After nearly two months of staying safely at home, businesses are starting to work out how to get people safely back to work. And as we return to offices and places of work, pick up furloughed projects with renewed vigour and joyfully reconnect with colleagues and clients in person, there is no doubt we will return as different people, working different hours and, it's likely, from different places. For some, it's also likely that they won't return to a corporate office at all.
Many office workers, who were sent home on 20th March with shiny new laptops and printers and a new suite of collaboration software, have seen a totally different way of working and being. One that they can't now unsee. For those unused to flexible or remote working, the early curve of technology challenges and settling in frustrations was steep but - out of necessity - not insurmountable. Even those in global organisations, already accustomed to flipping open a laptop at home at all hours to connect with colleagues in far flung places, have learned how to harness their online collaboration tools to engage more deeply and enhance productivity.
I can't see us going back to the old normal. Everything has changed - and fast. The beginning of lockdown accelerated digital transformation and accelerated new ways of working for so many organisations. Within a few short weeks at the start of lockdown, we all saw an end to non-essential meetings, the reduction of unnecessary processes and laser focus on priorities. We began to manage our time effectively, and home in on the value stream. In short, no more waste. We started to become Agile. But how will post-lockdown workplaces and work practices adapt to sustain the positive changes we have all made, and help us to cut out the old habits and processes that were stopping us from being truly efficient and effective?
For those who are starting to venture back into offices, there will be some obvious changes. Guidelines suggest one-way systems around the office and canteen areas, the addition of protective screens, reducing the number of desks and people, and split team working. Cycle stores and car parking spaces will be in higher demand as people do their best to avoid public transport.
The trickle back will take time and some people may never return to full time office working. It's likely that large corporate headquarters will become a thing of the past as organisations shrink their office footprint ? and in those offices the workplace as we all knew it will continue to evolve beyond emergency safety measures to somewhere completely different...
As short-term necessities settle into long term game changers our physical workplaces will need to evolve into agile workspaces and the online workplace will mature to become a complementary, vibrant digital collaboration zone. Whilst it already seems clear that video meetings and online productivity systems will turn from novelty items into essential assets that support new ways of working, in an Agile world, what remains of our physical workspaces needs to catch up too.
Visual communication. Absolutely essential for Agile working are Kanban boards and sprint plans. So, optimise your office so every wall can be a productive space. Concentrate too on mirroring your physical world in your online world with your chosen productivity suite including visual planning, or task and sprint management apps.
Writable everything. Share your ideas visually in meetings by making every space a writable space. Walls are the obvious, but the simple application of vinyl on tables make them writable too. Most productivity suites and the new era of laptops provide whiteboard and sketching apps so you can do the same online when screen sharing or working as a remote team.
Co-location. Agile teams are made up of people with different skill sets and from different functions. Cut down on wasted time shuffling between offices and floors by co-locating for the duration of the project. Whether you provide tables and chairs - even screening and pot plants ? on wheels, or set up online collaboration zones using SharePoint or Teams or the G-Suite, enabling co-location is key.
Zones and neighbourhoods. Gone are the days of working in silos, with workers located based on their role or function. More important in the new world is what you do in your workspace, not the role you fulfil. Think of quiet zones or pods for concentrated work or sensitive discussions, comfy sofas and chairs for busy collaboration zones, and flexible neighbourhoods for when you need to belong with a group.
Always on connections. Given the increased reliance on and value of digital connections for multi-locational teams, and the proliferation of connectivity products and tools, it's not inconceivable to establish 'always on' connections between key locations. It's easy enough to do with repurposed Microsoft Teams-enabled meeting rooms or upgraded digital signage. The beauty is providing opportunity for those casual, spontaneous discussions that can spark innovation.
Clearly our new places of work have given rise to new ways of work. Whilst we might not all be certified Agile practitioners, we've all - perhaps unwittingly - brought agility into our working lives. We've found smart ways to connect when distanced. Communication has become more visual. Meetings tend to be shorter but more frequent. Planning and productivity are the watchwords of our working weeks. The need for businesses to survive the downturn has produced laser focus on what matters and has reduced a lot of the waste we used to carry. And the speed at which this has all happened has necessitated the streamlining of processes and cut out the non-essential.
I don't pretend to be an expert but there are some new Agile-inspired habits that must surely endure in the post-lockdown world.
Constant communication. Dispersed, mixed skill teams need continual communication. Slow, old school email is replaced with shorter, speedier instant messaging and constant conversations. Searchable, indexable, person-to-person and group conversations are complemented by online collaboration tools and knowledge repositories, accessible to all.
Collaboration. Being Agile is about bringing together skills and knowledge from different areas of expertise. In this context, collaboration is not only important - it's essential. Whether getting together online or face-to-face, sharing and editing documents in the cloud or holding hackathons to bring forth new ideas - collaboration delivers value.
Customer-centricity. Survival in this economic climate will require the refocusing of business goals and the redefinition of business targets. In this new world, the customer is king ? not the shareholders. Genuinely understanding what customers want, need and will buy becomes everyone?s role. As does telling the stories that will bring vision to life.
Products not projects. Being Agile is about focusing on value that makes a difference. Experienced teams will tell you it's all about products not projects. It's about delivering small, incremental but fully-formed pieces of value - quickly. Working in sprints towards delivering small, defined pieces of value, and establishing a minimum viable product, are the way to go.
Connected teamwork. This one doesn't necessarily feature in Agile 101 but we've all learned that a connected team is a focused, productive one. Being truly connected is something we've had to learn the hard way, and my greatest hope for the post-lockdown era is that the spirit of mindfulness and compassion that has swept the world these last few months will endure.
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