Following on from the Agile Change Programmes webinar on the 16th by Chris Ferguson, Director, Novare Consulting here is the full Q&A feedback

1. Content is based on AgilePgM™ which is a trademark of the DSDM Consortium
And “The Effective Change Managers Handbook” Copyright The APM Group Limited
The APMG-International Agile PgM and Swirl Device are trademarks of APM Group Ltd
The APMG-International Change Management and Swirl Device logos are trademarks of The APM Group Ltd.
Agile Change Programmes
Webinar
Questions & Answers
www.novareconsulting.com
training@novareconsulting.com

2. Copyright Novare Consulting
Learning Objectives Of The Webinar
• Gain an understanding of Agile
Programme Management
• Understand how Change Management
strategies support programme
management life cycles
• Develop an insight into how individuals,
teams and organizations are impacted
by change
• Understand change governance
structures, the effect of organizational
culture and the models and processes
of change
The Webinar aims to illustrate how Change Management
Principles underpin delivering Agile Programmes

3. Copyright Novare Consulting
Introducing Novare Consulting

4. Copyright Novare Consulting
Question: Summary of differences between “regular” programme management
methods such as MSP & Agile PgM
• This is a very big question, really deserving a “White Paper”. A
simple answer is given below
• MSP core concepts are:
– Principles – common factors that underpin the
successful delivery of programmes
– Governance Themes – organizational leadership &
structures to enable decision making
– Transformational Flow – the process model for
delivering the programme
• Agile aligns with the principles of MSP, but the governance is
delivered through an alternative model as is the process flow
• Traditional programme management approaches do not tend to
place the same emphasis on benefits prioritisation, the team,
stakeholders and empowered delivery frameworks.
• However, we have worked with clients to design governance
structures that enabled empowered decision-making whilst using
traditional programme and project management approaches

5. Copyright Novare Consulting
Agile v MSP Programme Management Principles

6. Copyright Novare Consulting
Question: Are there any tools/templates for reporting into a board who may not be
familiar with agile methodology?
• There are a number of useful documents and advice provided in
the Agile PgM Handbook in the section entitled “Programme
Control Pack”
• The Programme/Tranche Approach Questionnaire is also very
useful for familiarising the board with an Agile approach
• The Handbook is shown below and can be obtained from the
usual sources, alternatively please email
training@novareconsulting.com who can order a copy for you

7. Copyright Novare Consulting
Question: Any suggestions for how to work successfully across multiple sites,
including off-shore
• In Agile PgM the team is the unit of delivery, so it is important
that they can be moved through the Tuckman Team Maturity
model as quickly as possible.
• Agile PgM Teams should ideally be in the “Performing Stage”
• To achieve this we recommend investing in “face-to-face”
sessions to familiarise the teams with each other and with the
programme. Once this socialisation has occurred then other
channels can be used such as Webinars, video-conferencing
etc.

8. Copyright Novare Consulting
Question: Is there a recommended toolkit for managing change in an agile
environment?
• As explained in the webinar the people in the delivery teams are
your greatest “toolkit”
• However, both the Agile PgM Handbook and the Effective
Change Managers Handbook have useful checklists and
information
• The Agile PgM Handbook has already been shown, and the
Effective Change Managers Handbook is shown below and can
be obtained from the usual sources, alternatively please email
training@novareconsulting.com who can order a copy for you

9. Copyright Novare Consulting
Question: What approach would you suggest where you have to work with teams
that have resistance to change?
• Resistance to change is very common in many organisations,
and there can be many reasons for that resistance
• There may be organizational cultural reasons for over-arching
resistance to change
• In a high-performing change environment senior managers are
visibly supportive of change initiatives and “lead form the front”
as the champions of the change
• With your own team we would suggest that you surface their
reasons for the resistance possibly in a facilitated workshop
environment to reduce the sense of confrontation
• As we said in the webinar if people are uncertain about the
future and their continuing roles they will not always be
motivated to deliver the change – unless there is a compelling
reason as shown here

