Being dynamic is the need of the hour for every business. However, it is only possible with the help of organizational leaders.
They play a pivotal role in a company’s success. But their leadership style has to be impactful and tactful.
Traditional leadership approaches have lost their charm. Modern styles, like the CAL Agile leadership, have proven to reap great results and are now being incorporated into leadership structures across the globe.
Agile leadership is a proactive management style that involves achieving organizational objectives with a collective mindset.
It entails being open to innovation and change, adopting a participative approach, and responding to adversities with tact while constantly inspiring the employees to do better.
So, if you want to become a progressive Agile leader of an organization, keep reading this article.
Qualities to Become an Agile Leader
Retaining your calmness while being in the eye of a storm is challenging but necessary. Leaders often expect to maintain their composure, no matter the circumstance. It helps them deal with the situation with a clear mind.
Agile leaders are the ones who have this ability and more. Instead of focusing aggressively on achieving targets, they are considerate and all-embracing. They vouch for democracy and unity.
They nudge employees in the right direction while simultaneously giving them the freedom and space to discover the solution. The team is empowered with the resources and knowledge to explore answers. Overall, agile leaders grant autonomy and independence.
How to Become an Agile Leader?
Being an Agile leader is an exceptional qualification. Like most other positions, you can achieve it by completing suitable courses and certifications.
The most recommended ones for Agile leaders are the Certified Agile Leadership Essentials (CAL-E), Certified Agile Leadership for Organizations (CAL-O), and Certified Agile Leadership for Teams (CAL-T).
These CAL certifications will help develop the necessary skills and proficiency for becoming an Agile leader.
However, the process does not stop once you procure a skill. Today’s ever-changing world requires you to develop and sharpen your skills with time. The same holds for Agile leaders too.
So, here are some tips on how to be a better and more effective Agile leader.
- Have a Global Mindset
Change is the only constant across the world.
Developments take place every minute, and you must keep up with them. Do not restrict your outlook on the organization, culture, team, or geographic area. Strive beyond this; take inspiration from national and international occurrences, experiences, and events.
- Determine Strategy and Objectives
Before kickstarting the entire project, establishing the objective is of utmost importance. It gives the team a clear idea of the direction to go.
In addition, discussions regarding the strategy being adopted will help the team understand better and motivate them to carry out their responsibilities well.
- Encourage Participation
A collaborative approach perfects your team synergy and lies at the heart of Agile leadership.
Influence and induce your team members or employees to participate in the discussion.
Give them the safe space and freedom to share their ideas and give input. It will automatically instill a sense of accountability in them to give their best.
- Build Adept and Concise Teams
Your team decides the fate of your project. As an Agile leader, your efforts will be fruitful only when the right personnel is on your team.
So, form a team of qualified employees with the right experience and mindset. Restrict the number of people, and keep it minimal as possible. It will help with more accessible communication and management.
- Define the Roles and Responsibilities of Your Teammates
A leader is required to delegate tasks while leading the team to success.
An Agile leader will do the same but also demarcate the boundaries of one’s responsibilities.
Assess the employee’s skills and assign tasks accordingly. You can avoid wasting time and resources by having your best people for the job.
- Coordinate with the Team Effectively
Agile leadership is all about adopting a facilitative and cooperative approach. Cross-functional teams may often lack in this aspect.
As Agile leaders, you should push your team towards coordinating and synchronizing their efforts.
It will help you remain in tune with the ongoing project and track the progress. Also, it will help you avoid conflicts.
- Support Unconventional Ideas
Agile leaders support and welcome ideas from all team members. Doing this often leads to many offbeat, unheard-of suggestions and solutions.
Experiment with such ideas while ensuring that their feasibility is encouraged.
Sticking to the existing ways may be a safer option, but do not forget the higher the risk, the higher the returns.
- Keep an Eye on the Market
Business markets are unpredictable, akin to a pendulum that can sway in any direction. Hence, observing and monitoring external factors is an active measure.
You must deploy techniques like SWOT Analysis, market screening, and more. These will help identify prospective threats and problems so that you can develop safeguards for the same in advance.
- Bear the Results in Mind
Always remember all your actions should ultimately lead your team to the finish line. It is easy to get sidetracked by trivial matters. But remain unfazed.
Keep your eye on the results you wish to see. Persuade your team members to do the same too. The goal is to achieve the desired results in the best way possible; keep reminding yourself of that.
Also Read This: History of Agile and Need of Agile?
- Stop and Appraise
While chasing your goal, it is essential to identify milestones achieved. However, you may also come across roadblocks. Either way, take time to stop and measure the performance.
Reflect on how far the team and you have made it. Take corrective measures where required, tweak your timelines, and identify any mistakes you can avoid.
- Promote Critical Thinking
Instead of viewing all situations and problems two-dimensionally, prompt your team to apply critical thinking.
It involves dynamic analysis and interpretation of the information at hand, establishing logical connections, and coming up with out-of-the-ordinary solutions.
Though a complex concept, an Agile leader can implement it for tremendous results.
- Let Yourself Grow
In leading the team, the Agile leader should not forget about themselves. As an Agile leader, you must learn and polish your skills constantly.
You should consistently get involved in areas outside your expertise and explore new arenas. Pushing the limits and experimenting is the only way to stay relevant.
- Listen Instead of Hearing
Though these two words are used interchangeably, their meaning is entirely different.
Hearing is more superficial. People mostly hear for the sole purpose of responding; they do not try to understand the other person’s perspective.
On the other hand, listening involves actively acknowledging and grasping a matter to offer optimum solutions.
So, always listen to every teammate’s opinions and, using your experience, take the right action.
Conclusion
Agile leaders embody ‘be the change you wish to see.’ They do not rely on other executives and personnel; they become powerhouses of leadership and counsel.
So, if you want to become one, promote creative thinking, creating many competent individuals. Lead your team by example, ushering the organization toward progressive transformation.
