Agile Practices in Commercial SaaS Teams : A case study on the adoption of agile practices in non-software teams

Abstract: Agile software development methods have seen great success in software teams. Research on the topic of adopting agile methods in development teams is extensive. In the literature key enabling factors are identified and numerous benefits of agile ways of working are named. Less attention has been payed to the non-software functions in software development organizations, though. Moreover, little is known about how well the enabling factors and benefits for software teams translate to other teams in the organization. The goal of this study is to evaluate what benefits agile methods provide to non-software teams, whether the enabling factors are similar and what the challenges and drawbacks for adopting agile methods in commercial teams are. Using the case of the Swedish Software-as-a-Service company Funnel, which introduced agile practices into their commercial teams, these questions are tackled. The study finds that knowledge transfer and governance are core areas that need to be engaged in during the adoption process. With decisions being made more autonomously ensuring the exchange of relevant information is crucial. The autonomy creates new demands for the governance structure, making a guiding vision and clear strategic direction crucial for individuals to remain capable of acting. An additional focus is laid on the interplay of organizational values and agile methods. The study concludes that the introduction of agile methods to commercial teams is beneficial for the organization and helps teams solve more complex problems. It further argues that the distinction drawn between agile practices and agile enablers is misleading because of the reciprocal dependence. Finally, it is argued, that the distinction of benefits and drawbacks arising from agile methods favors agile adoption as an end in itself. The actual benefit of adopting agile practices may lie with how it makes an organization practice change, engage proactively with organizational challenges and, as a consequence, develop a greater exaptive potential.