A shift in approach that actually results in… well, results

In an era of rapid change and marketplace disruption, we’re all challenged to help our customers/members identify and address a host of evolving needs. Realizing traditional methods – known as a waterfall approach – were not helping us reach our goals at a necessary pace, we shifted our thinking to an agile approach.

Now, a waterfall approach consists of building requirements, designing solutions, releasing to the marketing and then getting feedback from customers. In a nutshell, you focus on figuring out exactly what you want in the beginning and you don’t tell anyone about it or use the solution until it’s done and ready for implementation. By that time, you might be headed in the wrong direction, and because it’s a waterfall, there’s no way to go back up to one of the previous steps in the process, without adding time, cost or risk.

Agile on the other hand is about gathering customer insights, building solutions and verifying with customers along the way. Then, releasing the minimum amount necessary to serve your customers’ needs. You build upon the minimum viable solution over time to get to your end state – consistently co-creating with your customers along the way. Through continuous learning, you mitigate your risk of building something your customers don’t want or need.

 

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