Ilkka wanted to strengthen its ability to respond to change, bring customer needs more strongly into decision-making and create more consistent ways of working across its businesses. Taskmill helped the leadership team launch an agile transformation through leadership training, facilitated workshops and practical experimentation.
Taskmill and Ilkka started working together in early 2022. Ilkka’s leadership team wanted to understand how greater organisational agility could benefit the company as a whole.
The key goals were to improve responsiveness in a rapidly changing business environment and strengthen customer focus across the organisation. Agile leadership was also seen as an opportunity to align ways of working across different businesses and support the development of a shared One Ilkka culture.
The corporation’s PMO Manager Mervi Sirén says: “We knew that there was a long learning journey ahead that would challenge our existing thought patterns, so we wanted, above all, a brave and straightforward partner to join us on the journey. Taskmill has been able to support and guide our journey with sufficient enthusiasm and strong expertise. The cooperation has been easy from the beginning and trust with Taskmill was born quickly.”
From theory to agile leadership in practice
Ilkka wanted to move from theory to practical action as quickly as possible. The workshop content was adapted throughout the journey based on the evolving needs of the leadership team. Each workshop provided new methods and practical tools for both leadership team collaboration and business management.
Agile leadership started with leadership training
Ilkka’s agile transformation began with leadership training covering the values, principles and benefits of agile ways of working. Taskmill’s Agile Leadership Consultants then facilitated a retrospective with the leadership team. The session helped the team assess the organisation’s current situation and identify key areas for development.
Together with Taskmill’s experts, the leadership team clarified the goals of the agile transformation and created an initial backlog for the change. The items on the backlog were then broken down into concrete actions. Some development areas required work at the vision and strategy level, while others were identified as quick wins that could be implemented sooner.
The leadership team also visited other companies during the transformation. These visits provided practical examples of how agile ways of working can be successfully applied across an organisation.
Agile leadership supports faster decision-making
Human Resources Director Annika Tuovinen describes that the goals of agile development were especially the fact that as the world is changing faster and faster, we too must have the ability to anticipate and react quickly. Unnecessary hierarchy must not slow down decision-making either. When personnel can make more decisions, it increases the meaning of work and creates productivity. The journey is at the beginning, but we got a great starting point and new way of thinking.
Ilkka’s executive group will focus on clarifying the group’s vision and strategy next, for which a good foundation has been created with the help of the agile transformation initiated by Taskmill.
“It has been a pleasure to work with Ilkka’s active executive group. It is rewarding to see when the top management level is committed to change, and the change does not have to be initiated only at the grass-root level. The discussions in our workshops were really fruitful”, praises Taskmill CEO and Agile Leadership Consultant Elina Kervinen.
For more information
Ilkka
Mervi Sirén, PMO Manager
mervi.siren@ilkka.com
https://ilkka-yhtyma.fi/
Ilkka Oyj is a media group that produces print media, digital services, and marketing and communication services solutions for consumer and business customers. The group’s growth is based on both organic and inorganic growth. In recent years, Ilkka has bought several companies whose industries vary from digital marketing to software development. Around 500 experts in media, marketing and technology are responsible for the group’s services.
Taskmill
Elina Kervinen, CEO & Agile Leadership Consultant
elina.kervinen@taskmill.fi
https://www.taskmill.fi
Taskmill Oy is a company founded by experts, with a mission to change the operations of organizations to be more agile, efficient and reasonable, so that people also enjoy their work. Taskmill takes agile methods to completely new industries and helps in business transformation from the management to the team level. Taskmill’s experts do not give advice from high up, but plan real actions with you starting with the very basics, so that the change is really felt and seen in people’s everyday lives.