Since the COVID-19 pandemic first took hold in early 2020, the need for greater business agility is rising. In fact, 92 percent of C-level executives believe organizational agility is critical to business success. Yet only 27 percent consider themselves highly agile. The discrepancy creates a mandate to abandon business as usual and transform business operations for the new normal.
What is Agility in Business?
According to Dr. Saša Baškarada, “Business agility refers to rapid, continuous, and systematic evolutionary adaptation and entrepreneurial innovation directed at gaining and maintaining competitive advantage.” Author and life coach Zen Benefiel expands on the definition stating, “business agility is the ability of an organization to adapt quickly to market changes—internally and externally—[to] respond rapidly and flexibly to customer demands; [to] adapt and lead change in a productive and cost-effective way without compromising quality.”
Agility requires leaders to keep their eyes open and maintain a pulse on their industry and surrounding communities. Further, it sets the stage for leaders who aren’t afraid to disrupt the marketplace, be controversial and create positive change. It’s the individuals who are committed to ongoing education and share a perceptive awareness that enable us to anticipate change, respond quickly and understand when there’s a need or opportunity to pivot.
Three Pillars to Implementing Business Agility
Business agility helps organizations innovate quickly, respond to changing customer needs and transform marketplace disruption into a competitive advantage. Here are three essential components to creating an agile organization:
- Provide teams with the framework to be agile. “At the center of any business agility framework is innovation,” says John Leo Weber, vice president of marketing at ProjectManger. “People, not processes, are what makes change happen. Therefore, you must engage the right people at the right time and in the right way. Give them clear, concise, customer-centric goals. And promote self-organized communications and collaboration among your team.” Incorporate agility at the top and encourage it throughout the organization by adapting and refining your organization’s vision and mission to ensure its relevance in our ever-changing world. Communicate often and clearly. Give everyone a voice.
- Don’t let agility overwhelm you. After experiencing a crisis or upheaval, it can be daunting to start again, especially when it feels like more change is inevitably around the corner. Start with small steps. View change as an opportunity to grow, personally and professionally. People who can tolerate uncertainty and at the same time stay focused have a greater chance for success.
- Approach agility with intention. Benefiel advises that we can talk about agility all we want, but without intentionality and internal action, individuals and organizations alike will struggle to reap rewards. “Agility commands our best and demands performance beyond words,” he says. “Unfortunately, people are usually unappreciated, underpaid and overworked to meet goals. Leaders and owners forget about their internal customers—their suppliers, vendors and workforce. Change has been seen as too hard and a laborious process with way too much resistance. We get lost ‘in’ the business and neglect to work ‘on’ it from a human capital standpoint. People are priceless. Both employee and management must agree on that fact and act accordingly.” Communicate goals to align individual growth and improvement with that of the team and company.
Agility as an Investment in Growth
At its core, business agility requires a commitment from leadership and a learned mindset. It’s about welcoming change, practicing continuous improvement, engaging in teamwork and collaboration, and striving to deliver more value to customers and other stakeholders—all while eliminating redundancies, red tape and bureaucracy. Companies that encourage an agile culture and embrace change can turn uncertainty into opportunity, flourishing when other businesses fail.
