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In the two decades that agile has been a part of business operations, it has become the default way of working – if not a way of life – for several enterprise functions beyond software development. From business process support and human resources to administration, finance, and marketing, the agile way of working finds application in almost all aspects of the enterprise.
Like with any other business framework, we’re always looking at the potential for scale through agile. And we’re happy to report that TCS has successfully applied agile to roll out complex enterprise-level strategic initiatives. These initiatives typically require business, software, and non-software departments and other enterprise functions to come together and deliver strategic goals.
However, this journey was not without speedbumps. Two broad categories of challenges emerged:
Gone are the days when organizational changes were enforced through drastic action, often by the top management. Today, change takes place gently and incrementally, thereby producing lasting impact with less upheaval. Which is why TCS followed the agile way to work through the challenges listed above.
TCS applies agile principles to roll out complex enterprise-level strategic initiatives. These initiatives typically require business, software and non-software departments, and other enterprise functions to come together and deliver strategic goals. TCS brings about change in the organizational mindset via the four steps listed below. Employee buy-in: Codifying the profile of an agile practitioner and providing mechanisms to build courage. Leaders walk the talk: Coach management to help them function as servant leaders. Clarity in accountability: Providing clarity through agile roles such as product owners, scrum masters, and engineers. Collaboration between departments: Implementing #TCSLivingAgile to build a minimum sustainable agile culture and mindset.
Our considered approach to successful large-scale enterprise initiatives can be condensed into the following seven-point matrix as illustrated below.
An infographic lists the seven key aspects of TCS’ approach to driving large-scale strategic initiatives: Roles: Define the roles for every participant (and not just the core team). Decide which ones need to be dedicated roles. Work cadence: Institute calendar planning by getting commitment for events. Most participants usually work on other tasks. Running #TCSLivingAgile: Create the backlog and set down the ‘definition of done’. Identification of the minimum viable product and definition of done is difficult and very often a creative process. Scrum of scrum: Plan other key events and digitization of visibility for larger stakeholders. Both engagement and approvals are needed. Team composition: Define cross-functional team structures. Mindset prep: Conduct crash courses on agile plus design thinking. The latter is crucial for initial problem discovery. Sprinting: Engagement is needed during agile as well outside events.
The benefits of such an approach have been manifold. The agile way helps with:
Using the agile way to enforce large-scale organizational strategic initiatives helped us drive change rapidly, and at scale. From capturing over 50,000 stories of contextual mastery to rapidly shifting 96% of TCS’ half-a-million-strong workforce to remote working during COVID-19 lockdowns, we have leveraged agile transformation for multiple massive undertakings. Which is why we are well-placed to deliver enterprise agility – at scale – for TCS’ clients worldwide.