The Importance of a Lean Agile Approach for Start-Up's

Hey guys, 

did you know that approx. „75% of all start-up's fail“? (Blank, 2013)

To be honest, I was a little shocked when I heard that number. Today I’d like to talk with you about lean agile Start-up's and its importance in order to survive in competition.

A agile approach minimizes risks and respond to issues as soon as they occur

                   

Flexibility. Dynamic. Effectiveness. Flat hierarchies. Customer feedback.

All these key words describe the approach of agile methods (Planview, 2019). In order to survive in a dynamic environment, start-up's must have flexible structures with flat hierarchies in order to react to customer wishes as soon as possible. Agile teams work together on projects in real time and approvals are made on the spot. This provides a big competitive advantage compared to large, established companies that take much longer to make decisions (due to big hierarchies and a slower flow of information). With a lean agile approach companies are able to implement, adapt and innovate products very quickly and initiate change when it’s needed (Lidow, 2014).

Currently I work in a large insurance company called AXA. Most of you might heard about it and for many, insurance probably sounds boring. However, the management is aware of this old-established processes and they wanted to change something. That's why they took Google, Microsoft and small start-ups as an example to establish flexible workstations to create a start-up-like atmosphere. The goal is to be more dynamic with flat hierarchies and quick decisions and thus to win and retain customers in the long term. It works…

In my opinion a lean agile approach in start-up's is crucial in order to be able to compete with large companies that are more liquid and well-known. As you can see from my example, big companies are also aware of this and are beginning to artificially create an atmosphere similar to that of a start-up. One thing is for sure: if you don't adapt to market dynamics and customer wishes, you'll soon be bankrupt. 

Be agile, be lean and be cautious.

See you soon.

xoxo

Jay

References:

Blank, S. (2013) 'Why the Lean Start-Up Changes Everything’, Harvard Business Review. Available at: https://hbr.org/2013/05/why-the-lean-start-up-changes-everything(Accessed 26th October 2019).

Lidow, D. (2014) ‘Surviving a Start-Up’s Transition from Projects to Processes’, Harvard Business Review. Available at: https://hbr.org/2014/03/surviving-a-start-ups-transition-from-projects-to-processes(Accessed 26th October 2019).

Planview (2019) 'Agile and Lean', Planview.Available at: https://www.planview.com/resources/articles/agile-and-lean/(Accessed 26th October 2019).

Image:

Bartlett, J. (2016) 'Adopting Agile Methodology: Tips for Success', Testlodge. Available at: https://blog.testlodge.com/adopting-agile-methodology-tips-for-success/ (Accessed 26th October 2019).

AXA (no date) 'AXA Insurance', AXA. Available at: https://www.axa.ie (Accessed 26th October 2019):