If you're a project manager with ambitious goals for a high-performing team, an Agile workflow provides the essential framework to deliver strength and superior results. This approach helps you navigate complex projects with clarity, and meticulously documenting your workflow becomes the key to continuous optimization and improvement.
In this guide:
What is an Agile workflow?
Agile workflows are essentially visual, repeatable blueprints of processes for an Agile team. They guide users step-by-step through tasks, clearly indicating who is responsible for each action. While the concept of workflows originated in manufacturing with pioneers like Fredrick Taylor and Henry Gantt's development of the Gantt chart, today, sophisticated workflows are indispensable tools used by teams across virtually every industry, from software development to marketing and finance.
What are the phases of an Agile workflow?
Unlike traditional, linear approaches, an Agile workflow doesn't follow rigid, distinct phases. Instead, it operates as a continuous, cyclical process of short iterations, often called sprints. Within each iteration, teams typically move through a set of repeating activities to deliver value incrementally.
These key phases within an Agile cycle include:
- Planning. At the start of an iteration, the team collaborates to select and plan the work items they commit to completing from the product backlog, based on priority and capacity.
- Execution. The team actively works on the selected tasks, collaborating closely. Daily stand-up meetings keep everyone aligned on progress and roadblocks.
- Review. At the end of the iteration, the team demonstrates the completed increment to stakeholders to gather feedback and ensure alignment with evolving needs.
- Retrospection. The team reflects on the just-completed iteration, identifying what went well, what could be improved in their process, and creating actionable plans for the next cycle.
This continuous loop of planning, executing, reviewing, and adapting allows Agile workflows to remain highly responsive to change, constantly optimizing both the product and the process itself.
How to build an Agile workflow.
Building an Agile workflow requires a thoughtful investment of time, but the returns in efficiency and clarity are substantial. The specific steps may vary based on your team's familiarity with the process and its complexity. Still, the following guidelines will help you create effective Agile workflows for your regular operations.
1. Decide what you’re documenting.
If your team repeats a process often, it's likely worth documenting. This is especially true for tasks that are:
- Complex or involves multiple individuals.
- Produce a product that is visible to clients or stakeholders.
- Have caused your team trouble or inconsistencies in the past.
However, strike a balance: avoid having no documented processes, but also don't over-document every minor daily task. Observe your team's current processes, engage in discussions with them, and leverage your knowledge of their performance to determine which workflows will yield the most significant benefits from documentation.
2. Determine the workflow scope.
A key benefit of a documented Agile workflow is its ability to act as a project scope, helping you avoid unnecessary additions or scope creep. Informal processes often accumulate extra work along the way because there's no clear boundary.
Anyone involved in the Agile workflow should contribute input on its scope. If a process has been undocumented, it’s common for individuals to have developed different strategies and achieved varied outcomes. Collaborate to identify the most effective strategies and outcomes for the task, eliminating redundant steps or those that hinder progress. Discuss with your team what should and shouldn't be included in the workflow, and what the desired result will encompass.
3. Determine the Agile workflow steps.
Start by simply listing the known steps of the Agile workflow. Then, assemble everyone involved in this workflow, ideally in person or via a live virtual session, to detail these steps collaboratively.
As you discuss each step, you consistently ask: "Will this step help our team achieve its goals?" Begin with the end goal in mind, ensuring every action contributes meaningfully.
Crucially, think about opportunities to improve the workflow during this discussion. Every team member might have found ways to streamline or automate parts of the workflow that could benefit the entire team. Also, identify steps that introduce unnecessary time or expense, such as frequent external approvals or reliance on inefficient outsourcing. Eliminate these bottlenecks whenever possible to optimize the workflow.
4. Estimate the length of time for each step.
Once your team agrees on the defined steps in your Agile workflow, estimate the time required to complete each. This can be documented using standard metrics like story points or estimated hours. Don’t view this as a strict time limit, but see it as a valuable tool, especially for new team members, providing crucial context. Even a rough estimate offers significant guidance.
If your team has extensive experience with the process, this step should be straightforward. For newly defined processes, it's perfectly acceptable to defer this step initially and revisit it once the team gains a better understanding of the work.
5. Translate the process steps into a visual workflow.
Building an Agile workflow means creating a clear visual representation. You'll typically use standard shapes and colors to represent workflow steps and designate responsibilities. While your organization might not have strict guidelines, adhering to industry-standard shapes enhances clarity:
- An elongated circle represents the beginning or end of the workflow.
- A diamond signifies a decision point where a choice must be made.
- A rectangle denotes a specific process or task within the workflow. These shapes are always connected by arrows to define their sequential relationship and flow.
Adding colors can further enhance clarity and detail without cluttering up the workflow. For example, use a distinct color for each team member to show who is responsible for each step instantly. Colors can also highlight optional steps or those requiring special attention.
