Title: T6 Agility in strategic management
Course: Strategic Planning for Digital Technology Implementation

Feedback shared by this category's questions, if wrong: Your answer is not correct.

Q: The most common agile methods are Scrum, Kanban, Lean Startup and Design Thinking. Match these methods with their characteristics.
- Division of work into shorter phases called sprints, with meetings after each sprint to review progress and plan improvements. | Scrum
- A board-based method with categories such as to do, in progress and done. Current tasks are placed into the appropriate category on the board, progress is discussed in meetings, and their positions are moved across the categories. | Kanban
- An approach to developing a new product or service that starts with a minimal version of the product that goes into testing; based on the results the further development direction is decided. This process is repeated continuously and the product is improved. | Lean Startup
- A way of problem solving that starts from the user who is observed and understood; based on that their needs are identified, and creativity techniques are then used to design appropriate solutions. | Design Thinking

Q: Match the agile management methods with specific examples.
- A higher education institution is in the process of adopting guidelines for teachers regarding the use of AI in student work. A group has been appointed to draft the document. At the beginning, the group analyzes the problem from the student perspective and trying to anticipate how AI might be used, given AI’s capabilities. In addition, to better understand the student position, appropriate workshops are conducted. Once the actual problem is addressed, creative techniques are applied to solve it. The generated ideas are evaluated by observing student behavior in a test environment (e.g., writing a seminar paper in a course). After testing, the draft document is refined and adopted. | Design Thinking
- A higher education institution is developing its strategy and has created a strategic planning plan (T3). The activities from the plan are visually displayed on a board and, during the strategic planning process, the progress of each activity is tracked (not started, in progress, completed). | Kanban
- A higher education institution is implementing a project. Project team members work in two‑week cycles and then report on progress; challenges are discussed as well as how to resolve them. | Scrum
Also offered: Lean Startup

Q: An example of an agile way of working that is often mentioned in the literature is the company Spotify, which developed the squads and tribes model.

- [...] is an autonomous team that functions like a small start-up (a complete company with all functions).
- [...] is a group of autonomous teams (squads) working on different tasks and led by a manager called [...].
- The overall work is divided into phases. One phase is most commonly called [...].

Additionally, apply the logic of Spotify’s model to the example of a higher education institution that is developing a strategy and action plan for the area of education. Work will be carried out in smaller teams.

- A team formed on the principle of a department/chair (one department = one team) is [...].
- A team formed so that it includes one representative from each department, representatives of different administrative services, and students from different programs and years is [...].
- A team formed so that it includes two teachers, two administrative staff and two students is [...].
- A total of five teams have been formed and they are all squads. They are working on the operationalization of strategic goal SC1. That group is [...].
- A total of five teams have been formed and they are all squads. They are working on the operationalizations of five strategic goals (each team works on its own goal). That group is [...].
- The head of the higher education institution who coordinates the overall work corresponds to the role of [...].
A: Squad; Tribe; Tribe lead; Sprint; none of the above; Squad; none of the above; none of the above; Tribe; Tribe lead
Gap 1 offers: Squad; Squad lead; Tribe; Tribe lead; Sprint lead; Sprint
Gap 2 offers: Squad; Squad lead; Tribe; Tribe lead; Sprint lead; Sprint
Gap 3 offers: Squad; Squad lead; Tribe; Tribe lead; Sprint lead; Sprint
Gap 4 offers: Squad; Squad lead; Tribe; Tribe lead; Sprint lead; Sprint
Gap 5 offers: Squad; Squad lead; Tribe; Tribe lead; Sprint lead; Sprint; none of the above
Gap 6 offers: Squad; Squad lead; Tribe; Tribe lead; Sprint lead; Sprint; none of the above
Gap 7 offers: Squad; Squad lead; Tribe; Tribe lead; Sprint lead; Sprint; none of the above
Gap 8 offers: Squad; Squad lead; Tribe; Tribe lead; Sprint lead; Sprint; none of the above
Gap 9 offers: Squad; Squad lead; Tribe; Tribe lead; Sprint lead; Sprint; none of the above
Gap 10 offers: Squad; Squad lead; Tribe; Tribe lead; Sprint lead; Sprint; none of the above

Q: Which of the following statements about agile management is correct? Select one or more answers.
- Agile management is based on adaptability to newly arising circumstances. (Correct! This is one of the main characteristics of agile management.)
- Agile management implies an iterative approach to planning and management. (Correct! The goal of breaking down large work into iterations followed by evaluation is to better manage delivery and reduce the risk of adverse outcomes.)
- Agile management entails autocratic decision-making (i.e., unlimited decision-making power concentrated in one person). (Incorrect! On the contrary, agile management implies various forms of democratic decision-making, and managers become facilitators who enable progress and often remain neutral regarding the decisions to be made.)
- Agile management follows a rigid plan. (Incorrect! In agile management a rigid plan is not strictly followed; instead, continuous adaptation to new situations takes place. If necessary, an agile manager will even change the strategic plan rather than force long-ago defined objectives that no longer fit the new circumstances.)
- Agile management does not include creative thinking. (Incorrect! Quite the opposite: frequent team meetings are precisely an opportunity that, after reporting on progress since the previous meeting and identifying newly arisen challenges, creative techniques are applied and innovative solutions devised.)
A: Agile management is based on adaptability to newly arising circumstances.; Agile management implies an iterative approach to planning and management.

