To effectively practice SEM, you must first build agile teams. But what kind of team is truly suitable for Scrum? Let’s explore this question today.
Recently, I encountered an interesting scenario. While discussing agile practices with a team, a highly influential stakeholder immediately voiced concerns, questioning whether the team’s readiness and structure were suitable for agile implementation. This reaction raises an important question: Is agile truly as daunting as a tiger—so formidable that teams hesitate to approach it?
Before we address that, let’s briefly consider a “chicken-and-egg” scenario: Which came first, the concept of agile or agile practices themselves? Logically speaking, the practices likely came first. Historically, the Agile Manifesto, with its four values and twelve principles, was born in 2001 when seventeen visionaries gathered to transform their insights into a revolutionary movement. But agile methodologies such as Rapid Application Development (RAD), Dynamic Systems Development Method (DSDM), Scrum, Crystal Clear, Extreme Programming (XP), and Feature-Driven Development (FDD) emerged throughout the 1990s—real-world practices born from continuous trials, failures, and improvements amid intense market pressures and rapidly changing user demands.
Did those pioneering teams have ideal conditions, exceptional talent, cutting-edge tools, or highly refined processes? Often not. Instead, agile methods emerged precisely because teams needed practical ways to respond quickly to change in challenging environments. Agile approaches were refined through real projects, learning and adapting with each experience.
So, what should teams prepare to become agile?
First, leadership must clearly understand and embrace the core concept: rapidly delivering valuable products to the market for early feedback and validation. Many leaders might say they already believe this—but turning a fleeting idea into a strong, actionable conviction is critical. True belief moves beyond momentary inspiration and becomes the foundation for a lasting change in management style.
Second, leaders must be prepared to rethink their approach to managing teams. Shifting the team toward agility requires personal transformation first—changing your mindset and practices in managing people and processes.
Once leadership commitment is established, you can begin assembling the team according to your specific context (product goals, budget, and resources). If budget permits, recruiting experienced agile professionals is beneficial; otherwise, working patiently with your existing talent to cultivate collaboration and learning capabilities is essential. The key factor determining how quickly a team achieves agility is their collaborative dynamics: highly cooperative teams tend to transition smoothly from formation to productivity, while others may require more initial adjustment.
It’s important to remember that embedding an agile mindset within leadership is critical—merely “parachuting” agile practices into a team without this mindset usually results in failure. Conversely, a team with less capability but strong agile leadership can steadily improve through continuous learning and iterative enhancements.
So what exactly defines an agile team? Is it only teams that reach a perfect state of agility? If so, truly agile teams might be rare. In reality, an agile team is any group committed to the values of agility—flexibility, continuous learning, collaboration, and constant improvement.
As we move forward, remember this old wisdom: the best time to start was yesterday, but the next best time is now. By practicing SEM today, you empower your organization to swiftly and effectively adapt to ongoing, complex changes.