Why is Agility Important in Business?

One of the latest buzzwords to be tried and tested by businesses worldwide, agility is becoming more and more popular in businesses across a wide range of sectors. Often mistaken with flexible working, agile working practices take things a step further, with the overall aim of implementing the most productive processes possible. 

Today, many big names in the software world make use of agile working practices, including Spotify and eBay. The idea of putting people over processes isn’t new, but agile working practices have had a big part to play in this business transformation. In fact, your business might be one of the many implementing agile methodology, without even realising. 

What is agility? 

Agile working began in 2001 with the creation of the Agile Manifesto. Founded to encourage better ways of software development, the Agile Manifesto is designed to aid collaboration and help teammates form responses to change, rather than following a strict plan. 

Because the Agile Manifesto is a philosophy, rather than a business plan, organisations are more able to adapt to implement agile ways of working in a way that suits them. The key features of this way of working means that teams can take on the elements of agile working and implement them in their daily practices. Helping employees feel comfortable with digital working, as well as allowing them more flexibility in the workplace, is also instrumental when it comes to managing change, making now a great time to look into agility for your team. In a time of turbulence when a huge number of businesses worldwide are facing disruption, agile organisations can become more resilient and react well to any unexpected issues that come up.

Why incorporate agile practices? 

As well as the numerous benefits for your team, agile working has a real impact on your business’s overall productivity, finances and communication. Those who make use of agile methodology or scrum training will tell you of the multiple benefits it has on working life as a whole, but the three main themes which come up, again and again, are the productivity agile working brings about, the communications between clients and colleagues it makes possible and the profits it ultimately increases. 

Helping your business create real organisational change, Fractal Systems partner with organisations to implement agile practices effectively, and embrace the benefits of collaboration. Through close partnerships, they help develop agile capabilities in your whole team, to aid your business’s overall success. 

• Productivity 

Forced working from home has taught many of us the benefits of flexibility when it comes to staying productive. Agile working makes this much more simple to achieve, with an employee-focused approach that means the target is always top quality over anything else. 

• Profit

Another perk of agile working is the financial benefits it can bring to your business. Because the methodology makes productivity a priority, your business is more likely to reach your goals more quickly. As well as this, though, agile working is recognised as a much more employee-friendly way of managing daily working life. This makes employee retention far easier to achieve, saving you the cost of hiring and onboarding new employees, and making for a much smoother and enjoyable working life. 

• Team Communications 

Because agile working focuses on flexibility, resilience and proactivity, it can have a very positive effect on the way teams work together: in fact, clear communications are one of the key features of Agile working. This applies to the way clients and your team work together, too. Agile working makes it clear that constant communications are the most important part of collaborating, so you’ll never reach the end of a project and find mistakes or feel unhappy with the way things have turned out. Instead, ongoing conversations keep everyone in the loop and prioritise ongoing improvements for the best possible result. 

Ultimately, if your business isn’t already implementing agile working practices in some way, it could be time to start thinking about getting your colleagues involved. While change can be difficult to bring about, the huge number of organisations taking an interest in Agile working shows just how much the practice can bring to every part of your working life.