Agile Leadership

It focuses on empowering employees and teams with the autonomy they need to solve problems, create innovative solutions and learn from their mistakes. 

Understanding Agile Leadership

This kind of leadership is about being flexible and adaptable, it focuses on collaboration, communication, and quick responses to change. Instead of micromanaging, these leaders empower their teams to make decisions and solve problems together. 

For example, a traditional manager will tell the Community Manager what to do and will closely control their work, making them feel without decision-making power. As the CM evolves and can manage his or her work autonomously, the Manager must take on a more facilitative role and resolve difficulties. The big problem for companies is that teams have managed to evolve a lot while middle management continues in the same stereotype of being the team's hero.

This doesn’t mean Agile Leadership is about managers ignoring their teams. These managers will oversee the outcomes and their impact. The value it’s related to what they bring to their teams like experience; teams seek their advice or feedback.

What problems might we face with Agile Leadership?

One common issue is resistance to change. Some team members may be used to a more traditional leadership and might struggle to adapt to the more collaborative approach of Agile Leadership. This is normal for it to happen, when humans experience certain types of events a lot, we believe that it is the only reality and absolute truth. This is not like that, we have to unlearn and learn. You can try to manage this by offering training and education, being clear with the changes you will introduce and lead by example! In this article you can learn more about change management.

Another challenge is the need for constant communication and feedback. Agile teams work quickly and iteratively, so leaders must be able to provide timely guidance and support. This usually comes from a lack of self-confidence, not knowing if what they are doing is right, they want to seek constant approval. In order to work on this, you must help them by improving their self-confidence and empower them. You should always give feedback, but to help them not depend on it you must give them more confidence.

Finally, maintaining focus and prioritizing tasks can be difficult too. Leaders must ensure that their teams stay on track and avoid getting overwhelmed by too many competing priorities. It can be very helpful to teach abilities of organization, or facilitate a platform so they can keep their mind in place and don’t lose track. 

How does Agile Leadership help teamwork?

Transitioning to Agile Leadership doesn't have to be a very hard task and brings many good values to your team. Here are some of them: 

Clear Roles and Responsibilities

Agile leaders ensure everyone understands their role within the team and how it contributes to the overall goals it makes team members take ownership of their tasks and collaborate with the rest.

Better Communication

This promotes open and transparent communication channels, enabling team members to share ideas, concerns, and progress updates in their own way. Leaders also actively listen to the team members' feedback and suggestions, this brings lots of trust and respect. 

Adaptability and Flexibility

Empowers your teams to adapt quickly to changing priorities and requirements, this makes them more agile. It also encourages continuous improvement, this type of leadership allows a lot of flexibility in how to do things better. 

Collaborative Decision-Making

Involve team members in the decision-making process, you can get a lot of diverse insights and you can have a better context. 

Support and Recognition

Offer the team guidance, resources, and support to help them overcome challenges and achieve their goals. When that happens, recognize and celebrate it together!

Conclusion

Agile Leadership offers a transformative approach by prioritizing collaboration, communication, and adaptability. Do not see this just as a strategy, it's a mindset shift that brings lots of growth and success. Try different ways to do things until you find the best solution for your team, every company is different and we are all different too, so it’s okay if it doesn’t fit in the first try.