues and any faux pas early on.
• Respectful: Polite, courteous and able to see things from the perspective of others:
  • •Listen and fully consider other points of view.
  • •Treat others as you want to be treated.
  • •Remain polite and courteous even when the heat goes up.
• Challenging: Thought-provoking and always looking to improve, yet without being aggressive or unnecessarily confrontational:
  • •Constantly look for ways to improve and evolve.
  • •Question assumptions especially when they are long held.
  • •Never coast or rest on past successes.

There are going to be people with a natural disposition who get it immediately, and plenty more who need a bit of time, patience and guidance to get there. If there’s plenty of head-nodding when reading this list, it suggests we’re off to a flying start – an indicator that the way is an excellent fit. But don’t fret if that’s not the case, as for the majority going agile is a journey.

Setting great expectations

It’s essential to build a culture that supports and encourages the target mindset. Individuals won’t be committed, focussed, flexible, courageous, open, respectful and challenging if their attitude is frowned upon or even actively discouraged. There’s no point in asking people for any of these things if the world around them isn’t in tune.

It’s best to set the stall out early on with a shared interpretation of all those things that define the intended ways of operating. This common code of practice is best built by the team and bonds them together by defining a shared understanding and commitment. This is not a set of imposed rules and regulations and must never be delivered as a diktat. It’s commonly referred to as a Team Charter.

Involving the team and agreeing the ground rules, rather than delivering a fait accompli guarantees their ownership and buy-in. It’s essential to produce the first draft together in a workshop-style way, as the team interactions are almost as important as the output – with considerable debate likely about seemingly straightforward items.

An independent facilitator is much preferred for this, someone with a solid grounding in agile and previous experience of producing and using a Team Charter. It’s not viable to talk about the mindset all the time, so come armed with a series of other prompts to keep the debate moving. Mix it up with direct references and more oblique, culture-related discussions:

Values

Brainstorm the target values to live by. Expect respect and honesty to come up and make sure to throw into the mix focus, commitment and other aspects of the agile staple diet we’ve previously covered. Don’t see these as abstract aspirations but explore how the values get translated into working practices. These agreed values are at the heart of the charter.

Behaviours

Include standard good practice, such as there’s no such thing as a stupid question or ask questions if ever in doubt. It’s wise to touch on empathy and support, especially in a learning environment. Discuss the scenarios where conduct comes into play to tease out the broader principles. Expect each one to be supported by one or more of the agreed values.

Communication

This isn’t solely about the bread and butter decisions of whether to use Slack or WhatsApp for messaging or whether Zoom is better than Google Hangouts for conference calls. Pin down the personal etiquette for messaging, conference calling and emailing – and encourage fast response times with a tolerant attitude to all enquiries.

Meetings

This generic heading covers any get-togethers ranging from the famous Daily Stand-Ups through to workshops. Expectations include plenty of common courtesy such as punctuality and not interrupting anyone in full flow. Restrictions on the use of personal tech at meetings are also worth debating up front. This discussion does not include any event-specific logistics, so there’s no need to have a rule about the number of toilet breaks.

Responsibilities

Roles are clearly defined in agile, especially when using one of the popular frameworks, but it’s important to encourage a sense of collective responsibility, especially when things don’t go according to plan. Factor in an agreement for any rotating responsibilities and think about holidays and sick leave. The main thing is to deter ‘it’s not my job’ thinking.

The Team Charter doesn’t need to be all singing and all dancing. Yes, it’s about establishing clear working protocols, but the bigger picture is in describing the mindset and culture. Getting everybody singing from the same song sheet and getting everyone thinking along the same lines is the intention, not establishing a comprehensive list of rules to beat people up with.

Doing this when a new team is forming pays big dividends but it’s also beneficial when new people join, or as a periodic refresher. In any of these situations, discussing and agreeing the charter bonds the team together, building a shared understanding and commitment. Once in place, the Team Charter serves as a useful reminder if anyone strays off the beaten track.

Over time this becomes the accepted way of life and the charter is referred to less frequently. When it works well, it’s self-policing with only occasional reminders needed to jog memories, as the monitoring comes from within the gang. It’s important to remember that we’re not looking for perfect behaviour and occasional lapses are tolerated.

Getting expert guidance

Changing mindsets and building an agile culture is a tough challenge, especially from a standing start. It’s hard enough when everyone is as keen as mustard or to the manor born, but the chances are there’ll be a few who aren’t naturals and others who are not convinced and are sitting on the fence. Without doubt, an expert nudge in the right direction helps:

Internal mentoring

Typically, this is where the more experienced members of the team buddy up with less experienced colleagues. It usually happens naturally within peer reviews and one-to-ones and this type of cross-pollination should be part of the daily regime. It’s brilliant for longer-term development, especially when the right types step up, but not viable in fledgling set-ups with limited internal expertise.

