NTRODUCTION
Today I had the pleasure of joining a panel with a wonderful group of Agile HR thought leaders as part of the Hacking HR April Series “Agile HR: Integrating Agile Methodologies into Strategic HR Plqnning and Execution”
Our esteemed panelists have all pioneered the implementation of agile practices within HR. We had Christina Herrmann MBA, SPHR, GPHR, Global Chief People Officer. Dr. Mathias Wildgrube, HR Director , Aura María Huot, HR Manager and Francesca Molinari, 5x Chief People Officer. I had the pleasure to moderate the discussion.
The purpose of this session was to understand how agile methodologies can help HR drive greater impact within organizations. As work becomes increasingly dynamic, agile is transforming functions like software development.
Our panelists shared first-hand insights into navigating this transition. By capturing lessons from those on the front lines, this discussion provides a timely roadmap for the HR profession.
I’m was excited to discuss and learn from their experiences. Here is a infographic that covers some of the topics discussed.
OUTLINE OF PANEL DISCUSSION
I introduced the panel discussion on integrating agile methodologies into HR strategies. The panel members shared their experience with Agile HR.
Empowered cross-functional teams prioritize rapid iteration and delivering value sooner. The integration of agile approaches, mindsets, and benefits for HR departments requires a mindset shift towards speed, responsiveness, and iterative process improvement. It is crucial to establish a structured process for HR methodologies, aligning with company needs and stakeholders, and ensuring personal fulfillment in HR work. One HR practitioner found personal fulfillment in delivering value sooner through improved work product and processes.
The panel on Agile HR Practices and Their Benefits emphasized the importance of considering the ‘connective tissue’ in HR practices, such as employee experience and internal customer service, when implementing agile methods. They highlighted the benefits of agile HR for both the company and the HR team, including developing products that meet stakeholder needs and improving cross-functional collaboration. Agile HR practices were described as delivering value in increments every few weeks, reducing the risk of failure by revising along the way. An example was shared of a strategic initiative to create a consistent new hire orientation for 6,000 employees across 20 locations, underscoring the importance of addressing small problems immediately. The team delivered a new hire orientation program in four weeks, focusing on delivering value and engaging employees, thereby emphasizing the importance of having an agile mindset and delivering quick solutions to improve onboarding.
Improving a process through employee feedback and continuous evaluation, the team collaborated with employees to develop a checklist for a project, incorporating employee feedback for continuous improvement. Cultivating an agile mindset in teams and HR professionals involves building competency profiles to empowering employees to shape their own development, being solutions-oriented, and open-minded. The need to shift gears between deliberation and quick action, depending on the situation, was highlighted.
Developing an HR mindset requires flexibility and openness. The panel noted the challenges of implementing Agile in HR, including traditional command and control environments and the organization’s readiness for change. A new approach was proposed to address organizational readiness, gathering stakeholder feedback in a three-week project, and practicing an agile mindset to overcome challenges. Challenges in implementing AI-powered chatbots, including a lack of understanding and resistance from business stakeholders, were discussed. HR leaders can overcome a lack of organizational buy-in for agile methodologies by starting with small pilot projects.
Regarding Agile HR methodology and project management, the panel emphasized the importance of the planning stage for successful project management and discussed the feasibility of breaking down projects into smaller increments, such as every four weeks. The initial steps in the agile HR process include assembling a cross-functional team, developing a problem statement, and revisiting KPIs and research in the design phase. Involving hesitant employees in the development process to gain their input and make them part of the process was recommended, as well as focusing on delivering value and meeting tight deadlines to succeed in business.
Integrating Agile into HR functions, HR teams should prioritize subject matter expertise, action bias, and passion in their team structure.
KEY THEMES
Theme 1: Defining Agile HR
The panelists agreed agile HR centers around shorter planning cycles, empowered cross-functional teams, and rapid iteration to deliver value sooner. As Mathias noted, “Instead of long term planning, you have much shorter cycles.” Francesca added agile uses “small cross functional teams that are really empowered to make decisions.”
Theme 2: Cultivating an Agile Mindset
Developing flexibility and openness was key. As Christina said, “You do necessarily have to have an open mindset because the solution that you have in mind may not be practical.” Mathias emphasized it as “an ongoing thing” requiring teams to understand their role in “building real value.”
Theme 3: Overcoming Organizational Readiness Challenges
While consensus was that introducing new approaches can face resistance, opinions differed on solutions. Christina recommended “meeting the organization where it is,” while Francesca suggested starting small with “sneaky vegetables” like pilot projects “without calling attention” to new methods.
Theme 4: Measuring Success with Agile HR
The panelists agreed the focus should be on delivering ongoing value, but views varied on metrics. Christina emphasized measuring outcomes, while Francesca argued the priority is “delivering something sooner to get feedback, and you continue to iterate over time.”
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS
Some practical ways organizations can apply insights from the discussion:
– Break large strategic initiatives into iterative cycles of 3-4 weeks to prioritize deliverables through a structured yet flexible process.
– Conduct small pilot projects with cross-functional teams to gather early stakeholder feedback and ensure new practices address real needs before formal rollout.
– Develop generalist, cross-functional HR teams empowered to work across challenges to streamline processes and solutions.
– Introduce agile concepts gradually through hands-on examples and demonstrations of value to facilitate buy-in rather than prescriptive training.
For example, an HR leader implementing a new performance management system could:
– Break the project into initial prototype cycles – Involve skeptical managers to understand barriers – Showcase quick improvements through iterative feedback
This aligns strategy, process and culture for successful agile transformation.
CONCLUSIONS
In conclusion, this panel provided valuable guidance on integrating agile methodologies to help HR drive more impact. Key takeaways included emphasizing shorter, iterative cycles to continuously deliver value; cultivating organizational readiness through hands-on learning; and empowering cross-functional teams.
Personally, the discussion reinforced the importance of flexibility and an experimental mindset when navigating change. Introducing new concepts through low-risk examples and demonstrating quick wins seems a wise approach to gain support. I will aim to apply this perspective in my own work leading initiatives.
I’d like to thank our esteemed panelists for sharing their diverse experiences and insights. Events like this cultivate the kind of collaborative learning that is so valuable in our field. The outcomes provide a practical roadmap to help HR professionals successfully transform their organizations with agile strategies.
Thank you also to our 300+ attendees for their thoughtful questions – your perspectives will help advance this important discussion. I hope we can continue the dialogue to further unlock agile’s power to drive impact through people-focused change.
CALL TO ACTION
I encourage readers to reflect on how agile concepts could be applied within their own organizations. Please share your perspectives or additional examples in the comments below.
You can also connect directly with our panelists Christina, Mathias, Francesca and I via LinkedIn to continue the dialogue.
Recordings of the full panel discussion are available on the Hacking HR Linkedin Page: https://www.linkedin.com/events/agilehr7181601730801856513/comments/
This exchange only scratched the surface – further conversations will help unlock agile’s power to transform HR.
Please join me in the comments thanking our panelists once more for their time and expertise.
I look forward to future discussions on driving impact through people-focused change.
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