Have You Heard About Agile Leadership?

Empowerment and open communication are the future.

Sep 29, 2022

Dear leaders, the future is now.

What comes to your mind first when you hear ‘agile’?

Probably IT projects, Scrum, and project management. But did you know there is also agile leadership?

You might be rolling your eyes now. You have heard about emotional leadership, servant leadership, democratic leadership, strategic leadership, and many more. So, why to add ANOTHER one into the crowded space?

ONE right leadership does not exist. But an agile approach can spice things up.

Why? It empowers people to make their own decisions and provides loads of flexibility in how to do their best work.

What is agile leadership?

Looking at agile, it is:

Ability to move quickly and easily
Ability to think quickly and intelligently

Agile leaders listen and facilitate rather than dictate. They deal with changes, implement innovations, and of course, have effective and transparent communication.

Fans of agile leadership say it is the only way to survive the volatile and always-changing environment markets are facing. We have quite a few in recent years: digitalization, Covid, and war.

What are the benefits of agile leadership?

The three benefits are flexibility, speed, and empowerment.

Imagine how fast things could move when you could decide on your own. No meetings. No endless rounds of approval. It is tempting but also scary. Employees are not used to making their own decisions.

Agile leadership dissolves power and responsibility. There is no strict hierarchy but rather led decentralized teamwork.

As a result, employees in agile organizations are empowered to take control over their work and schedules. A culture of agility always seeks better ways of working, which often involves employees and teams being able to organize (and optimize) their own workflows.

This idea seems pretty uncomfortable for many managers. The work environment may have a long journey towards agile leadership if you feel your team won’t work without you.

Yet, try this type of leadership and get a lot. For instance:

Increased confidence and autonomy in teams
Empowered and engaged employees
Democratic relationships
Better communication
Continuous learning
Quicker decisions
Well-being

So far it sounds too good to be true.

Why is agile leadership useful?

Wouldn’t it be great to work with people whom you can trust and openly discuss your job? No office politics and games.

Agile leadership values open communication:

The Agile Leader’s job is to facilitate an environment where people and teams grow, work together, laugh, build trust, and do things beyond the exceptional for customers.

This leadership style is always up to date. Leaders understand how changes in the market, the economy, and how public health can impact the workplace.

It empowers people. It lets them explore their strengths and potential. You don't need to push development too hard as your staff is encouraged to grow naturally. You do not need to tell everyone what to do and how.

It saves time and money.

Plus, if there is one function of leadership in general, it is the purpose. It always has customers and clients in mind.

What skills do you need as an agile leader?

The skills may not differ dramatically from what you would think about leadership. But the power is in their combination:

Purpose in mind

Unless you know why and for what you are deciding, it is impossible to make an informed decision. Agile leaders need a clear purpose in mind. Without vision, you can hardly work with others.

Why do you do what you do? Why is it important? What value do you deliver as a team?

Open communication

I could talk about communication all the time. If you want to operate successfully in a volatile environment, you need to make sure information is available to everyone. Create and experiment with a reliable system of updates.

At the same time, you facilitate discussions and let others thrive.

Listen and ask a lot of questions

A huge part of open communication is working on your ability to listen and ask questions. Involve people in the process of making a decision and setting strategies.

Being a ‘don’t knower’ is sometimes the best thing you can do for your team. Use their potential and let them talk.

Be up-to-date

How many ‘traditional’ companies are truly up-to-date? I still remember when one of my former companies launched their automated solutions ten years after others had done it. They called it a success. Haha!

Be on the watch for innovation and welcome any experiment others suggest.

Care and be flexible

No one likes changes. Yet, agile leaders need to learn how to handle them. They help others overcome disappointment, frustration, and pressure.

When you care about others, be positive. Support their well-being. That is how you create great working conditions and make your staff loyal.

So, ready to explore agile leadership more?

Use this overview of skills for inspiration. Experiment and see what comes back. Giving flexibility is giving trust.

You may have difficulty imagining it now, but people work even if you don’t watch. Try to be more flexible and build an environment that lets people thrive.

I help people like you build such leadership skills. Interested?

Let's talk

See you next week!