External coaching

The best agile coaches are steeped in hands-on experience yet specialise in getting individuals and teams up to speed quickly. They know all of the pitfalls and revel in passing on their hard-earned experience. Not the cheapest option but by far the most effective. Choose carefully as the quality is extremely variable these days.

Formal training

Courses are a great option for baptising groups at fledgling sites with a short, sharp shock. Half-day or one-day starter training is highly effective for introducing the agile perspective. They are usually centred on fun exercises to illustrate the point, a powerful opening gambit that’s offered by most coaches as a standard part of their toolkit.

Fight off the temptation to go it alone on the back of one-day primer and a bit of additional reading. The most effective way to get off on the right foot is to get access to a coach. Learning to drive would be a decent analogy. Self-teaching based on observation and internet research is viable but it’s a route full of potholes. You’ll get far better results with the help of a qualified instructor.

Investing in agile coaching from the off mitigates against going seriously off-track and pays for itself. Common faux pas are avoided and the ramp-up time is shortened considerably. As this will be a key appointment, it pays dividends to recruit carefully. Get someone in to facilitate the Team Charter, and it will soon become obvious whether they know their onions.

An essential aspect of the coach’s remit is to build up internal capabilities. Coaching isn’t intended to be a long-term gig. The best coaches aim to make themselves redundant, so be wary of anyone more interested in maintaining their income stream. Expect involvement to be regular and intense at the start but to taper off within months. There’s nothing wrong with periodic health checks thereafter but avoid staying in long-term intensive care.

Building a supporting culture

Anyone armed with a positive mindset is on the right road, but it makes all the difference when there’s a supportive culture. The wrong conditions hinder enormously, as anyone who operates in the blame game knows from harsh experience. Equally, a conducive operating environment helps immeasurably. It’s so much easier swimming with the tide rather than against it.

Achieving the right set-up doesn’t require a mass conversion to the agile way – although that would be lovely of course. It’s more about the local eco system supporting certain ways of thinking and operating. There are two standout aspects for agile to be successful: empowering the team to get the job done and ensuring the business is actively engaged. Without either, it’s an uphill battle.

There are many influences on an agile culture, but few are in the same league as team empowerment and business engagement. They are the bookends that keep everything else in good order.

Team empowerment

This is having the autonomy to get on with things without continually referring back to a higher authority for approval. It might sound a bit scary but for many it’s not hugely dissimilar to what already goes on. The end goal, the Vision, is the guiding light but the day-to-day decisions about the actual doing is left to the workers.

Streamlining the decision-making process speeds up the delivery process without devaluing the quality. The business decides what they want, and the team decide how to do it. This is a sensible demarcation with each doing what comes naturally. This might seem to be a bit risky but in practice it’s not, because transparency ensures that the business is always in the loop.

This must be real empowerment and not only the ability to make minor, less critical decisions. Nor can decisions get reviewed and overruled. No need for nerves as there are plenty of in-built controls that prevent things from going horribly wrong. Everything to gain and nothing to lose.

Business engagement

Team empowerment doesn’t mean the business can define the Vision and then walk away. Quite the contrary. Agile expects the business community to have skin in the game and a vested interest at all times. This involvement comes in many forms, shapes and sizes but it is ever-present in some form or another.

Once the Vision is nailed down, the business plays a vital part in translating it into the component parts (the User Stories), plus it drives the prioritisation and shapes the MVP. A comprehensive package which is usually channelled through one representative – the Product Owner (PO). Plenty of agile-speak, but in essence copious direct and indirect business involvement.

All communications are channelled through the Product Owner on a day-to-day basis, but that doesn’t mean the business community is totally hands-off. All deliveries are showcased to the wider group before the D-day and this provides final confirmation that all’s well. If not, there’s an opportunity for frank discussions and a joint decision about the way forward.

The final word

Agile processes provide a fantastic foundation, but success doesn’t solely depend on having brilliant methods. Mindset is equally important to get the best results – having the wrong outlook can massively throttle what can be achieved. In fairness, that’s true of almost anything in life but it’s especially applicable to agile.

Other approaches tend to pay little attention to mindset and the surrounding culture, concentrating exclusively on reams and reams of step-by-step guidance on the how-to-do mechanics. Agile, in contrast, promotes a can-do culture steeped in collaboration. This positive, proactive attitude is imbedded into the practices and encouraged in the wider philosophy.

Not everyone is a perfect fit and, as a general rule, people bring all sorts of personal quirks to the table. The key is in building a glass-half-full culture and encouraging a collective spirit which helps brings out the best in everyone. We’re not in search of perfection but are hell-bent on encouraging traits known to help agile ways to become ingrained as habits.

Don’t expect everyone to be transformed into a superstar overnight. Expect teething pains and be careful when things are seriously not right. Ignoring persistent anti-patterns and anti-agile behaviour will seriously damage your agile health.