Those of you in IT probably are already familiar with Agile - a software development methodology intended to yield beneficial outcomes in chunks so that time, resources, and dollars are not wasted on work that never comes to fruition. But now organizations outside of IT are jumping on the Agile bandwagon to do all sorts of things: developing training offerings, creating marketing campaigns, implementing HR processes... the list goes on.

Agile teams learn how to time-box their work to produce outcome-oriented deliverables. Agile principles promote the concept that all work must contribute to demonstrable business benefit.  Continuous stakeholder involvement and feedback on visible work products support the goal of faster time to value. 

From an organization development perspective, these principles promote:

great team dynamics
strong line of sight to business strategy
clear accountability
empowered teams and self-directed management
high visibility of individual contributions
frequent recognition and celebration of team accomplishments
recurring reflection and continuous improvement 

Traditional methods of project management helped teams assess progress against the plan, but Agile methods turned that around to help teams plan the work that can be accomplished.  Agile isn't for everyone, but if you are willing to re-think current paradigms, experimenting with Agile can help you build a stronger, more effective organization. Marisa Sanchez 

What is the meaning of Organization Development (OD)?  Why do it?  Who does it benefit and how?Organization development is a broad field that draws from a number of disciplines and can be applied to any organized (or disorganized!) group of people. Based in human behavior theories and values, the goal is to build and sustain effective organizations by leveraging the knowledge and experience within the organization. This newsletter serves as a vehicle to inspire you to use organizationdevelopment in your own work.

Benefits of "Agile" in Building Effective Organizations