3 Tips for Building the Right Agile Team

By Moye Balogun

1.    Employ Emotionally Intelligent Team Members
Contrary to what one might assume, studies show that when building an Agile team, having members that are more emotionally intelligent rather than solely highly knowledgeable results in the most success. This does not mean one should hire completely unqualified candidates, but that emotionally intelligent, skilled workers who may be less knowledgeable than simply very experienced workers, have been proven to be more beneficial for a team. Emotional intelligence becomes crucial in how well a team communicates and consequently, how well they solve problems. Those who are emotionally intelligent might not know all the answers, but will be more likely to feel comfortable helping their team members through potential issues.

2.    Strive for Self-Organization
Unlike most of the early jobs in the 20thcentury, the members of an Agile team are made up of people with years of experience and expertise in their respective professions. Due to this, an Agile manager cannot be as knowledgeable as his/her team and much of the decision-making for the project will be done by the team itself, making the team self-organized. Though it may be difficult, it is important that project managers practice restraint and allow the team to function by themselves instead of directing them. Team members should be the ones planning and estimating their work and handling the tasks that would usually be given to a traditional team’s project manager.

3.    Work Closely with the Customer
In Agile, the customer is an extremely important part of the project’s development and will work closely to create the product vision, make the acceptance criteria, write the user stories, maintain and refine the backlog, and a whole host of other tasks. This is quite different from traditional teams where the customer simply gives the team the requirements and leaves them to do all the work. The customer is considered a part of the team and is partially responsible for the project’s outcome, whether that is a success or a failure.

Sources

https://www.learningsolutionsmag.com/articles/2300/agile-teams-build-the-right-team-build-the-team-right

https://www.lynda.com/Business-Skills-tutorials/Defining-agile-team-roles/175073/379419-4.html

http://www.agilemodeling.com/essays/agileCriteria.htm

https://apiumhub.com/tech-blog-barcelona/building-agile-team/

https://suecoyne.com/leadership/5-key-points-to-successful-emotionally-intelligent-leadership/

http://corpusoptima.com/tag/self-organization/

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/why-sales-marketing-customer-service-must-work-together-daniel-newman/