Q: Which form of teaching is more consistent with applying the agile paradigm? Select one answer.
- Traditional lecture-based teaching, mostly one-way, with assessment in the middle and at the end of the semester, or only at the end of the semester (Incorrect! Teaching without discussion, communication, team tasks and with a low number of assessments is not agile.)
- Innovative teaching (e.g., flipped classroom, project-based learning, game-based learning) (Exactly. In innovative forms of teaching, students have an active role in the process; such teaching enables more assessments and thus more adjustments by teachers and learning methods to the actual situation.)
A: Innovative teaching (e.g., flipped classroom, project-based learning, game-based learning)

Q: Given that higher education is, in part, characterized by a high level of formal procedures (e.g., the time required to develop a new curriculum from initiation to approval by the competent bodies takes months), so some elements are very precisely and rigidly defined, agile management in that domain is not fully applicable in all aspects that define the field of higher education. True or False?
- This statement is true! (Correct! The statement is true!)
- The statement is false! (Incorrect, the statement is true. Changes in the environment, especially recently, are much faster than the duration of some formal procedures. Still, creative and resourceful managers can, in at least some of those situations, find creative solutions and partially solve the problem.)
A: This statement is true!

Q: Select one answer. In agile management, failure is viewed:
- positively. (Exactly. Failure is seen as an opportunity for progress and improvement. Of course, one does not “chase failure” just to create a learning situation, but when failure does occur, it is a chance for change.)
- exclusively negatively. (Incorrect! Although the traditional view of failure is negative because nobody likes failure, in agile management failure is seen as an opportunity for improvement.)
A: positively.

Q: In one of the previous chapters, statistics related to the success of strategic management were shown. For example:

- Up to 90% of strategic plans fail due to poor execution, not poor planning.
- Similarly, Excitant Consulting states that 9 out of 10 strategies fail due to a lack of operational control and unclear goals.
- According to research by In-Parallel Consulting, 95% of employees do not understand their organization’s strategy. Excitant Consulting cites this percentage as 90%.
- According to Excitant Consulting, the lack of linkage between strategy and operational plans is one of the main reasons for failure.

What can we conclude: what practices related to strategic management are present with regard to the application of the agile paradigm?
- The management practices that led to such statistics were not sufficiently aligned with the agile paradigm. (Correct. The application of the agile paradigm was not high.)
- The management practices that led to such statistics were sufficiently aligned with the agile paradigm. (Incorrect! Poor execution, lack of operational control, employees’ lack of understanding of strategy, and the lack of linkage between strategic and operational goals indicate management that is not agile.)
A: The management practices that led to such statistics were not sufficiently aligned with the agile paradigm.

Q: Higher Education Institution X faces major problems with poor interpersonal relations between employees within and across departments. Which of the following practices for solving this problem is more agile?
- Ignore the existence of conflicts and focus on achieving the set results; delegate the work to someone else if results are not being achieved. (Incorrect! This might be a scenario in some higher education institutions practiced by a leader who lacks authority, knowledge, creativity and strength to resolve the situation. However, such behavior would deepen the problem because delegating their work to someone else will arouse dissatisfaction in the new person.)
- Listen individually to the people involved in the conflict and verify their arguments to the extent possible. If needed, consult with staff from the human resources department regarding a possible solution. Afterwards, hold a meeting with the people who are in conflict and present their problem and possible solutions. (Correct! Although the details of agile procedures would be defined more precisely in a real situation, such conduct by the leader is generally in line with the agile approach to management.)
A: Listen individually to the people involved in the conflict and verify their arguments to the extent possible. If needed, consult with staff from the human resources department regarding a possible solution. Afterwards, hold a meeting with the people who are in conflict and present their problem and possible solutions.

Q: Which of these practices corresponds to the application of the agile paradigm in developing a strategy and action plan? Select one answer.
- The strategy and action plan are developed predominantly by the head of the institution, with the assistance and support of the institution’s management. (Incorrect! This approach clearly shows a predominantly autocratic way of developing the strategy (with some level of consultation), which is far from the agile approach in which the leader has the role of facilitator.)
- The institution’s strategy and action plan are developed in phases, working in homogeneous and heterogeneous teams, with all contributions evaluated in each phase. (Correct! This procedure is fully agile.)
A: The institution’s strategy and action plan are developed in phases, working in homogeneous and heterogeneous teams, with all contributions evaluated in each phase.