Steven H. Berez

Darrell K. Rigby

Sarah Elk

Agile has the power to transform work--but only if it's implemented the right way. For decades business leaders have been painfully aware of a huge chasm: They aspire to create nimble, flexible enterprises. But their day-to-day reality is silos, sluggish processes, and stalled innovation. Today, agile is hailed as the essential bridge across this chasm, with the potential to transform a company and catapult it to the head of the pack. Not so fast. In this clear-eyed, indispensable book, Bain & Company thought leader Darrell Rigby and his colleagues Sarah Elk and Steve Berez provide a much-needed reality check. They dispel the myths and misconceptions that have accompanied agile's rise to prominence--the idea that it can reshape an organization all at once, for instance, or that it should be used in every function and for all types of work. They illustrate that agile teams can indeed be powerful, making people's jobs more rewarding and turbocharging innovation, but such results are possible only if the method is fully understood and implemented the right way. The key, they argue, is balance. Every organization must optimize and tightly control some of its operations, and at the same time innovate. Agile, done well, enables vigorous innovation without sacrificing the efficiency and reliability essential to traditional operations. The authors break down how agile really works, show what not to do, and explain the crucial importance of scaling agile properly in order to reap its full benefit. They then lay out a road map for leading the transition to a truly agile enterprise. Agile isn't a goal in itself; it's a means to becoming a high-performance operation. Doing Agile Right is a must-have guide for any company trying to make the transition--or trying to sustain high agility.

Transformation Without Chaos

Doing Agile Right

Tim Brown

Harvard Business Review

John P. Kotter

Roger L. Martin

Lead change amid constant turbulence and disruption. Get more of the ideas you want, from the authors you trust, with HBR's 10 Must Reads on Change Management (Vol. 2). We've combed through hundreds of Harvard Business Review articles and selected the most important ones to help you successfully transform your organization. With insights from leading experts including John Kotter, Tim Brown, and Roger Martin, this book will inspire you to: Master the eight accelerators of strategic change Turn your culture into a catalyst for transformation Use your network ties to win over resisters Apply design thinking to secure buy-in Scale agile practices across your organization Get reorgs right Avoid pursuing the wrong changes This collection of articles includes "What Everyone Gets Wrong About Change Management," by N. Anand and Jean-Louis Barsoux; "Cultural Change That Sticks," by Jon R. Katzenbach, Ilona Steffen, and Caroline Kronley; "Culture Is Not the Culprit," by Jay W. Lorsch and Emily McTague; "The Network Secrets of Great Change Agents," by Julie Battilana and Tiziana Casciaro; "Design for Action," by Tim Brown and Roger L. Martin; "Agile at Scale," by Darrell K. Rigby, Jeff Sutherland, and Andy Noble; "The Merger Dividend," by Ron Ashkenas, Suzanne Francis, and Rick Heinick; "Getting Reorgs Right," by Stephen Heidari-Robinson and Suzanne Heywood; and "Your Workforce Is More Adaptable Than You Think," by Joseph B. Fuller, Judith K. Wallenstein, Manjari Raman, and Alice de Chalendar. HBR's 10 Must Reads paperback series is the definitive collection of books for new and experienced leaders alike. Leaders looking for the inspiration that big ideas provide, both to accelerate their own growth and that of their companies, should look no further. HBR's 10 Must Reads series focuses on the core topics that every ambitious manager needs to know: leadership, strategy, change, managing people, and managing yourself. Harvard Business Review has sorted through hundreds of articles and selected only the most essential reading on each topic. Each title includes timeless advice that will be relevant regardless of an ever‐changing business environment.

HBR's 10 Must Reads on Change Management, Vol. 2 (with bonus article "Accelerate!" by John P. Kotter)

Darrell K. Rigby

Books

Your next favorite book is out there