Implementing an agile start-up culture into a process oriented company
Pasanen, Isto (2016)
Pasanen, Isto
Metropolia Ammattikorkeakoulu
2016
All rights reserved
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2016060111325
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2016060111325
Tiivistelmä
The purpose of the present study was to find out and implement more agile ways of working into a process oriented telecommunications company TeliaSonera Finland Oyj. TeliaSonera Finland is one of the largest telecommunication companies in Finland and the largest in the Nordics. In Finland it operates under the name of Sonera Oyj. Part of TeliaSonera’s strategy is to become a new generation telecommunications company through transforming the company towards more application and integrator type of service provider and finding new business opportunities close to the core business.
During the study, a current state analysis was made from Sonera’s current development methodology and decision-making processes. Three different disciplines were selected to be studied that were lean start-up and lean service creation, scaled agile framework and bimodal enterprise. A lean service creation program was launched in order to validate these methodologies with a case study with one of the new business initiatives close to the core – eHealth.
The results revealed many different angles for the company to further develop: customer centricity, agility in development governance and culture. The scope of the development projects were not usually based on engaging the customer into the design process and projects tended to grow very large with big scopes and long lead times in the current state analysis. The minimum viable product thinking was something that the company was not used to do. The entrepreneurship culture was after all discovered to be one of the largest challenge for the company. There is no “one size fits all” type of approach. Instead, the conceptual framework should be adjustable and different methodologies suit better in different type of development items based on size, complexity, business area and so on.
The author recommends that the leaders in Sonera make sure that the lean service creation and agile methodologies are taken more widely into use throughout the organization, but also clarify the guidelines of different disciplines. The change from a tightly-governed company to an agile start-up-like company with entrepreneurship as its core value does not happen overnight, it requires a lot of change management and continuous learning – especially from the management.
During the study, a current state analysis was made from Sonera’s current development methodology and decision-making processes. Three different disciplines were selected to be studied that were lean start-up and lean service creation, scaled agile framework and bimodal enterprise. A lean service creation program was launched in order to validate these methodologies with a case study with one of the new business initiatives close to the core – eHealth.
The results revealed many different angles for the company to further develop: customer centricity, agility in development governance and culture. The scope of the development projects were not usually based on engaging the customer into the design process and projects tended to grow very large with big scopes and long lead times in the current state analysis. The minimum viable product thinking was something that the company was not used to do. The entrepreneurship culture was after all discovered to be one of the largest challenge for the company. There is no “one size fits all” type of approach. Instead, the conceptual framework should be adjustable and different methodologies suit better in different type of development items based on size, complexity, business area and so on.
The author recommends that the leaders in Sonera make sure that the lean service creation and agile methodologies are taken more widely into use throughout the organization, but also clarify the guidelines of different disciplines. The change from a tightly-governed company to an agile start-up-like company with entrepreneurship as its core value does not happen overnight, it requires a lot of change management and continuous learning – especially from the management.