Building a Self-Sustaining Agile Organization - DSMAgile 2015
1. `
B U I L D I N G A S E L F - S U S T A I N I N G
A G I L E O R G A N I Z A T I O N
A L E A D E R S H I P - D R I V E N
A P P R O A C H
SEAN DUNN, CD, PEng, CSP, PMP
sean.dunn@ihs.co m
@SeanDunn10
8. Mission Command is the conduct of military operations
through decentralized execution, using mission orders
to enable disciplined initiative within the commander's
intent. Done well, it empowers agile and adaptive
leaders to successfully operate under conditions of
uncertainty, exploit fleeting opportunities, and most
importantly achieve unity of effort. Importantly, it helps
establish mutual trust and shared understanding
throughout the force. Mission Command is
fundamental to ensuring that our Army stays ahead of
and adapts to the rapidly changing environments we
expect to face in the future."
- GEN Raymond T. Odierno, United States Army
Chief of Staff,
5 May 14
@SeanDunn10
11. About me
• Internal Enterprise Agile Coach
with IHS Inc.
– Provides data and analytics
to a variety of industries
– 8000+ people internationally
• I’m based in Calgary, AB
• Developer, product owner, accidental
Agile coach
@SeanDunn10
12. “Agile” makes me cringe
My mental model != Your mental model
@SeanDunn10
15. Build projects around motivated
individuals. Give them the
environment and support they
need, and trust them to get the
job done.
but, how?
@SeanDunn10
17. HOW DO WE
ENSURE OUR
VALUES AND
PRINCIPLES
PERSIST
FOR GENERATIONS?
@SeanDunn10
18. C O N S I D E R
10 YEARS FROM NOW,
YOU RETURN TO YOUR
ORGANIZATION
WHAT WILL YOU FIND?
@SeanDunn10
19. Q: Where do Generals come from?
A: They are made.
@SeanDunn10
20. Now consider:
Where do come from?leaders
CEOs
product owners
managers
directors
vice-presidents
A: They are made.
@SeanDunn10
21. Hack (noun): A solution that solves
the immediate problem, at the cost of
long-term maintainability.
Scrum – A collection of
“organizational hacks”?
@SeanDunn10
22. SCRUMMASTERS SHOULD
NOT BE MANAGERS
conventional scrum wisdom:
ORGANIZATIONAL HACK?
WHAT IF:
MANAGERS == LEADERS == SCRUMMASTERS
@SeanDunn10
23. If your leaders can’t teach it,
How well do you really know it?
24. C O N S I D E R
1 0 Y E A R S F R O M N O W,
YO U R E T U R N TO YO U R
O R G A N I Z AT I O N A N D
D I S CO V E R A P R AC T I C E
T H AT R E S E M B L E S
N E I T H E R
S C R U M N O R K A N BA N
HOW DO YOU REACT?
25. L E A D E R S H I P ?
T H E V A L U E S ?
T H E P R I N C I P L E S ?
THE PRACTICES?
W H AT W I L L S E L F - S U S TA I N ?
maturity
26. To confidently walk away from
an organization, knowing that
they will continue to discover
new and better ways of
developing software
my success criteria:
@SeanDunn10
27. SOME PATTERNS
• Develop leaders – at all levels – to
be Agile coaches.
• Bring leadership into the
conversation.
• Underwrite risk.
• Take ownership of developing
your people.
@SeanDunn10
28. IN CONCLUSION
• Building a self-sustaining organization
requires deliberate thought, effort, and
investment
• Agile values are organizational values
• Sustain the values and the principles –
not the practices
• Culture is leadership driven
• Lead by example – model the desired
behaviour
29. More Resources
• Turn the Ship Around,
Capt (US Navy) David
Marquet
• Team of Teams, General
Stanley McChrystal
• Leaders Eat Last, Simon
Sinek
• Leadership, General
Rick Hillier
• The Generals, Tom Ricks
@SeanDunn10