Publications

Our Publications Here you find our publications on our consulting focus areas.

In addition to brief commentaries on current events, you will find studies and specialist articles with valuable practical tips. Numbers, data and facts In-depth analyses Valuable tips for practical use

Recent publications Agile is alive! But false prophets kill it. In our commentary, we would like to respond to the recently published strong statement from a study that agility leads to 268% more project failures, which was disseminated in widely read media such as heise. We first discuss why the reactions of the agile community so far have the characteristics of a caricature. We then explain three serious methodological flaws in the study: a misunderstanding of agile management, errors in the application of statistical methods and an outdated state of discussion. Finally, we share three valuable tips for people in the field on what they can learn from the discussion. 🇬🇧 Download 🇩🇪 Download Remote work: the poison for agility? On September 16, 2024, Andy Jassy, the CEO of Amazon, announced that all employees will once again work five days a week in the office. The reason given was cultural problems within the company that could not be solved otherwise. The other companies in the Magnificent Seven have also declared war on remote working. So, is remote working a discontinued model in agile organizations? Against this background, the five influencing factors of technology, team structures, corporate culture, employee preferences and industry requirements are analyzed. This shows that there is no universal approach, but that companies need to define their individual “sweet spot” between presence and remote work. Finally, three recommendations for action are given that decision-makers must implement now in order to use this area of tension as an opportunity. 🇬🇧 Coming soon 🇩🇪 Download A new age of censorship: How modern artificial intelligence creates a dream world AI is increasingly influencing our perception of the world. While there are often warnings about the dangerous results of AI, systematic censorship by AI models has so far gone largely unnoticed. Using the example of image generation, the article shows how AIs specifically filter prompts and block unwanted content. This leads to AIs creating a distorted, idealized illusory world in which unpleasant representations are suppressed. are suppressed. Examples from AI tools show that terms and topics that do not comply with the developers' guidelines are censored or not processed at all. This not only affects art and media, but also has far-reaching implications for science, medicine and social debates. As AI-generated content increasingly finds its way into the media, this effect is amplified and influences our perception of reality. A critical social discussion about the limits and risks of censorship in AI applications is urgently needed. 🇬🇧 Coming soon 🇩🇪 Download From the classic intranet to the digital Workplace: The future of the digital working world The focus of the further development of the intranet is on the seamless integration of tools and programs to the digital workplace, which is supported by artificial intelligence (AI), automation and single sign-on (SSO). These developments increase efficiency and productivity by enabling fast, cross-tool access to information and to information and optimizing internal processes. The use of existing Microsoft 365 solutions as well as AI-supported content creation enables license costs to be lowered and reduces the effort involved in editorial processes. At the same time, new social media-oriented formats such as short videos, interactive content and decentralized news production promote engagement of employees. The company thus benefits from the effective availability of information. To achieve this, concrete steps are necessary with a focus on revising the software landscape, the editorial processes and the role of the intranet in the company's internal communication, incorporating new including new technologies. 🇬🇧 Coming soon 🇩🇪 Download Say no to Eisenhower, say yes to SPEED The Eisenhower matrix is considered the standard framework for prioritizing tasks. However, the framework has some weaknesses, as tasks are only prioritized based on importance and urgency. Other relevant factors are disregarded. In addition, the Eisenhower matrix is only suitable for managers who can delegate tasks to their team. To address these shortcomings, the so-called SPEED framework was developed. With SPEED, tasks are assessed based on synergies, personal importance, efficiency, effectiveness and the possibility of delegating the task. As a result, the tasks can be prioritized easily. SPEED can be used by team leaders and persons who do not have a team. 🇬🇧 Coming soon 🇩🇪 Download The Scrum Master crisis: The Scrum Master – a clown? The role of the Scrum Master is one of the central pillars of agile management but is often regarded as a mere cost factor or ridiculed, as their contribution to product development is not directly measurable. It is particularly problematic that Scrum Masters are responsible for the effectiveness of the teams, but have no authority to issue instructions. As a result, they are often relegated to a passive support role instead of being perceived as leaders. In addition, many Scrum Masters remain in rigid process roles after the initial introduction of agile process and are often overwhelmed by their range of responsibilities. To really unleash the Scrum Master role, according to the authors, four key measures are required: making the right personnel decisions and development, forming a team of Scrum Masters, demanding a hands-on mentality and promoting a leadership culture. Only if Scrum Masters are allowed to act as real managers they can create sustainable added value for agile teams and the entire organization. 🇬🇧 Coming soon 🇩🇪 Download