NimbleWork products have been the core execution platform for many IT service companies in India. We have a leadership position in the market, given that 4 of the Top 5 India based IT service companies use our products.
In my position within NimbleWork, I have often interacted with senior leadership in these organizations about Lean/Agile adoption. Their customers have often pushed them in this direction, often driven by a desire for flexibility in requirements and reduced timelines. They wonder if there is serious merit in adopting it or is it just a passing fad!
Several quarters ago, I started a Lean/Agile transformation journey for an IT service provider with their Leadership team. They brought out concerns that resonated with what I had heard before in my past interactions. They had heard many good things about such transformation. They had heard some bad things too. So, we conducted a 1-day Leadership workshop where we discussed these concerns at length.
In this Whitepaper, I discuss some of these concerns for the larger community:
- How does Lean/ Agile recommend that projects be estimated in the Presales stage before the deal has been won and a SOW issued?
- How do we deal with Changing Requirements? If Lean/ Agile thinking pushes us to keep taking customer feedback at the end of every Sprint, how do we deliver the original scope of the project on time and budget?
- Should we do Automation? Further, should we do Automation if the Testing phase of the project is outsourced to another company by the customer?
- We get large Requirement Documents. How does Agile recommend we handle such large requirements that come in bulk?
- How do we appraise people in Lean/ Agile?
- What does Lean/Agile have to say about people utilization?
- What metrics should a Lean/ Agile project follow?
These are the most commonly occurring questions during my training/discussions with leadership/middle management teams in IT service organizations.
Once you read this White Paper, you will be convinced that Lean/Agile thinking is as applicable to IT services as it is to product companies. Of course, it has to be adapted but then, Lean/Agile has always been about “Inspect and Adapt”.
If you have other questions that I have not addressed above, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at [email protected] or detail them in the Comments section of this blog.
