If you’ve worked in Agile, AI, Digital, or DevOps transformations, you’ve heard the same frustrations on repeat: “Leaders here don’t change their behaviors.” “Middle management is resisting.” “Teams are bypassing fundamentals.” “We changed roles but nothing improved.” “People don’t want to shift their mindset.” “We’re using the tool, but the results are the same.” “The organization is not aligned.” “This transformation will take years.” “People just don’t want to change.”

These aren’t random complaints. They’re signals of a deeper issue: we assume Agile practices already include the actions needed for people to adopt new behaviors. And that assumption is the fastest way to increase resistance, multiply delays, deepen learning curves, and stall momentum.

Transformations don’t take root without intentional work on the human transition required to work differently. Yet very few Agilists can honestly say, “I spend 30, 40, even 60% of my time intentionally helping organizations navigate transitions.” We talk endlessly about change, but we rarely design for the human experience of adopting new ways of working –which is why people so often feel that Agile is thrown at them instead of introduced to them.

If you want to strengthen the impact of your Agile practice, don’t miss this highly interactive talk. We’ll explore 7 practical, actionable tips that will help you design, influence, and manage transitions in any scenario. You’ll stay engaged, focused, and leave with your own graphic organizer filled with ideas ready to bring to your engagements.

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OUTLINE/STRUCTURE
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0:00 – Welcome and Introduction

To set expectations, we will present some common real-life situations around Agile implementations (e.g. Email: “From Monday on, all the teams in the branch will start implementing Agile.” Public announcement: “This year our goal is moving to the cloud.” Town hall: “The future is bright! Our new operating model consists of a, b, and c.” Memo: “We will start measuring your progress towards Agile through this maturity model!”).

Then, we will ask “How would you feel if you were the recipient of those messages/decisions?”

We will close this section with a slide showing the most common sentences/complaints we hear from AI/Agile/DevOps transformations.

0:04 – Make Connections

To help participants connect the dots, we will have a pulse survey: “What actions do you usually establish to help teams and managers navigate transitions? Write as many as you can in one minute!”

o Silently, write it on a sticky note – 1 minute
o Share with the group – 2 minutes

0:08 – A Business Case

I will introduce my personal experience with Change Management –what I missed for a long time, how I got introduced to it, and the difference it made in my professional practice.

To make a business case for “structured change practices” in the Agile space, we will introduce a formal definition of change, explain how it happens, and outline the potential consequences of failing to manage it intentionally.

0:13 – Instructions to Prepare the Graphic Organizer

Instructions will be given, an example will be provided, and an announcement will be made: “You will be filling out the graphic organizer that the person on your right will take home. So be thoughtful when you fill it out!”

0:15 – Highly Interactive Presentation

During the rest of the talk, each attendee will be deeply engaged and focused: first, listening about a real-life pitfall (3 minutes), and then, filling out their own graphic organizer (30 seconds).

Topics to cover might include: Strategy and case for change. Sponsorship. Communication and narrative. Engagement and participation. Training and support. Mindset and behavior. Change design. Measurement. Sustainability.

00:40 – Conclusion

Takeaways will focus on the following questions: Do we underestimate the power of change? Why do we overlook change management? Do we need to learn about change?

Final message: “There are tons of useful topics and techniques that we can borrow from the discipline of Change Management. The important points are: learning that they exist, being aware that we don’t really use them, and understanding why we need them.”

00:43 – Closing

Next steps we can all take to improve the effectiveness of our Agile practices. How to move forward and available resources.

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LEARNING OUTCOMES
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- Gain a deeper understanding of the process of change and how it can impact our Agile practices.
- Identify change management tools and techniques usually overlooked in the Agile space.
- Learn replicable examples of Change Management best practices.

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REQUIREMENTS
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- Projector
- One graphic organizer per participant (provided by the Presenter)
- Sticky notes and sharpies

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WORKSHOP'S BACKGROUND
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In the last version of the Agile Coach Camp Worldwide, a couple of sessions focused on Change and the actual actions Agilists take to manage change intentionally.

Although at the beginning we all thought we were effective change agents, the conversations led us to the conclusion that we usually fall short. That’s because sometimes we misunderstand change, and some others we assume change techniques are blended into our practices. The reason? We were never trained in change management, and therefore, we don’t usually have that perspective.

Over time, the more I learned about Change Management, the more I realized I could have been 10 times more effective in the past if I had known some change practices.

At the Agile Coach Camp this year and the Agile Alliance conference, I realized that most of the Agilists I talked to were not even aware of the benefits we can obtain from having some basic knowledge of change management. The conversations became eye-opening for them.

So, I decided to share my experience and some tips with the community through this talk.