Why Do Some Agile Teams Fail?

Last Modified On: October 26, 2022

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Agile teams help companies face the challenges of a constantly changing market and adapt successfully to stay ahead of their competitors. The Agile methodology is focused on creating business value and putting customer needs first in a way that is both cost-effective and efficient. The Agile way seems beneficial for all companies, and it is, but sometimes implementing it in large enterprises can lead to many mistakes, and ultimately failure.

The implementation method can go wrong, or there can be many different factors leading up to this scenario as well. If not implemented properly, Agile can go from being a process used to create an advantage for a company to a process that will directly hinder its success.

To avoid this happening with organizations, keep in mind the common pitfalls and reasons for Agile implementation failure listed below.

Lack of Experience with Agile Methods

44% of the respondents of a survey stated that the biggest reason for the failure of their Agile process was due to a lack of sufficient experience with Agile methods. Agile is all about the mindset, but having the right mindset is not going to help any company if there is no one experienced enough to lead the implementation of Agile methods. Organizations need to invest in fundamental training in various Agile techniques through popular Agile certification courses from an accredited training provider.

Organizational Culture is not in line with the Core Agile Principles

Another main reason why Agile teams and projects fail is because of the existing organizational culture. The company philosophy needs to be aligned with Agile principles, and if it is not, it needs to change. By making Agile a fundamental part of all operations and processes across the company, it will create a shift in existing values and notions among the team. This leads to a cultural transformation within the organization. If this is not done, the company is not going to be ready to accept the Agile transformation, causing it to fail.

Lack of Support from the Management

In the same 9th Annual State of Agile Survey, around 38% of the participants claimed that they lacked support from the top and middle management levels. Hence, leading to a failure in their Agile projects. The management teams do not get involved with the Agile transformation when it is poorly planned. This leads to a lack of acceptance and enthusiasm at the management level. If companies have employees who are completely ready for the transformation but do not have the support of their superiors, it can lead to a disconnect and failure in the adoption of the Agile methodology.

Not Being Able to Eliminate the Traditional Waterfall Processes

Companies also face external pressure to follow the traditional and dated waterfall processes instead of fully adopting Agile methods. This impacts the success of the transformation negatively. This setback is more commonly found in large enterprises where both Agile teams and traditional teams work together. Since the enterprise-wide implementation of Agile has not been completed yet, the Agile teams will work much faster than the traditional teams. This leads to friction and conflict between the teams. There has to be a collaborative way for both types of teams to work together without bringing each other down. Otherwise, the Agile teams will get adversely affected and fail.

Communication Problem

There can be broader communication problems within the organization, unrelated to the teams, which can also lead to Agile projects failing in the long run. Team-based implementation Agile can only work if all the deeper organizational communication is managed. Otherwise, miscommunication can lead to abrupt conflicts, an increase in the number of bugs or fixes, delays, and even project failures.

Lack of Willingness of Teams to Follow Agile

Another big reason why Agile implementations don’t succeed is the lack of willingness from some of the team members when it comes to implementing and following Agile principles. All team members need to understand the processes and change their mindset willingly and completely. Otherwise, there will be a sense of friction and miscommunication within the team itself, leading to the failure of Agile implementation. There has to be a highly skilled and motivated leader to influence the team members to accept the change in culture, or else let the employee causing friction to leave to overcome the impediment.

Insufficient training

Insufficient training can play a big role in leading up to the failure of Agile projects. None of the employees could be trained, or not enough employees were trained, or the employees who needed proper training did not get it, or the training that was conducted was not very well done. This is why all organizations need to get trustworthy and renowned training instructors or institutes involved so that the employees can create a successful Agile organization. From leaders to low-level employees, everyone should be thoroughly trained in Agile methodologies.

Lack of Proper Strategies for Testing

Since Agile is an iterative process, the testing for each sprint also needs to be done meticulously. This will showcase how the project is progressing and what changes need to be made to improve its performance. If there are no proper strategies for testing made, the Agile team will not get good enough feedback. This will affect how the future sprints and iterations go, directly impacting the success of the project.

Proper strategies for testing are a must to ensure a successful Agile transformation for any team. The quality analysis personnel in each Agile team needs to take responsibility and create effective testing strategies that generate value.

Improper Alignment with the rest of the Enterprise

This is again very common for enterprises on a large scale. Before the total implementation of Agile, there will be a long period of time where there will be Agile teams and traditional teams. They can work simultaneously, but if their interaction is not properly monitored and aligned, it can lead to big problems within the company. Their schedules do not necessarily align because the teams work differently and in case the traditional team is not able to provide the Agile team with what they need, it can lead the Agile team’s process to come to a grinding halt.

This problem needs to be maneuvered very carefully as it can affect the entire organization. Both teams need to be modified to work together until the entire organization becomes Agile. Managers of teams that work with Agile and managers of teams who work with the traditional methods need to come to an understanding and create alignment to make sure all processes, Agile or not, go on smoothly.

Final Thoughts

There are a lot of hindrances to implementing an Agile methodology successfully. Companies cannot lose focus whenever there are setbacks because the chances of friction within the company are much smaller than the chances of businesses failing entirely if they do not adopt the Agile way. Companies can get through this with strong executive leadership along with solid training and coaching.

Some of the popular Agile certification courses that individuals and enterprise teams can take up are: