Karl A L Smith

human knowledge belongs to the world

Agile

Customer Agility Framework ™ soft launch

The Customer Agility Framework ™ is being soft launched on the 29th of September 2023 through an interactive website https://customeragilityframework.com/ a companion website with the business benefits case was previously launched https://customeragility.com/. There will be a Customer Agility Framework ™…

NatWest Agile Transformation History

Ways of Working Agile Transformation at NatWest (The Royal Bank of Scotland) It’s about time that someone wrote up the history of this Ways of Working Transformation since the accounts in circulation bare no resemblance to the facts. I should…

Being Agile

To really understand Agile we needs to understand where it came from. Agile Problem Statements – what were the issues that agile was created to solve? Alternative to document driven, heavyweight development processes Throwing work over the fence Work around…

Introduction to Agile from forthcoming Counterfeit Agile book

This is fundamental to understand what Agile is, the benefits it delivers and how to implement it. Agile is fundamentally about moving to a trust relationship with staff and evolving past the industrial revolution practice of overseers for ignorant and unskilled workers.

Story Points are an Estimation of Complexity not Time

For those that know this about Story Points, none of this post will be surprise, but given the current crop of consultants talking about delivering capabilities and features using story points I think it’s time to restate this simple fact;…

Agility in business Karl A L Smith talks to Engati CX

Karl A L Smith Co-Founder of Agile World talks about what Is an Agile Organization and shares some examples of Agility in Business. He also talks about the next normal and agile working and how HR can help other departments…

Agile Metrics are a Data View

Agile Metrics are a data view from several metrics at once in order to establish validated information from several aspects of activity. While this understanding should be common sense it’s not apparent from the numerous metrics being employed both during…

Agile does not Scale it Consumes

Agile does not Scale, first let’s be clear what scaling means, before I’m tarred and feathered. Some Definitions of Scaling Scaling technique is a method of placing respondents in continuation of gradual change in the pre-assigned values. All the scaling…

Agile does not Reduce Headcount

Agile Transformation and Change Agile does not Reduce Headcount no matter who tells you that, this view sets the scene for failure. Unfortunately it’s a lie, best left to marketing materials and companies desperate for work. People who make the…

An Agile World is Possible in Enterprises

An Agile World is Possible in Reality based and Dream based Enterprises as its not a framework but a cadence. An Agile World is based upon a cadence that ties all activities together to create an operating rhythm whereas individual…

a short guide to Dyslexia SuperPowers

Dyslexia SuperPowers new book due December 2021. Although I’m exhausted from all the different things I have been working on at the moment, and the two books published this year already, I’m working on one more a short guide to…

Agile World

Agile World with our hosts Sabrina C E Bruce and Karl Smith talk with Dhanusha Gokhool and Harold Campbell about their Agile journeys and about their new meetup in Mauritius, Agile Mauritius https://www.meetup.com/agile-mauritius/  The Agile20Reflect Festival is in the past but…

Scaled Organizational Agility is the Future of Work in Agile20Reflect Festival

New Ways of Working Programmes are now quite common in major organisations, this talk and conversation is intended to offer a holistic approach to WoW. It is imperative to be holistic in establishing new ways of working as boundaries to…

A Scottish Revolution to Re Energise Agile

Regardless of the state of the world or futility that people may feel at this time something tremendous has been started in Scotland that is touching and building up people all across the world. The reflection at this point on…

Agile Transformation

The book about Agile Transformation is not theories but real consultancy refined by the experience of working in enterprises with both business and technology leaders and workers. It is aimed at decision makers and to everyone out there who has…

New Ways of Working the Human Component

The Agile20Reflect Festival will have created a great focus on the past, present and future of Agile in Feb 2021. Taking that impetus to the next level we want to think wider about how we can establish the principles of…

Organisational Design for Business Agility and Agile Transformation

Some things to understand before getting into the main article. Agile is based on some very human concepts around how to work and what to value. Some of these concepts are exactly the same as UX and are driven by…

Designing for Human Experience Paperback on Amazon

This book about what I have done for a living since 1989 in Designing for Human Experience. Here have put together an anthology of my life and my passion for designing for human experience. I describe what I do as…

Top 100 Thought Leaders and Influencers to follow in 2020

Karl Smith named in the The Awards Magazine, Top 100 Global Thought Leaders and Influencers to Follow in 2020. Well let’s step back a bit from that, I mean it’s wonderful sounding but what does it actually mean and does it…

Agile an Unexpected Journey Compendium Book

Agile an Unexpected Journey. A Compendium of Agile Biographies How exactly did people get involved in Agile, what did then learn that galvanised them and propelled them into a career in it? This compendium of Agile Biographies by practitioners expresses…

Servant Leadership Experiments in Ways of Working Book

Servant Leadership is not just another fad in business its a critical component of successful adoption of Business Agility. The book covers experiences and anecdotes describing 15 years of implementing Servant Leadership in high pressure, results oriented work environments. It…

Designing for Human Experience Book

Designing for Human Experience Forewords by Robert Powell and Patrick Neeman. Designing for Humans remains for me the most fantastic amalgamation of the complex to create the simple, useable and nascent components and artefacts that support human experiences. I’ll apologise…

Ways of Working Organizational Design Service launched Agile World Inc.

Agile World offers the service of organizational design consultancy, to meticulously define and organize the structure of companies, create job titles, and allocate resources (i.e. personnel) to improve efficiency and increase productivity including ROI.

Amateur Business Agility or Ways of Working will cause Business Carnage

No one would let someone have a go at Brain Surgery yet Company Boards will let both large Blue Chip consultancies (supposedly to manage risk) and Internal Staff (to save money) have a go at Business Agility (Agile Transformation or Ways of Working or Operational Transformation).