New leadership in the age of digitalisation

Our ‘Let's talk agile!’ Meetup series continues!

In May 2021, we launched the digital lecture and discussion series ‘Let's talk agile!’ on the Meetup platform.

What motivated us to do this?

The key insight from our work in agile teams and organisations is that the idea of continuous development must also be applied to oneself. Ambiguity requires continuous learning, rethinking and reorganisation and increases the relevance of exchange and networking with others.

We know that working successfully in an agile organisational environment requires courageous trial and error and experimentation. Anyone who engages with agile working is aware of the numerous benefits as well as the challenges, which can vary greatly depending on the environment. Working in an agile context is about continuous learning and having the courage to admit mistakes and draw new things from them.

The second panel discussion with Dr. Marcus Raitner dealt with the topic of ‘Modern leadership in the digital age’. Look forward to the upcoming Meetups!

Change begins with leadership and leadership behaviour.

Dr. Marcus Raitner

Missed the event?
We summarise Marcus' key messages for you!

Why agility?
Agility is the answer to an increasingly fast-paced and complex business environment.
This can be summarised briefly with the acronym VUCA. VUCA stands for Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity.
One response to VUCA can be agility: according to Marcus, companies should operate with more vibrancy and variety in the working environment in order to ensure constant development and the need for change.
The four pillars of agile transformation
Marcus names the four pillars of agile transformation:
Processes: Product orientation enables agile development.
Technology: Enabling continuous transparency and networking through integrated methods and technologies.
Structure: Clearly defined framework conditions and goals in the form of facts and figures are essential on the path to an agile organisation.
Culture: Appreciation, trust, responsibility, openness and transparency enable a strong learning culture.
Leadership principles / core requirements for new leadership
Agility needs new leadership. The core task of leadership is to develop employees and provide them with the context they need to make decisions. This results in six leadership principles:
Developing human potential more than deploying human resources.
Meaning and trust more than command and control.
Creating leaders more than leading followers.
Diversity and dissent more than conformity and consensus.
Contributions to networks more than positions in hierarchies.
Courageously exploring the new more than efficiently utilising the known.