Agile Team Leadership The Art Of Letting Go

Agile Team Leadership The Art Of Letting Go

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  Tamara Sulaiman Runyon •  20+ years in business and software development management, •  Software Process Mentor for CollabNet, Inc. •  Certified ScrumMaster Trainer (CST) •  Certified Project Management Professional (PMP) •  Presenter for Agile ’06, ’07, ’08 & ‘09, other industry conferences. trunyon@collab .net •  Published author in AgileJournal.com, MethodsandTools.com, Projects@work and others. •  ‘08 & ‘09 Contributing author for Gantthead.com/ eXtreme Project Management. •  Currently serving on the Board of Directors for the Agile Alliance 2 1
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  Agile Team Behavior Leadership and Management Agile Team Leadership Balancing Leadership Styles The Art of Letting Go “A group of employees who have day-to-day responsibility for managing themselves and the work they do with a minimum of direct supervision. Team members handle work assignments, plan and schedule work, make decisions and take action on problems.” Adapted from “Leading Self-Directed Work Teams”, Kimball Fisher, McGraw-Hill, 2000 2
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  Self Managing Teams Traditional Teams Business value driven Management driven Cross functional team members Workforce of isolated specialists Limited role descriptions Many job descriptions Open sharing of information Limited information sharing Relatively flat hierarchy Many levels of management Focused on delivering valuable Function/Department focus software Shared goals Segregated goals High team member commitment High management commitment Continuous Improvement Incidental improvement Self-controlled Management-controlled Values/Principles based Policy/procedure based Adapted from “Leading Self-Directed Work Teams”, Kimball Fisher, pg 18 Empowerment is a function of: f (Authority, Information, Resources, and Accountability) IF Authority or Resources or Information or Accountability = 0 THEN Team empowerment = 0 Adapted from “Leading Self-Directed Work Teams”, Kimball Fisher, McGraw-Hill, 2000 3
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  Display creative Have asolid sense Enjoy unified and spontaneous of shared purpose, commitment behaviors Have high levels of Enjoy a high level Create energy and of trust – internal transparency enthusiasm and external Create standards Manage conflict of excellence Deliver results well through group norms Get better Adapted from McMillan-Parsons, 1999, p.106 Jim Highsmith, Agile Project Managment Agile Team Behavior ✔ Leadership and Management Agile Team Leadership Balancing Leadership Styles The Art of Letting Go 4
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  If you failto honor your people, They will fail to honor you; It is said of a good leader that When the work is done, the aim fulfilled, The people will say, "We did this ourselves." Lao Tzu, , 604-531 B. C., Founder of Taoism, Tao Te Ching We will talk about these ideas in new ways Peter Drucker 5
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  Traditional Management Agile Team Leaders Focus on clear goals, manages environment, provides support for team Maintains control over decisions Decisions are controlled by the team Hierarchical positions – leader is Works in a flat hierarchy – team “above” the team leader is a member of the team Leader perceives the group as a Team relationships are valued collection of individuals Relies on organizational authority Relies on interpersonal skills and influence “ Sheepherders drive teams Shepherds lead teams •  Carefully monitors •  Stands out in front of the performance, takes team, analyzing the corrective action environment for dangers •  Often concerned with i.e. “working the system” ‘lagging’ indicators, i.e. for the benefit of the team status reports, milestone •  Spends time developing measurements, etc. team members so that •  Comfortable with low-risk, they are capable of leading low-initiative cultures others •  Uses facilitation and self regulating techniques with team members 6
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  Agile Team Behavior ✔ Leadership and Management ✔ Agile Team Leadership Balancing Leadership Styles The Art of Letting Go My underlying belief: Everything we do as Agile leaders is within the context of servant leadership. We change our behaviors to meet our team’s needs, while modeling collaboration, trust, empathy and ethical use of power. We practice deep listening, self-awareness, commitment to others. As servant leaders, we are ever-evolving in our process. Servant leaders, like agile, is not something we do; it is something we are. 7
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  Centralized Leadership Shared Leadership Internal Focus External Focus 8
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  Ensure that the team is provided Encourage with a clear trust and vision of what respect they are to between accomplish team members Facilitate a decentralized, empowered, collaborative workplace Creates context within which a self organizing team can work Provide clear vision Generate Trust Build Respect Creates a collaborative Provides external environment or context Protects team from support and access to in which the team external interruptions resources grows Emerge as servant- Listens effectively leaders 9
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  Agile Team Behavior ✔ Leadership and Management ✔ ✔ Agile Team Leadership Balancing Leadership Styles The Art of Letting Go Leadership Team Styles Behavior Servant Stages of Team Leadership Development Situational Agile Practice leadership Maturity Team Transformational Performance and Leadership Commitment “The key to successful leadership today is influence, not authority” Ken Blanchard 10
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  Forming Storming Performing Norming Tuckman, 1965, “Developmental Sequence in Small Groups •  Leader driven •  Interpersonal •  Some team conflict arises members may be •  Process is likely reluctant to to break down contribute openly until conflict is resolved Forming Storming Performing Norming •  Team Norms have evolved •  Leadership is shared •  Core processes •  Team self-organizes operate smoothly – •  Process is adjusted most of the time when necessary •  Team is focused on work – most of the time www.teal.org.uk 11
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  Forming Storming Norming Performing •  Trust and •  “Getting to •  Trust is Relationships •  Higher know” you focused start to levels of stage into develop to a trust as smaller greater loyalty and •  Trust may groups or degree relationshi start to be built subunits •  Cooperation ps develop •  Alliances and are formed collaboration •  Trust is replace unstable conflict and mistrust www.teal.org.uk •  Team leader makes decisions. •  Some team members may participate Forming •  Consensus is difficult. •  Compromise is a frequent outcome Storming •  Team is able to come to consensus more often •  Win-win is more likely than compromise Norming •  Decision making is easier •  Some decisions are delegated to sub-groups or individuals Performing www.teal.org.uk 12
