I’m the founder of Agile People, a network of dedicated Agile People coaches around the world who are all passionate about combining people and Agile to create engagement. So, let's kick off this presentation.
"Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably the reason why so few engage in it." This is what Henry Ford said, and it says something about the way he viewed people. A few people at the top create structures of micromanagement that flow top-down. He divided people into workers and thinkers—the workers were used for their bodies, and the thinkers did all the thinking.
This is a picture from a Ford factory. People were indeed part of a machine at that time, all cogs in the organizational machine. Today, of course, the situation is totally different. This was the era of scientific management, also called Taylorism, a theory of management that analyzed different kinds of workflows. Its main objective was to improve economic efficiency, especially labor productivity.
How we view other people is the first and most important learning here. Douglas McGregor wrote a book in the late 1950s called The Human Side of Enterprise, in which he discussed Theory X and Theory Y—two distinct ways to view human nature.
If we view people through the lens of Theory X, we believe they are lazy, unmotivated, unwilling to take responsibility, and require external motivation in the form of carrots and sticks. On the other hand, if we see people through the lens of Theory Y, we believe they want to be their best, to realize themselves, and contribute to creating value for others—provided they have the right conditions to do so.
Now, ask yourself: how do you see yourself? And how do you view other people? The takeaway here is that most people see themselves as Theory Y, while only others are seen as Theory X. This raises the question: is this just a prejudice? If others were given the right conditions, would they also thrive under Theory Y?
It's really about the system of work we provide to employees. Do we believe in them? Do we set them up to succeed by designing a system that allows them to unlock their full human potential? Or do we set them up to fail by not giving them opportunities to do what they do best every day, not removing impediments, and not providing the necessary resources?
If every person is empowered to be their best, do we believe they will perform better and be happier at work? That is my question to you. How we view people affects how we structure our management processes. It all starts with how we see others and what structures we believe are necessary to support their success—or, conversely, how a lack of such structures hinders them.
I have written three books on Agile HR, Agile leadership, and human motivation at work. The first book came out in 2017. The second is a picture book with 220 illustrations that complement the first book’s message and is available for free download for conference attendees. The third book, published in September 2020, is a co-creation project between myself and 35 Agile People coaches worldwide, each contributing a chapter about one of the Agile People principles.
Now, let’s discuss some of the problems with traditional leadership and HR. The kind of leadership we saw in Ford’s factories was based on the belief that reality could be controlled and planned perfectly. But today, the world is unpredictable. We need continuous feedback to make the right choices along the way rather than relying on rigid plans.
Another issue is that organizations focus on shareholder value when they should prioritize customer value and employee satisfaction. Happy employees serve customers better, and happy customers create a profitable organization. Profit should be a consequence of value creation between employees and customers.
Evan Leybourn says, "You’re not in business to make money; you're in business to create value for a customer." When organizations focus on value creation, profit naturally follows. Similarly, Frederick Laloux, in Reinventing Organizations, compares profit to the air we breathe—we need air to live, but we don’t live to breathe. Likewise, profit is essential for business survival, but it's not the reason a company exists. The true purpose is to create value.
Many managers feel a lack of psychological safety in large Agile transformation programs. They worry about their roles when teams start managing themselves. Understandably, they may not be the biggest supporters of Agile transformation. Traditional hierarchical structures have rewarded ambition, power, and status, but these qualities don’t align with the future of leadership, which is more about servant leadership and coaching.
Another problem is that organizational systems often hinder performance rather than enable it. Control-based management models assume people must be managed and that the future is predictable and controllable—an illusion. Budgeting, for instance, is a time-consuming process based on assumptions that quickly become outdated. It stimulates competition rather than collaboration, creating a false sense of control while failing to ensure actual success.
Similarly, traditional performance management models are flawed. Annual review cycles are too long for fast-changing organizational realities. Performance is often judged by managers who may not have the best insight, and performance ratings linked to salaries encourage sandbagging and competition instead of cooperation.
One of the biggest issues in workplaces today is low employee engagement. Studies show that 69–94% of employees are either disengaged or actively disengaged—some even actively trying to sabotage their organization. Imagine the potential if we could increase engagement by just 1%! It would have a massive impact on the bottom line.
So, what should we do about all these problems? One key solution is redefining the roles of HR and leadership. The Agile People Coach is an emerging role, designed to help HR and leaders fundamentally shift their approach to support agility in all corners of the company. This role integrates competencies from HR, leadership, and Agile coaching.
Instead of HR controlling compliance and enforcing rigid processes, they should focus on adaptability, innovation, speed, learning, collaboration, and coaching. HR has been in the back seat for too long—it’s time to step up. The success of an organization depends on the conditions provided for people to perform at their best.
In Agile, we talk about T-shaped competencies—people who have both breadth and depth in their skills. This creates flexibility at an individual, team, and organizational level, reducing bottlenecks and enabling competency shifts without unnecessary layoffs.
The future of leadership must move from managing performance to enabling it. The CEO should become the Chief Enabling Officer, creating the conditions for success rather than dictating every move. Leadership should be like gardening—cultivating the right conditions for people to grow rather than trying to control them directly.
Agile leadership also requires new skills. Leaders need deep competencies in Agile and Lean methods, a growth mindset, a facilitative approach, and a focus on people rather than just numbers. Instead of micromanaging, they should enable teams to take ownership and drive performance.
Ultimately, we cannot drive change alone. HR, leaders, and Agile coaches must work together, breaking down silos and fostering collaboration across functions. Agile is not about following best practices—it’s about following principles, experimenting, and learning.
With that, I invite you to join the Agile People community. You can participate in a training program or become an Agile People Coach yourself. My next training starts on January 11, 2021. Visit agilepeople.com for more information.
Thank you for listening, and I hope you’ll take the first step toward transforming your organization!