Whether it is flexibility, improved culture or higher levels of creativity, an agile working environment has a range of benefits.
An agile workforce refers to groups or teams that can adapt quickly and address workplace challenges effectively, with minimal disruption to the wider company. Rather than working towards a singular goal, agile teams break work down into smaller, more manageable tasks, building up skill and remaining in close contact with one another.
For companies and individuals, the benefits of agile working include higher productivity, improved flexibility, additional opportunities for outside of the box thinking and more, but how can organisations leverage their talents to build a strong agile workforce?
Prioritise retention
A key aspect of an agile workforce is in the individual employee’s ability to approach a new task armed with a barrage of skills to be applied in a broad range of areas. By looking into company life, the aspects that appeal to employees and the areas most in need of improvement, employers can improve retention, avoiding the loss of talented workers and the creation of skill gaps.
Be generous with opportunities
While it is important that skills be both broad and niche it is also crucial that employees have skill diversity and are not gatekeeping or withholding knowledge, information or opportunities.
As previously noted, if a talented employee leaves suddenly or is unavailable, skill gaps will emerge, delay projects and throw off the overall rhythm. Access to upskilling should be equal and should also take into consideration the talents that are already covered, with a focus on less common or developed abilities.
Keep moving
By virtue of skill level and commitment to continuous learning, agile employees should be capable of stepping in to take over or contribute to projects and tasks where needed. However, cross-collaboration for the purpose of learning and becoming acclimated should also be encouraged, not just in situations where time or resources are limited. It will also build up communication skills, enabling agile employees to work cohesively, which is also a key component of this particular working method.
There should also be room for experimentation, enabling employees to research, innovate and learn in new areas, without fear of criticism or failure. Brainstorming and group activities are an ideal way for team members to voice their opinions and offer suggestions to tackle company challenges.
Casting a wide net
Flexible working and movement between teams is at the core of successful agile working. Because of that, organisations could benefit from casting a wider net when recruiting talent.
Global and remote hiring would enable employers to pick the best of the best from a much larger pool, ensuring a wider range of skills. This would also give companies the opportunity to increase specific skills related to DEI, culture and language, as they recruit employees from diverse backgrounds and regions.
Don’t sleep on soft skills
There is hardly a job today that doesn’t require a range of soft skills. When it comes to agile working, they are crucial. Whether it is communication, adaptability, change management, problem-solving, active listening or one of the many other soft skills in this area, agile workers need to be able to work well with others, work confidently despite disruption and present ideas clearly and concisely.
Make use of agile tools
Utilising productivity tools such as Kanban, Trello and Jira is a great way of ensuring that agile teams with complex, overlapping tasks can avoid confusion and stay in touch, even when dealing with multiple projects at a time. They are also useful for keeping track of who has done what, what remains to be done, existing deadlines, resource demands and more, so even if someone is unavailable there is a clear timeline.
When it comes to building an agile workforce, there are really only a few things that you need to remember. To build a reactive, adaptable and resilient workforce you need commitment that starts from the top down and the patience to develop abilities over time.
By welcoming new challenges and giving employees the freedom to explore exciting and rewarding new opportunities, organisations can make themselves agile in an increasingly complex and winding landscape.
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