An agile enterprise increases value through effective execution and delivery in a timely and reactive manner. Such organizations do this by streamlining the flow of information, ideas, decision making, and work throughout the overall business process all the while improving the quality of the process and business outcomes. Unfortunately most organizations run into what seems to be insurmountable roadblocks to becoming truly agile: bureaucratic cultures; differing IT and business goals; short term investment horizons; inflexible governance; and little support for learning and experimentation to name a few.
This talk describes, step-by-step, how several organizations are evolving from today’s vision of agile software development to become truly agile enterprises. It briefly examines the state of mainstream agile software development and argues for the need for a more disciplined approach to agile delivery that provides a solid foundation from which to scale. It then explores what it means to scale agile strategies at the project/product level and across your IT organization as a whole. Your agile IT strategy, along with a lean business strategy, are key enablers of a full-fledged agile enterprise. Lessons learned from several disparate organizations, each of which at different stages of their agile transformations will be shared. Their experiences overcoming the challenges that they faced, and insights regarding alternative strategies they should have considered in hindsight, will be discussed.
