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As one of the leading consulting and training institutes for agility in Germany, we have implemented more than 200 agile projects for clients and successfully trained over 20,000 agilists.
We value theory and love practice. Our approach is based on proven concepts, tailored to each company, and aimed at driving a sustainable transformation of your organization — always aligned with your expectations.
14 Years Ahead of Our Time
Agility is our passion. You can feel it the first time you attend an improuv training course or take advantage of an improuv consultation. Since the very beginning, we have accompanied teams on their individual path to agility and coached and advised companies on their transformation.
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Have You Met...?
Tina Rieger
Senior Consultant and Partner at improuv GmbH
With over 20 years of professional experience, Tina works with teams and leaders to foster healthy change and develop solutions that truly fit their needs. She draws on her broad background in controlling, M&A, and coaching, and today specializes as an Agile Coach and Trainer with a strong focus on team dynamics and communication.
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Latest From The Blog
Artificial Intelligence Holds Enormous Potential for Professionals
Especially for Product Owners, who can quickly and effectively benefit from its possibilities.
Over the past year, we’ve gained extensive hands-on experience with various applications and discovered that AI not only saves time, but also significantly enhances a Product Owner’s multi-perspective product view, decision-making foundation, scope clarity, and communication. Its true strength also shines in brainstorming and sparring: when used correctly, AI becomes a creative partner for the entire team, consistently offering fresh perspectives.
In our new training “ChatGPT & Co. for Product Owners,” we share our insights from working with large language models (LLMs) and image generation tools. Whether it’s extracting insights from qualitative data, roadmapping, chart creation, stakeholder communication, brainstorming, or requirements engineering sparring — the use cases are diverse and the outcomes truly exciting.
Trainer Sacha Storz has spent the past two years deeply immersed in generative AI, with training from Stanford University, IBM, the University of Pennsylvania, DataCamp, and deeplearning.ai. He not only teaches the specific opportunities this technology offers for POs, but also covers key topics like privacy, security, and bias, to ensure you can work with GenAI safely and responsibly.
The training will take place remotely in early December 2024, split into two 3-hour sessions. We’re thrilled to already guarantee the session will run! Interest is high, and we’re excited to guide you on this learning journey.
Join us and discover how GenAI can enrich your work as a Product Owner or Product Manager.
👉 More info and registration here.
Bonus: This training qualifies for 6 SEUs towards renewing your CSPO or CSM certification!
A few years ago, we chose a new tagline: “It’s time for change.” We liked it — and we still do — because it reflects the needs of our clients. It acknowledges that strategies which may have worked in the past are no longer competitive in our fast-paced future. Our clients know that to meet new challenges, you need to prepare — not ignore them, and certainly not try to prevent them. They know that with our support, they can rise to these challenges. And they know the time is now, before the pace of change leaves them behind.
Unfortunately, a far-right party — one infiltrated by neo-Nazis — is now using a very similar slogan in its election campaign in Brandenburg. We explicitly distance ourselves from the goals, methods, and masterminds of this party. As legal action is unfortunately not an option — our tagline is neither protected nor protectable — we have made the difficult decision to retire it.
We stand for a working world built on psychological safety.
We stand for respectful leadership that acknowledges reality and seeks sustainable solutions.
We stand for the power of diverse thinking.
We stand for trust-based collaboration, regardless of origin, citizenship, culture, religion, or personal life choices.
We stand for the will to shape the future constructively and sustainably.
Everything we stand for is the complete opposite of what that party represents.
That’s why, from now on, our new tagline is:
“Shaping the Future. Leading with Purpose.”
For improuv,
Jens Coldewey
Sacha Storz
Theresa van Bernum
Alisa Ströbele
Sabine Canditt
Margarete Cyll
Nadine Bleck
Sebastian Heglmeier
Let me know if you’d like a more formal version for press release purposes, or a condensed one for social media.
When some people talk about self-organizing teams, I sometimes get the impression that self-organization is seen as a magic wand that solves all problems. Let’s be honest: self-organization can fail — leading to dysfunction or even self-destruction. Yes, self-organizing systems have an impressive level of resilience to external disruptions. But they also have their weaknesses.
