Explores why true organisational agility depends on empowering teams with agency, not just adopting frameworks like Scrum, Kanban, or DevOps, to achieve real outcomes.
You want speed, adaptability, resilience.
You invest in Scrum, Agile, Kanban, DevOps.
But then you ignore the hard part:
agency.
Without agency, your teams can’t own outcomes.
Without agency, your Product Owners can’t own value.
Without agency, your Scrum Masters can’t own effectiveness.
Instead, you get cosmetic ceremonies, fake backlogs, and teams going through the motions.
Kanban, as an observability pattern for value delivery, won’t save you.
DevOps, as the union of people, process, and products to enable continuous delivery of value, won’t save you.
None of these strategies work without the human system having the agency to act.
If you are serious about agility, you have to be serious about enabling people to own what they are accountable for.
Where in your system have you invested in agility but refused to invest in agency?
If you've made it this far, it's worth connecting with our principal consultant and coach, Martin Hinshelwood, for a 30-minute 'ask me anything' call.
We partner with businesses across diverse industries, including finance, insurance, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, technology, engineering, transportation, hospitality, entertainment, legal, government, and military sectors.
Slicedbread
Higher Education Statistics Agency
Qualco
Deliotte
Sage
ALS Life Sciences
Alignment Healthcare
Schlumberger
YearUp.org
Healthgrades
Workday
Capita Secure Information Solutions Ltd
Lockheed Martin
Microsoft
New Signature
Trayport
Graham & Brown
Emerson Process Management
Royal Air Force
Washington Department of Enterprise Services
Ghana Police Service
Nottingham County Council
Department of Work and Pensions (UK)
New Hampshire Supreme Court
ProgramUtvikling
Qualco
Slicedbread
YearUp.org
DFDS
SuperControl