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As organizations worldwide implement Scrum and Agile disciplines in product development, many are now exploring how to increase overall business agility. The goal is often to extend Agile benefits beyond just digital or product teams and apply them on a broader scale across the organization. But this raises a critical question: What is the role of managers and leaders in this shift to Agile? And, more importantly, how can you, as a leader, evolve towards a more Agile way of managing?
The journey toward Agile leadership is not straightforward. While there is increasing interest in the concept, there is still no universally accepted definition of Agile leadership. Instead, we see a variety of approaches, each providing its perspective on what it means to lead in an Agile context. This often leads to misunderstandings and unmatched expectations between managers and their Agile teams.
The leader’s role in Agile is evolving
“Agile leadership” remains a concept in the making, with multiple frameworks and models offering their perspectives. Whether it's servant leadership, Management 3.0, Holacracy or Lean-Agile leadership, each aims to define leadership's role in an Agile context, yet no unified approach has emerged. A month rarely passes without somebody publishing a new framework or attempting to build a unifying concept.
An explanation for this could be the current fight for the soul of Agile, the “enterprise-ification” of scaled Scrum and the ongoing existential discussion about the relevance and validity of Scrum and other Agile-related practices.
These frameworks or approaches have contributed to a rapidly growing body of knowledge in Agile leadership. However, the structured frameworks have not yet merged into a single, cohesive practice, and it doesn’t seem likely that a unified approach will emerge anytime soon; in fact, the opposite trend appears to be dominant in the world of Agile.
Current approaches to Agile leadership
Here are just a few examples of the different approaches to the conundrum of Agile leadership:
Scrum.org View: Scrum.org emphasizes a servant-leadership approach. Agile leaders create conditions for self-managing teams to thrive, focusing on empowerment, personal humility and enabling a culture of collaboration and continuous improvement. Leaders act as coaches, supporting teams in making data-driven decisions.
SAFe Lean-Agile Leadership: The enterprise-oriented Agile framework SAFe promotes a blend of Lean and Agile principles, encouraging leaders to lead by example, apply systems thinking, and embrace change. Leaders empower teams by enabling autonomy, balancing planning and flexibility, synchronizing across teams, and driving a continuous learning and improvement culture.
Jurgen Appelo's Management 3.0: Management 3.0, developed by Jurgen Appelo, focuses on empowering teams and enabling innovation. It views management as a shared responsibility, advocating for motivation, collaboration, and continuous experimentation. Leaders enable self-organization and adapt practices to team needs.
Holacracy: Holacracy is a decentralized management system with distributed authority. It is traditionally not seen as part of the Agile space, but I think it can be argued that it is so. Roles and responsibilities are defined, but leaders are not traditional managers. Instead, leadership emerges from the context, promoting adaptability, transparency, and rapid decision-making without a rigid hierarchy.
A broader perspective
It helps to take a step back and consider a high-level definition to navigate this ambiguity. Let’s get back to first principles. For our purposes here, Agile leadership can be seen as one of these approaches:
Leading in an Agile context: Adaptively managing within Agile environments, supporting iterative and collaborative work.
Leading with Agile methods: Using Agile-related frameworks and tools, such as Scrum or Kanban, to structure team activities and processes.
Leading with an Agile philosophy and values: Embodying the core principles of Agile, such as flexibility, continuous improvement, and customer collaboration.
A combination of all the above: A holistic approach that blends context, methods, and values.
Challenges on the road to Agile leadership
Transitioning to Agile leadership isn't without its hurdles. Managers often face significant challenges when working in Agile settings, such as:
Shifting from command-and-control to facilitation: Traditional management often revolves around directing and overseeing, whereas Agile emphasizes enabling and empowering teams. Sometimes, this leads to “Agile Theater”, an anti-pattern in which terminology and apparent actions follow an Agile framework, but the values and mindset are missing, leading to disappointment and, eventually, failure
Balancing flexibility with predictability: Agile methods allow for adaptability, but leaders must maintain a degree of predictability, especially for stakeholders who rely on consistent updates from their teams.