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  Forming Storming Norming Performing More directive leadership, Supportive, Team leader acts Team shares •  lays down as team member leadership clear structure’ between •  Outlines clear Actively listens members goals Leadership starts Manages conflict to be shared Generates ideas Team leader Leader helps takes overview – develop big picture Explains consensus Decisions www.teal.org.uk Team Situational Agile Team Leadership “Readiness” Leadership* Behaviors level Behaviors R1 – Lack specific S1 – Telling Training and coaching in Agile practices. skills; unable or One way unwilling to take communication responsibility R2 – Unable to take S2 – Selling Facilitative Leadership responsibility yet leader provides Coaching and Mentoring, leader as willing to try direction, uses two “expert”; leading through influence way communication and persuasion. Concern for and provides socio- relationships Semi-directive style. emotional support R3 – Experienced and S3 – Participating – Collaborative leadership Style able but lack Shared decision Inspire commitment and action, lead as confidence to take on making, maintains high a peer problem solver, build broad- responsibility relationship behavior based involvement, sustain home and participation. R4 – Experienced, S4 – Delegating Servant Leadership Style able and willing to take Responsibility has Leader influences and impacts team on responsibility passed to the group, through manipulating the system, not Leader is involved and the people. *Hersey & Blanchard monitors progress 13
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  Attribute Autocratic Style Facilitative Style Verbal Pattern More Statements More Questions Power Orientation Selfish. It’s mostly Social. It’s more “about me” about the group Influence Orientation Directive Consensus Dominance Level More dominant, more Appears less assertive dominant; style is more subtle Advocacy Rarely Neutral Perceived as Neutral Make connections and help others make meaning Provide direction through subtle control Invite disclosure and feedback to help surface unacknowledged beliefs, thoughts and patterns Build the capacity of individuals and teams to accomplish more on their own Operate from a position of restraint 14
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  Team Situational Agile Team Leadership “Readiness” Leadership* Behaviors level Behaviors R1 – Lack specific S1 – Telling Training and Coaching in Agile practices skills; unable or One way unwilling to take communication responsibility R2 – Unable to take S2 – Selling Facilitative Leadership responsibility yet leader provides Coaching and Mentoring, leader as willing to try direction, uses two way “expert”; leading through influence and communication and persuasion. Concern for relationships provides socio- Semi-directive style. emotional support R3 – Experienced S3 – Participating – Collaborative leadership Style and able but lack Shared decision Inspire commitment and action, lead confidence to take on making, maintains as a peer problem solver, build responsibility high relationship broad-based involvement, sustain behavior home and participation R4 – Experienced, S4 – Delegating Servant Leadership Style able and willing to take Responsibility has Leader influences and impacts team on responsibility passed to the group, through manipulating the system, not Leader is involved and the people. *Hersey & Blanchard monitors progress •  “You are a collaborative leader once you have accepted responsibility for building - or helping to ensure the success of – heterogeneous team to accomplish a shared purpose .” •  “Getting value from difference is at the heart of the collaborative leader’s task… they have to learn to share control, and to trust a partner to deliver, even though that partner may operate very differently from themselves.” Rubin, Hank,( 2009) “Collaborative Leadership: Developing Archer, David; Cameron, Alex (2008). Collaborative Effective Partnerships for Communities and Schools leadership – how to succeed in and interconnected world 15
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  Willing to takerisks Eager listeners Passionate for the cause Optimistic about the future Able to share knowledge, power and credit Team Situational Agile Team Leadership “Readiness” Leadership* Behaviors level Behaviors R1 – Lack specific S1 – Telling Training and coaching in Agile practices. skills; unable or One way communication unwilling to take responsibility R2 – Unable to take S2 – Selling Facilitative Leadership responsibility yet willing leader provides direction, Coaching and Mentoring, leader as to try uses two way “expert”; leading to consensus through communication and influence and persuasion. Concern for provides socio-emotional relationships. support R3 – Experienced and S3 – Participating – Collaborative leadership able but lack Shared decision making, Inspire commitment and action, lead confidence to take on maintains high as a peer problem solver, build broad- responsibility relationship behavior based involvement, sustain home and participation R4 – Experienced, S4 – Delegating Transformational Leadership able and willing to Responsibility has Though primary focus is external, take on responsibility passed to the group, team leader influences and impacts Leader is involved and team through the system, not the monitors progress people. *Hersey & Blanchard 16
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  Intellectual Individualized Inspirational Idealized Encourage Creativity Mentor and Coach Sense of purpose Role Model Stimulation Consideration Motivation Influence Agile Team Behavior ✔ Leadership and Management ✔ Agile Team Leadership ✔ ✔ Balancing Leadership Styles The Art of Letting Go 17
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  As we matureas Agile team leaders - we let go of our need for control; for having it our way. As we mature as Agile team leaders, we let go of our old patterns of thinking and embrace new belief patterns that are based on mutual trust, respect, commitment and collaboration. 18
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  As we matureas Agile team leaders, we let go of our former ways of being and fully embrace servant leadership As we mature as Agile team leaders, We let go of our bias for status quo - knowing that this too will change. 19
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  •  Questions anddiscussion welcome! •  If you’d like to email me afterwards: trunyon@collab.net 20