BOOK A CALL

October 14, 2014

Gen Y to Lead Agile Transformation in Workplace

By Russ Lewis. Published online October 14, 2014

gen y - generation y

There’s a quiet revolution going-on right now fueled by people’s expectations of work and productivity. Everyone has a fantastic user experience with their devices and apps at home, and see no reason not to have the same at work.

If Agile is about steady transformation, “big bang” is big risk

As the next generation take-on management and strategic positions they accelerate a transformation to make their organisations more agile. They take decisions to drive-out inefficiency rather than tolerate mediocrity; to improve by taking several measured risks and avoid the big-bang disasters so characteristic of the nineties and noughties.

Gen Y expect to enjoy being at work

The generational difference seems to be that Generation X workers will put-up with frustrating technology at work because holding onto the job is more important than the pain they experience, whereas the tech-savvy Gen Y prefer to move-on rather than feel frustrated. This ties-in with Dan M Pink’s assertions of drive and motivation - that people choose to work where they enjoy working.

Bring your own device (BYOD) is just one of the battles being fought on the front line of this transformation to a more agile organisation. Hard-line BYOD policies miss the point and simply don’t work. The rift between the business and IT is another that Gen Y is healing with a lighter, more agile approach.

IT folk are wired to say “yes”

People in IT love to find solutions and create new things. Anyone involved in managing technical projects will attest to the challenge of keeping a tight focus on delivery and avoiding the trap of trying to please everyone. So why are they perceived to be naysayers?

Some would argue that a growing demand of requests and insufficient resources mean IT are overwhelmed and have to obstruct the pipeline in order to function at all. Others suggest technical change is implemented faster than the organisational consciousness can soak it up, leading to a frustrating lack of progress. Unpleasant for both IT and the business.

Another view is that solutions are not often technical at all, but are to be found in workflow. Surely the voice of the (business) analyst, highlighting the sensitive gap that exists between business needs and solutions?

Transforming IT Naysayers into Business Enablers

There has been a healthy recognition lately that communication and understanding is at the root of the animosity between business and IT departments. There’s often too much focus on tech and not enough on results. IT people aren’t always aware of what is important and to whom.

It takes special skills of facilitation to manage the zone between business and IT, to help communication and to foster understanding – in both directions. Tom Wujec noted that teams of C-level executives achieved significantly better results when working with administrative support staff than almost any other group or combination of people.

Get IT Out of the Basement and into Your Top Teams

Fully engaging with business users to appreciate what’s valuable and practical is happening now in organisations whose IT departments have made it out of the basement and are able to communicate with business colleagues as valued members of the same team.

Old school traditionalists may be tut-tutting on the side-lines, but this revolution has been a long time coming and is gaining momentum. Don’t leave it all for the next generation to do in the future.

Categories:
Tags:
Newsletter signup

    Recent Posts

    Ways of Working: 5 improvements for leaders

    Most ways of working still rely on functional hierarchy, where managers make decisions and workers do the work. Managers know they can't change this work structure, but they can transform its effectiveness without asking for permission and without needing a budget. Before exploring the changes that transform the way people work, we need to recognise […]

    Read More
    Manage tensions if you want an agile transformation

    Today’s challenge is that traditional management approaches, where managers tell people what to do and how to do it, are not as effective as they once were. Agile transformation takes years, but changing management’s focus from people to tensions could be a better solution. It is simpler, faster, and considerably more cost-effective. Management is the […]

    Read More
    Collaboration versus simplification for organisational change

    One of my favourite books on organisational change is ‘Who Moved my Cheese?’ It’s short, and mice looking for cheese to eat is an appealing analogy. It’s a model for managers because it covers four theoretical outcomes of change. Those outcomes are: what happens if I (or we) do, or don’t make this change, what […]

    Read More
    12 signs that using 'ambidexterity as an agile transformation model' is not my original idea

    You see, I thought I was the first agilist to make the connection between agile transformation models and organizational ambidexterity. Certainly, it seemed original when it emerged in conversation with my supervisor. In fact, it was Dr Alireza Javanmardi Kashan’s idea (better make it 13 signs), but it came from our conversation so we said […]

    Read More
    What is contextual ambidexterity?

    Contextual ambidexterity is a culture that expects exceptional performance in both innovation and operation, overturning the illusion that it is either/or. Contextual ambidexterity is agile for managers.

    Read More
    The Future of Agile Leadership

    Introduction The future of leadership is Agile There are many different types of leadership styles and not all work well in every situation. The most popular method, the "Command and Control" style which has been dominant for centuries, may be on its way out as research shows that this type of leadership does not foster […]

    Read More
    September 29, 2023
    Ways of Working: 5 improvements for leaders

    Most ways of working still rely on functional hierarchy, where managers make decisions and workers do the work. Managers know they can't change this work structure, but they can transform its effectiveness without asking for permission and without needing a budget. Before exploring the changes that transform the way people work, we need to recognise […]

    Read More
    December 3, 2014
    Behold a new model: teal organisations are the new agile

    There is a workplace evolution underway, lots of people are signalling it. Dan Pink came-up with the label ‘Motivation 3.0’ in Drive; Jurgen Appelo followed suit with ‘Management 3.0’; and many of us speak of a move towards a Lean or Agile enterprise. Earlier this year, Frederic Laloux published Reinventing Organisations in which he not […]

    Read More
    May 19, 2014
    Google Doodle's Working Rubik's Cube is Engaging

    All rights for this image belong to Google Generations of Users Relate to Rubik Today the creatives at Doodle gave us something that perfectly matches its user generation that's interactive, colourful and engaging. A working Rubik's cube! Just last week I dared to ask why Google were paying their people to decorate the top of […]

    Read More
    1 2 3 11
    linkedin facebook pinterest youtube rss twitter instagram facebook-blank rss-blank linkedin-blank pinterest youtube twitter instagram