Navigating cultural resistance: Agile thrives in a culture that values transparency, continuous improvement, and trust. Cultural resistance is often a major barrier for organizations that are not accustomed to these values. Culture and values are the most difficult things to change, and if they are not shared and supported by an organization's top leadership, the Agile implementation will eventually break down.
Managers need practical strategies and a clear understanding of the key Agile leadership styles to address these challenges. Below, we outline three possible primary paths a manager can take in developing their individual approach to Agile Leadership, along with their associated traits, roles, and potential pitfalls.
Three Paths to becoming an Agile leader
I have defined three paths of Agile leadership to help you reduce complexity and find a direction for developing your personal role and approach to Agile leadership.
These paths are not the only way to become a more Agile leader, but they offer three suggested approaches to provide direction in your Agile leadership journey.
Shared Aspects
Each path comes with some shared aspects that are crucial to all Agile leaders:
Reflection and curiosity: Embrace continuous learning and openness to new ideas.
Self-leadership and perseverance: Lead by example, showing resilience and adaptability.
Systems thinking: Understand the inter-dependencies within and across teams.
Strategic awareness: Align team efforts with broader business goals.
Effective communication: Maintain transparency and clarity across all levels.
Transformational leadership: Inspire innovation and drive impactful change.
Strong personal integrity: Act with honesty and uphold ethical values.
Scrum values: Exhibit courage, focus, commitment, respect, and openness. Those are so easy to say and hard to practice.
First path: The Team Enabler
A Team Enabler leads from behind and within the team, creating an environment where teams can self-organize and thrive. This style provides clarity, empowers teams, and supports individual growth.
Key Traits:
Coach and mentor: Help people grow by providing guidance and feedback.
Collaborative: Facilitate effective communication and teamwork.
Empathetic: Understand team dynamics and how to improve them.
Be a moral authority: Speak truth to power in the organization.
Antipatterns to Avoid: The Invisible Hand (leading without presence), Self-Sacrificing (taking on too much).
The second path: The Customer Champion
As a Customer Champion, the leader acts as a bridge between the team and the end-user, advocating for customer needs and ensuring the product delivers value.
Key Traits:
Value-driven: Prioritize initiatives that deliver customer value.
User advocate: Be the voice of the customer within the team and the wider organization.
Product authority: Knows what to deliver and when to do it.
Pragmatic innovator: Balance creativity with practical solutions.
Antipatterns to Avoid: Fast and Loose (prioritizing speed over quality), Self-Righteousness (overruling team input based on personal views).
The third path: The Flow Engineer
The Flow Engineer is focused on optimizing the processes, tools, and systems that drive delivery. This leader ensures smooth operation across the organization by aligning Agile practices with broader business goals.
Key Traits:
Systems thinker: Understand how different components of the organization interact.
Method authority: Expert in Agile and related frameworks, practices, and tools.
Improver in chief: Adjust methods to fit the team’s and the stakeholder's evolving needs. Spot and fix problems in the flow.
Antipatterns to Avoid: Firefighter (constantly solving problems without addressing root causes), High Priest of Agile (rigidly adhering to Agile practices without flexibility).
Finding your path
Becoming an Agile leader is a journey, not a destination. Whether you lean towards being a Team Enabler, Customer Champion, or Flow Engineer, the key is to stay adaptable, empathetic, open to change, and accountable for your own professional development.
By understanding these different approaches, you can carve out and build a leadership style that fits your team’s needs and helps your organization thrive in a rapidly changing business landscape, but you should not let the concepts restrict your thinking.
Remember, Agile leadership is about more than following a framework—it's about inspiring others to embrace flexibility, learn continuously, collaborate openly, and, yes, deliver incredible results. Start your journey today by reflecting on which path resonates most with you and beginning to experiment with these approaches.
