Agile Ways of Working and Continuous Improvement Training Course for Function Heads

Programme Summary

Agile ways of working and continuous improvement is the subject of this one-week training course for heads of function, operations leaders and excellence managers, ending in a team operating routine and improvement plan for one function. Many non-IT teams carry too much parallel work, discover problems late and repeat the same delays. The programme moves from visualising work to flow control, team routines, waste removal and improvement measurement, using cases from service operations, finance and logistics. Mars Training Centre UK delivers this programme on agile ways of working to mixed-organisation cohorts.

The Business Case

Where work is hidden, started in bulk and reviewed only at month end, delays and rework build up unseen and managers react to crises instead of causes. Agile ways of working give leaders a visible flow of work, short feedback loops and a regular habit of improvement, so that capacity is used on valuable work and problems are corrected while they are small.

• Cycle Time: Shortens as work in progress is limited and blockers are cleared early.
• Rework and Waste: Fall as recurring causes are found in retrospectives and removed.
• Team Health: Improves as workload, roles and routines become visible and agreed.

Principles and Evidence Base

• Kanban Method: Visualising work, limiting work in progress and managing flow, applied in Sessions 1 and 2.
• Lean Principles: Define value from the customer's view and remove waste from the flow, applied in Session 4.
• PDCA Cycle: Plan, do, check and act structure each improvement trial, applied in Sessions 3 and 5.

Intended Participants

• Heads of function who want predictable delivery from teams outside information technology.
• Operations leaders who manage queues, handovers and service levels.
• Excellence and improvement managers who coach teams in problem solving.
• Team managers who run planning, review and escalation routines.
• Finance and shared service leads who track throughput and cost of delay.

Typical functions include service operations, finance, logistics and public service delivery.

Learning Outcomes

1. Participants will be able to construct a visual work board that shows demand, stages and blockers for a team.
2. Participants will be able to evaluate flow using cycle time, throughput and queue measures.
3. Participants will be able to design work in progress limits and pull rules that cut overload.
4. Participants will be able to facilitate a retrospective that turns recurring problems into agreed actions.
5. Participants will be able to diagnose waste in a process and prioritise removal actions.
6. Participants will be able to justify an improvement plan with measures that show operational results.

Programme Structure

Day 1: Agile Ways of Working and Visible Work

What work does a team carry, and where does it wait?

• Demand and Capacity Inventory
• Work Item Type Classification
• Value Stream Sketch
• Kanban Method Practices Review
• Team Work Board

Day 2: Flow Control and Limits

How much work should be in progress, and who decides what is pulled next?

• Cycle Time Scatter Chart
• Throughput and Queue Review
• Work in Progress Limit Setting
• Pull Rule and Class of Service Table
• Blocker and Escalation Log

Day 3: Team Routines and Feedback Loops

Which routines keep a team aligned and learning?

• Daily Stand-Up Format
• Weekly Replenishment Meeting
• Retrospective Facilitation Guide
• Team Health Check Survey
• PDCA Improvement Trial Sheet

Day 4: Waste Removal and Improvement Measures

Where does effort go to waste, and how is improvement shown?

• Lean Waste Walk Checklist
• Root Cause Why Chain
• Improvement Idea Prioritisation Grid
• Operational Excellence Scorecard
• Sustained Gain Review

Day 5: Operating Routine and Improvement Plan for One Function

Do the board, limits, routines and measures support one workable plan?

• Applying the Session 1 Team Work Board
• Testing the Session 2 Work in Progress Limit Setting
• Reviewing the Session 3 Retrospective Facilitation Guide
• Checking the Session 4 Operational Excellence Scorecard
• Completing the Team Operating Routine and Improvement Plan

Methodology

The programme uses a simulation method built on a shared case of a service team with growing queues, frequent handovers and missed deadlines. Participants run short working rounds, build each artefact from prepared data, then adapt it to a function of their own and compare results with peers.

• Suggested activity: Running a table simulation with and without work in progress limits.
• Suggested activity: Facilitating a retrospective on a case team and agreeing three actions.
• Suggested activity: Walking through a process map to mark waste and rank removal actions.

Capstone Output

Each participant completes a team operating routine and improvement plan for one function. It holds a work board design, flow measures, work in progress limits, a meeting rhythm, a retrospective guide and an excellence scorecard. The plan is used at work to launch the routine with the team and to report operational results to senior management.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are agile ways of working training suitable for leaders without a technology background?

Yes. Agile ways of working are taught through business cases and simple tools, assuming responsibility for a team or function but no experience of software delivery or agile frameworks.

Which methods do agile ways of working training rest on?

Agile ways of working training rests on the Kanban Method for flow, Lean principles for removing waste and the PDCA cycle for structured improvement trials.

How is the plan from agile ways of working training used at work?

You use the team operating routine and improvement plan to launch the work board and meeting rhythm, track flow measures and report operational results to senior management.

How do agile ways of working differ from agile project management training?

Agile ways of working concern how an ongoing team manages flow, routines and improvement, while agile project management training covers planning and delivering a defined project in iterations.