Remember that workflows don't always follow a straight line. Workflows with built-in reviews and approvals will branch out depending on whether a task is approved or returned for revision. Similarly, workflows representing processes with multiple potential outcomes will branch at the end to illustrate each possibility.
For creating visual workflows, you can utilize specialized software designed specifically for this purpose, which is ideal for complex workflows or frequent use. Alternatively, common programs like Microsoft Word or Excel, combined with online tutorials and templates, can also serve as effective tools. Your choice of tool will depend on your team's specific needs and the complexity of the workflows you define.
6. Revise and refine the workflow.
Process changes are a constant and normal part of business evolution, and your Agile workflows must evolve along with them. The true beauty of defined workflows lies in their ability to make the intricate details of a process visible, presenting ongoing opportunities to identify and implement more effective ways of working.
As you implement newly defined Agile workflows, actively monitor bottlenecks or emerging problem areas. Crucially, solicit and genuinely listen to feedback from your team as they are on the front lines and have invaluable insights. Consider scheduling regular team meetings specifically for reviewing workflows and suggesting improvements. Embrace this continuous process of creating, implementing, and revising Agile workflows to cultivate a more efficient and effective team.
Best practices for optimizing your Agile workflow.
To get the most from your Agile workflow, focus on the following:
- Visualize your flow. Use tools like Kanban boards to map out every step of your workflow. This transparency highlights bottlenecks and ensures everyone understands the process from start to finish.
- Limit work in progress (WIP). Resist the urge to start too many tasks at once. By setting strict WIP limits, you encourage completion over initiation, improve focus, and accelerate the flow of work, leading to faster delivery.
- Automate repetitive tasks. Identify and automate any manual, recurring steps within your workflow. This frees your team to focus on higher-value work, reduces errors, and significantly boosts efficiency.
- Prioritize. Continuously refine and prioritize tasks within your workflow. Ensure that the most impactful work is always at the top, driven by customer value and strategic goals, preventing effort on less critical items.
- Review and adapt regularly. Hold frequent retrospectives with your team to review the workflow itself. Discuss what's working, what's not, and brainstorm improvements. Agile workflows are living documents that should evolve based on real-world experience and feedback.
- Foster cross-functional collaboration. Encourage seamless communication and hand-offs between different roles and departments involved in the workflow. Break down silos to ensure smooth transitions and shared ownership of the process.
Agile workflow examples.
Agile workflows are highly adaptable, making them effective across a wide range of industries and project types. Here are a few common examples of how teams apply Agile workflow principles:
- Software Development: A development team is planning to release a new mobile app feature that will use an Agile workflow. They'll plan the feature in a short sprint, execute the coding and testing daily, review the working feature with stakeholders at the sprint's end, and then adapt their approach based on feedback for the next set of features.
- Marketing Campaigns: A marketing team launching a new digital campaign might use an Agile workflow. They'll plan the content and channels for two weeks, execute content creation and ad setup, review campaign performance data midway and at the end, and then adapt their strategy for the next phase of the campaign based on engagement metrics.
- Content Creation: A content team regularly producing blog posts or video series can leverage Agile workflows. They plan topics and deliverables for a weekly cycle, execute writing/filming, review drafts with editors and subject matter experts, and then adapt their content strategy based on audience engagement data.
In each scenario, the core Agile loop of continuous improvement ensures that the delivered output consistently meets evolving needs.
Why build an Agile workflow?
Building and documenting Agile workflows offers significant advantages for modern teams:
- Drives consistency and efficiency. Agile workflows bring consistency to departmental processes and projects. They make complex tasks easier, more efficient, and help your team produce predictable, high-quality results every time. This standardization reduces guesswork and ensures smoother operation.
- Identifies and eliminates bottlenecks. Documented Agile workflows provide a clear visual map of your processes, making it far easier to measure performance and pinpoint problem areas or bottlenecks. Identifying and streamlining these choke points is a core element of Agile methodologies, especially Kanban, where workflows are visually managed on a Kanban board to optimize flow. If you frequently miss deadlines or find errors in deliverables, reviewing a documented process helps you pinpoint exactly where issues arise. Even the act of creating the workflow itself often reveals hidden inefficiencies.
- Simplifies onboarding and cross-departmental collaboration. Documented Agile workflows significantly ease the training of new team members. For individuals unfamiliar with your processes, a well-thought-out visual workflow offers far more practical guidance than a verbal explanation, accelerating their integration and productivity. They also serve as a shared language when collaborating with other departments, ensuring everyone understands the flow of the process.
Creating your Agile workflow.
Building an Agile workflow is more than just documenting a process; it’s an exercise in critical analysis and continuous improvement. It empowers your team to critically examine their daily activities and work collaboratively towards greater efficiency and effectiveness, both individually and as a cohesive unit.
Workfront can support by providing a centralized platform to visually map, track, and manage your Agile workflows, ensuring seamless collaboration and real-time visibility for continuous optimization.
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