Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast: Agile storytelling from the trenches

Balancing Delivery Pressure with Agile Transformation | Antti Horelli

Jan 29, 2025

Antti Horelli, an experienced Agile Coach from Finland, shares insights on leading an agile transformation across siloed organizations. He discusses the challenge of balancing delivery pressure with maintaining agile principles, often leading back to traditional project management. Antti highlights the importance of establishing cross-functional teams and visual management while addressing the pitfalls of Agile fatigue and employee burnout. His experiences underscore the need for patience and adaptability in the journey towards genuine Agile implementation.

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ANECDOTE

Agile Transformation Challenges

Antti Horelli worked as an Agile coach in an organization with siloed development, QA, and support teams.
They implemented cross-functional teams, visual management, and joint planning, but delivery pressure led to reverting to traditional project management.

INSIGHT

Why Project Management Returns

Traditional project management approaches may be chosen when organizations lack trust in Agile's ability to deliver under pressure.
Management's familiarity with traditional methods also plays a role.

INSIGHT

Agile as a Delivery Philosophy

Vasco Duarte highlights a common anti-pattern: focusing on agile transformation as the goal, rather than focusing on value delivery.
Agile is a philosophy of delivering value, not a process to be adopted for its own sake.

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Antti Horelli: Balancing Delivery Pressure with Agile Transformation

Read the full Show Notes and search through the world's largest audio library on Agile and Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes.

Antti shares his experience leading an agile transformation across three siloed organizations: development, QA/testing, and support. The transformation involved establishing cross-functional teams and implementing visual management through a comprehensive planning wall. Despite initial progress with joint planning days and rolling wave planning, the pressure to deliver led to reverting to traditional project management approaches. This story highlights the challenge of maintaining agile principles while under delivery pressure and the importance of focusing on reliable delivery rather than agile for agile's sake.

Self-reflection Question: How do you balance the need for immediate results with long-term agile transformation goals?

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About Antti Horelli

Antti is an experienced Agile Coach from Finland, dedicated to empowering teams. With a systems-oriented, empathetic approach, he fosters collaboration and effective communication. With decades in IT, Antti transitioned from technical roles to methodology, where he passionately helps people and teams reach their full potential.

You can link with Antti Horelli on LinkedIn.