Business agility for the ABS

The ABS turned to ZXM to build a consistent business agility capability across the entire organisation.

The Situation

The ABS had been using agile frameworks for some time but was aware that its use was not consistent across the organisation. The ABS engaged ZXM to improve its agile capability maturity and, in its non-software product management initiatives, and build business agility.

ZXM took a risk-based approach to introducing business agility to the ABS. With 35% of agile initiatives struggling due to inconsistent practices across teams, it introduced agile to the entire agency in a very practical, relatable way that would be immediately usable and create a consistent understanding of what agile is and how to make use of it in a business context.

The Solution

Because the role of the ABS is to produce high quality, objective and responsive national statistical services, ZXM’s solution focussed on business agility.

Business agility refers to distinct qualities that allow organisations to respond rapidly to changes in the internal and external environment without losing momentum or vision. Adaptability, flexibility and balance are three qualities essential to long-term.

ZXM implemented a training course that looked at an agile mindset. It was designed to help people to immediately start working in an agile way.

ZXM travelled all over Australia, delivering 16 workshops to 306 participants, covering:

What is agile and the agile mindset.
Business agility.
The basic frameworks and their practices including Scrum, Kanban and Lean, with a focus on optimising the flow of work and removing waste.
Roles, responsibilities and reporting.
Collaborative planning, alignment, and cadence at scale.

ZXM used a hands-on approach to the training sessions with tools like play- and scenario based learning as well as LEGO® Serious Play®. The result was a high level of practical knowledge that could be immediately applied.

"Thanks for the great introduction [to agile]. I am now more appreciative of agile practices already happening in the ABS and have become aware of where they could be used in my area"