Agile Working Definition

Do you plan to have employees working for your new business? Do you want to split all business duties with co-owners? Whatever workforce you have for completing business tasks, you might consider agile working as a method for organizing and executing your projects. The agile working definition is just as flexible as the method is (which is very flexible). You can learn more about this business process below. 

What is agile working?

Agile working is a flexible way of organizing when, where, and how employees and business owners get work done. But giving one concrete definition of agile working is a bit tricky because it can mean many different things to different businesses. Let’s go over some broad ways the method is viewed. 

Agile Working Definition #1

According to Sarah Rietze and Hannes Zacher, agile working is a system of completing business tasks by using:

• Self-organized teamwork
• Frequent planning
• Step-by-step production of work
• Reflection

Using these values to get through each workday can help employees and business owners alike. 

Self-Organized Teamwork

Self-organized teamwork means that everyone on your work team shares leadership and decisionmaking responsibilities. Getting work done isn’t about everyone following the commands of one leader, but everyone contributing to decisions about how to get work done and choosing the tools they want to use to complete tasks. 

Frequent Planning

Frequent planning means breaking tasks into smaller subtasks and having frequent meetings to decide what’s needed to complete each subtask. 

Step-by-Step Production of Work

With step-by-step production of work, businesses can complete big projects in pieces. A business can get patron feedback on each small part of a project as the business completes it.

Reflection

A big part of the agile working process can be consistently having meetings to think and talk about what has and hasn’t been successful with the process. After reflecting, you and your team can decide how to improve your process moving forward. 

Agile Working Definition #2

The Agile Organization indicates that agile working is a system that allows businesses to change and adapt the work process when it comes to:

• When owners and employees work
• Where owners and employees work
• What tasks owners and employees need to complete
• Who is responsible for which tasks

The answers to these questions can change with each person, each project, and any surrounding circumstances. No longer is the goal a strict 9-5 workday in an office building; it’s productivity and well-being, whatever that means for your team. 

Agile Working Advantages

The agile working benefits are many. This method can make your business more adaptable to changes in the business world and the world as a whole. If your employees or your area suffer a disaster, agile working can make it easier for everyone to continue working. Agile working can keep your business competitive and help you pull working talent from a larger amount of locations across the country or around the world. You can also save money on leasing office space and buying equipment. This type of flexibility can help your employees take better care of themselves, be more productive, and be happier at work. 

Agile Working Disadvantages

I think most of us have said to ourselves, If it isn’t broken, dont fix it. With so many decisions to make as a business owner, it’s often easier to keep the traditional 9-5 schedule in an office, and it can take a lot of time and energy to come up with an effective alternative system. Also, on the front end, you might have to learn about and spend money on new technologies to make your agile working environment effective. It’s important to understand the needs of your business and workforce before making a decision about whether you want to use agile working or not. 

Agile working can be the answer to many business challenges

Adopting agile working business practices can make it easier for your business to complete projects quickly and retain good employees. This is because the method is about being flexible to get the best out of your resources instead of adhering to traditions. Then again, tradition might work best for your business, and sometimes it can cost too much time, money, and energy to experiment with the workflow at your startup. 

We can help

Whether you want an agile working environment or a traditional office, we can make starting and running your business easier! We can help you start your business quickly with our Business Formation Service. Also, you can simplify many routine tasks with our tools, including tracking your finances with ZenBusiness Money and keeping your business legally compliant with our Worry-Free Compliance Service. We have a long list of services that can make your business life easier from start to finish.