10. Copyright Novare Consulting
Question: How can Agile PgM help organisations with a high failure rate of
delivering programmes?
• Agile PgM or any other programme management methodology
do not deliver successful change on their own .
• The glue that holds it all together is the effective application of
change management
• Remember Kotter’s Eight Step Model which is shown below,
using this with an effective methodology is a great way to
improve the way that change initiatives are delivered

11. Copyright Novare Consulting
Question: In your experience have you noticed anything different about agile and
change management in local government?
• Novare Consulting have worked with many local government
organisations to implement “light-touch” project and programme
management methodologies
• We designed “MicroP2” based on PRINCE2 together with an
approach to programme management which is very similar to
Agile PgM, particularly the governance decision enabling
structures
• Therefore in our experience Agile approaches would work very
well for local government, as long as the programmes
themselves were suitable for delivering in this way.
• Remember that Agile has a “time-boxed” delivery approach,
which is only suitable where the requirements can be delivered
in a phased way.
• Agile is very suitable for things like developing local government
websites where you can launch with some core features then
add new features at later stages
• It might not be used for large, specification driven programmes
such as major building programmes. However, benefits
prioritisation is universally applcable

12. Copyright Novare Consulting
Question: Does Agile PgM provide an opportunity to engage BAU-oriented
managers busy with day job more easily in change?
• This is a great questions and reflects a reality that most
organisations face.
• Agile provides an organisational structure that clearly defines the
roles for BAU and the Programme Teams. This clarity can be
very useful for all to understand their roles and where the effort
is likely to be required.
• The role of the Stakeholder Engagement Co-ordinator is also
essential, together with the Change Agents
• However, without investment in those roles then there will
continue to be issues with those who are delivering BAU in
addition to programme/project work
• The Role Model is shown here

13. Copyright Novare Consulting
Question: Is there a recommended change management glossary of terms / body
of knowledge?
• Yes there is a Change Management Body of Knowledge
available from the Change Management Institute
• The text for our accredited Change Management training course
is “The Effective Change Managers Handbook” which is also
very useful, and aligned with the Change Management Institute
BoK
• Both can be obtained from the usual sources, or please email
training@novareconsulting.com who can order a copy for you
• The Change Management Institute website is
– www.change-management-institute.com

14. Copyright Novare Consulting
Question: What did you mean by identify organisation metaphors?
• Organizational Metaphors is the term used to describe how we
think about organizations.
• Gareth Morgan in his book “Images of Organization” describes
these, but they are referenced also in the Effective Change
Managers Handbook The most common are:
– Machines - can be designed and controlled
– Brains - intelligence-led and resemble a library and
memory bank
– Political systems - systems of government managing the
common and conflicting needs of various interest groups
– Flux and transformation - chaos and complexity, where
hierarchy and control have limited relevance. Order
emerges naturally
• Which metaphor would you use to describe organisations such
as Apple and Google?
• Would the same metaphor hold for a local council ?

15. Copyright Novare Consulting
Question: How do you baseline where you are before you implement change? This
is essential to understand the benefits of the change
• As we explained in the webinar it is essential to baseline the
existing capability before embarking on any change programme
• In Agile PgM this is covered in the Capability Evolution Process
in the Benefits Realisation phase, which consists of the following
steps:
– Baseline Measurement prior to new capability enablement
to set a benchmark for measuring improvement
– Incremental measurement following capability enablement
to show that the benefits are being realised
– Update of Benefits Assessment document to show the
current status of benefits
– Potential update to the Benefits Realisation Plan and other
documents dependent on experience and feedback

16. Copyright Novare Consulting
Webinar Close & Useful Resources
• Novare Consulting
– www.novareconsulting.com
– enquiries@novareconsulting.com
• APM
– www.apm.org.uk
• APMG – Agile & Change Management
– http://www.apmg-
international.com/en/qualifications/AgilePg
M/agilepgm.aspx
– http://www.apmg-
international.com/en/qualifications/change-
management/change-management.aspx
• Team Building
– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYlzSy
mbjwA
– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEJaz3
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