Bulgarian culture and agile

Bulgarian
Culture And
Agile
Dimitar Bakardzhiev
© 2013 Rexintegra Ltd.

Agile Manifesto
• Individuals and interactions over
processes and tools
• Working software over comprehensive
documentation
• Customer collaboration over contract
negotiation
• Responding to change over following a
plan

Principles behind the Agile
Manifesto
• Welcome changing requirements, even
late in development.
• The best architectures, requirements, and
designs emerge from self-organizing
teams.
• At regular intervals, the team reflects on
how to become more effective, then tunes
and adjusts its behavior accordingly.

Culture and Agile
• Agile principles promote low power
distance
• Agile teams promote low individualism
• Agile team approach promotes low
masculinity
• Agile’s focus on change and uncertainty
promotes low uncertainty avoidance
• By it’s focus on sustainability, Agile
promotes high long-term orientation

Some concerns about Bulgaria
• Collectivism (low IDV) - Positive
• High power distance (PDI) - Negative
• Strong uncertainty avoidence (UAI) Negative
• Femininity (Low MAS) - Positive
• Short term orientation - Negative


Actions?
•
•
•
•
•
•

Follow a rigorous process (UAI)
Enhanced change management (UAI)
Kind of a team hierarchy (PDI)
Keep the Client in Power (PDI)
Social, Team-Building Events (PDI)
Emphasize the long-term benefits (LTO)


Survey


Universalism vs.
Particularism 1
• Dilemma 1: A meeting is held where the
decision about firing an employee should be
taken. He has worked in the organization for 15
years and has fulfilled his obligations well. Due
to different reasons his job performance is
unsatisfactory during the last year. There are no
any reasons improvement to be expected.
Meeting participants are divided into two groups
supporting two different opinions.


Which of the ways of thinking
is more appropriate?
1. Job performance should be the only
criteria for firing. Despite the age and the
past accomplishments of the employee,
he should be fired.
2. It is wrong to neglect the 15 years
experience of the employee within the
organization. The responsibility of the
organization for the employee’s life
should be considered.

Results
• Which of the two view points you
consider typical for our society?
• 1. The employee must be fired
(universalism);
• 2. The employee must not be fired
(particularism).


Universalism vs.
Particularism 2
• Dilemma 2: You are chairing a
department in a branch of a organization.
One of your subordinates for whose family
problems you are aware is too often late
for work. What are the rights of the
employee to expect that you would defend
him in front of the other colleagues in the
department?


1. My colleagues has the full right to
expect to be defended
2. My colleague does not have any right
to expect that he would be defended.


Results
What do you think you should do as a
leader and as a colleague?
1. I would defend my subordinate
(particularism);
2. I would nor defend him (universalism).


Individualism vs.
communitarism 1
• Dilemma 3: A huge profit is realized in
one organization. The way of distribution
of bonuses to the employees is discussed.
There is an argument where two different
opinions are in place.


1. The bonuses must be given to those
employees that are productive as per
the management team observations.
2. The bonuses must be given to the whole
group, but there is a danger that “low
achievers” will be awarded too.


Results
What do you think should be done personal or group achievements to be
awarded?
1. The bonus must be given to the
outstanding and productive employees
(individualism);
2. The bonus must be given to the whole
group (communitarism);

Individualism vs.
communitarism 2
• Dilemma 4: A defect is discovered in one
of the releases. It is caused by negligence
of one of the members of a team.
Responsibility for this mistake can be
carried in various ways.


1. The person causing the defect by
negligence is the one responsible.
2. Because he or she happens to work in a
team the responsibility should be carried by
the group.


Results
• Which one of two ways of thinking
responsibility do you think is usually the
case in our company?
1.From person causing the defect
(individualism);
2.From a whole team (communitarism);


Specific vs. Defuse
• Dilemma 5: A boss asks a subordinate to
help him paint his house. The subordinate,
who does not feel like doing it, discusses
the situation with a colleague. Two people
support different opinions.


Which of the following
statement you preferred?
1. The colleague argues: “You don’t have to
paint if you don’t feel like it. He is your boss
at work. Outside he has little authority”.
2. The subordinate argues: “Despite the fact
that I don’t feel like it, I will paint it. He is my
boss and you can’t ignore that outside work
either”


Results
Which one of two ways of thinking do
you think is usually the case in our
society?
1. He is my boss at work. Outside he has
little authority (specific);
2. He is my boss and I can’t ignore that
outside work he has authority(defuse);


Achievement vs. ascription
status
• Dilemma 6: In our organization are
discussed the ways through which one
can be successful in his life and can
achieve higher status and respect. There
is an argument of two different opinions.


Status statement 1
Status must be determined by the stable
characteristics of people: their origin, their
education and age, position within the
society and perceived trust from others.
Status must not change as a result of the
certain case or recent success. It reflects
the inner value of a person, not his/her last
achievements.


Status statement 2
The only legal source of status are the
achievements or the success one has. The
more recent the achievements and success
are, the more respect and recognition one
deserves. Achievements are significant
when one meets the challenges of his/her
life.


Results
Which one of two ways of thinking do you
think is usually the case in our society?
1. The status in our society is determined
mainly by the stable characteristics of
people (ascription);
2. The only legal source of status in our
society are the achievements and the
successes one has(achievement);

Bulgarian culture and agile

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