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DFAS HEADQUARTERS, Indianapolis, July 6, 2020 — Coaches for the Agile transformation program say it is all worth their effort when someone on a project has that "a-ha" moment.
As the Agile movement grows, a small team of eight employees lead the way to expand the reach and influence of Agile across DFAS. The team includes dedicated employees from various backgrounds who consistently deliver the message of collaboration, and that working together on short, focused iterations toward the larger goal adds considerable value.
Over the last six years, Information Technology program analysts and specialists brought Agile methodology into DFAS one system and project at a time.
During their formal 24-month engagement with each system and solution delivery team, Agile coaches educate employees from diverse areas to learn and apply the four core Agile values. Those values are:
--Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
--Working software over comprehensive documentation
--Customer collaboration over contract negotiation, and
--Responding to change over following a plan
Agile Transformation Team members teach, coach and mentor employees to adapt their business processes to honor these principles and values.
Bryan Matheny, a branch chief in IT Assessment and Analysis, has led the Agile team since April 2019. He started working with Agile in the early 2000s in the private sector, before joining DFAS IT at the Columbus site in 2009 on the General Accounting and Finance Systems (GAFS) team. This is where Bryan's path again intersected with Agile, as the GAFS team was one of the first DFAS systems to work with the methodology in 2016.
"I loved the program, so I was excited to move over here," Matheny said.
Most members joined the team from areas inside of the agency. Currently, Pam Adams is the longest-serving team member.
"I've been with the team since it started in September 2013," Adams said. "It wasn't much of a team back then, it was more of a project than a transformation team."
She embraced the philosophy because she has repeatedly witnessed how practical Agile is for adding value and achieving quantifiable results. "Agile is about honoring those values of collaboration and interaction and having just enough process so that you can keep moving forward and focusing on deliverables," Adams said. "It's not just doing daily stand-ups or having planning meetings. Those are all ways to honor the values and to collaborate."
Bryan Conway has been with the group since 2015. "I came from another group that does project management called the Project Management Center of Excellence where we did more of the PMP waterfall style. Then I had the opportunity to join this group when it was only a few members."
David Mayfield joined the team in October 2016. "I was doing Agile for the 10 years prior as a software developer in the private sector and I continued to work with Agile when I transitioned to software consulting."
One thing Mayfield frequently sees as a coach is the initial resistance to change.
"If they don't understand how to use Agile – which nobody is going to know how to use at first – my job is to show them how it all works," Mayfield said. As a coach, he guides them through the ceremonies of Agile, which are different practices, tasks or meetings. "I walk through the ceremonies with them so they have a hands-on understanding and feel comfortable." He said once they are comfortable with collaboration, transparency and the culture of Agile, his job is to step back and let them take control of the process.
Bridgett Emerson and Jacob St. Louis came onto the team during their time as participants in the Leaders in Motion program, a former leadership development program at DFAS.
"I did a six-month rotation with the team, and I liked it so much that when an opening came up in 2017, I applied and I've been with the team ever since," Emerson said. "My favorite part of the job is witnessing that a-ha, light-bulb moment when individuals and teams start to see how the pieces fit together."
St. Louis's stint with the team started in February 2016. "Agile is not a one-size-fits-all kind of project management methodology or technique," St. Louis said. "However, Agile does fit DFAS especially well, and I've really enjoyed helping DFAS teams adopt it as a means of increasing effectiveness and efficiency."
"Our role is to facilitate change," Emerson said. "Change makes people uncomfortable. Our job involves teaching, modelling, guiding and coaching."
Change often meets resistance, which Emerson called "one of the biggest impediments" they face. "But once team members start to see the value, resistance fades."
Adams said teaching fellow DFAS employees has been rewarding for her.
"We're training people to do something new, so there are challenges and opportunities each time we have a new group," Adams said. "So there's nothing that gets overly routine, because we have to meet each team where they are and work with them to see the benefits."
In the end, coaches work toward empowering teams to continue their growth beyond the two-year program. Conway added the relationship with the teams continues after the formal engagement. "We continue to offer mentoring as they gain additional experience using Agile and face challenges that we can assist them with overcoming," Conway said.
Coaches emphasize Agile is something they have applied to various areas of their lives from home building, to planning a wedding, to managing an estate.
"Using Agile allows you to frame your life in iterations, shorter chunks of time, and then you can plan accordingly," Conway said. "You may not always have a working one-year or five-year plan in your life, but you can adopt an approach where you plan smaller periods in your life as sprints. All of the things you would like to accomplish are in your backlog, and Agile helps to focus your resources on the high priority items in the context of what you can realistically take on in that timeframe. This Agile mindset may make you more productive and happier with the progress you're able to make."
Agile team coaches infuse their knowledge and experience into DFAS and are eager to share training opportunities and project-based experiences.
"Agile clearly delivers value," Emerson said. "I feel delighted when I see students have that light-bulb moment when they realize Agile's value isn't just confined to the workplace."
| Date Taken: | 07.06.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 12.29.2020 10:07 |
| Story ID: | 385915 |
| Location: | INDIANAPOLIS , IN, US |
| Web Views: | 79 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Agile coaches transform groups into effective teams, by Christopher Allbright, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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