Enterprise Agility For Dummies

Chapter 12

Ten Reasons Enterprise Agile Transformations Fail

IN THIS CHAPTER

Recognizing key challenges

Avoiding common pitfalls

Getting started in the right direction

Every organization that succeeds in transforming into an agile enterprise does so in a unique way. Organizations that fail often do so for similar reasons. In this chapter, I point out the ten most common reasons enterprise agile transformations fail. By knowing the most common reasons for failure, you have a better chance of avoiding disaster.

The Organization’s Culture Clashes with Agile Values

Many organizations have a disconnect between what they are and what they’d like to be. They may see themselves as nimble, high-tech companies, when in reality they have a strong command-and-control culture. Having a strong control culture is fine. In fact, large organizations with well-established functional areas often do very well. However, organizations often struggle to implement big changes when they overlook their control culture as a challenge to overcome. They don’t have any interest in changing their core values; they want agile to “fit in.”

An enterprise agile transformation is a radical organizational change. While ...