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Last month, the IBM Center for the Business of Government partnered with Ethos Strategic Consulting to convene a roundtable discussion about the use of agile practices to improve program management and outcomes. The ses- sion brought together thought lead- ers from government and industry to address how best to further the adop- tion of agile approaches across gov- ernment, focusing on the key areas of leadership and change management, transparency and stakeholder engage-
ment, and procurement and results. Participants shared challenges, suc- cesses and best practices for continuing to drive the adoption of agile manage- ment practices in government. Key find- ings and recommendations from that
discussion are summarized below.
Leadership and change management
• In order to successfully run programs using an agile approach, leaders must set a clear vision, empower team mem-
bers, stay engaged and remove any obstacles that arise.
• For some organizations, shifting from a more linear approach to an interac- tive/agile approach to developing and delivering programs might represent a significant change in policy, culture, roles, responsibilities and possibly even program oversight. As with any change effort, leaders should not underestimate the need to acknowledge and explain the change underway.
• Although agile delivery is based on
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