Some examples of failures in self-organizing systems:
An epileptic seizure is a failure in the brain’s self-organization. Cancer is a breakdown in the self-organization of cells. Even markets — often praised for their self-regulating nature — can fail, triggering hyperinflation or banking crises. (Sorry, my neoliberal friend, but Adam Smith was wrong.) In many of these cases, external intervention — by a doctor or a government — can reduce the impact of failure and help the system “heal” or at least slow its collapse.
So where are the limits of self-organization in teams?
Human self-organization relies on open communication and a baseline of trust. If communication breaks down — for example, in remote environments where communication is neglected — self-organization collapses. If you introduce a psychopath or pathological narcissist into a team, they can completely erode trust and collaboration. These situations have the potential to turn a team into a dysfunctional group.
Even well-functioning, self-organizing teams sometimes struggle to make certain decisions — especially when personal goals conflict with organizational interests.
We often encounter this in discussions about team structure at scale:
High-performing teams are more than boxes on an org chart — they’re social homes for their members. Teams will defend that home fiercely, no matter how compelling your Excel models may be.
Another example: changes to compensation models.
The tension between individual finances and the “greater good” can be too strong for a team to resolve without falling apart.
Of course, one could take the mindset of, “Whatever happens is the only thing that could have happened,” and let the team fall apart. That’s what happens in fully self-organized human relationships — like friendships. But in organizations, teams don’t exist for their own sake — they exist to fulfill a purpose. If they can no longer do that, they are dysfunctional.
As a leader, you must recognize when a team’s self-organization begins to fail. And you must intervene — just like a doctor intervenes when the body’s self-healing abilities are no longer enough. To choose the right intervention, you need a solid understanding of how self-organization works — and where the root problem lies. Just as a doctor needs to understand the human body before treating illness.
And just like a doctor can choose between mild treatment or a major, risky surgery, you also have choices between gentle or drastic interventions.
Mild measures may include bringing people together or organizing external support. Harsh measures might mean overruling the team or letting someone go. And as with surgery, tough interventions require aftercare and recovery time. If you “operate” every week, the team won’t survive.
My personal benchmark for timing is this:
If people say afterward, “Why did you wait so long?” — then the timing was probably right.
Only resort to drastic actions after all softer approaches have failed.
Hedi Buchner ist Teil der Agile Tour Luxembourg 2024.
Ihr Talk am 19. April trägt den Titel: Sustainable development needs inner development – agile steps towards a life-affirming future
Hierum geht´s:
Agility is used within our economic system to keep the business running and growing if possible. But let’s face it: this very system is the cause of the climate crisis and other related sustainability problems. Can we use agility as an “accelerator” to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)? What inner capabilities do we need to deal with these increasingly complex challenges and foster global transformation? What small steps can we start with to make a lasting impact?
The workshop aims to raise awareness of this challenge – and the responsibility that comes with it. As an inspiration, we will show concrete examples of Agilist:ins who have already embarked on a sustainable path. Together we explore the SDGs and develop ideas on how we, as agilists, can contribute to them: in product development, with our teams and organizations, but also in our personal lives. We will take a look at the Inner Development Goals (IDGs) and consider how they can enhance our agile competencies to achieve sustainable goals, for example through long-term orientation and caring for others.
We are happy to present our next speaker at the Agile Tuesday. Bob will give an AMA (Ask me Anything) Session. Right now we are collecting questions.
This event will be in English. We are using Google Meet, so you can live translate it into German or any other language if you want to.
Bob Galen
Bob Galen is an Agile Practitioner, Trainer & Coach based in Cary, NC. In this role he helps
guide companies and teams in their pragmatic adoption and organizational shift towards Agile
methods of working. Bob has been doing that since the late 1990s, so he’s deeply experienced.
He is the Director of Agile Practice at Zenergy Technologies, a leading business agility
transformation company. Bob is also President and Head Coach at Agile Moose, a boutique agile
coaching firm.
He is a Scrum Alliance Certified Enterprise Coach Emeritus (CECem), an iCAgile authorized
trainer, and an active member of the Agile Alliance.
He’s published four agile-centric books:
- The Three Pillars of Agile Quality and Testing in 2015
- Scrum Product Ownership, 3’rd Edition in 2019,
- Agile Reflections in 2012,
- Extraordinarily Badass Agile Coaching in 2022.
He’s also a prolific writer & blogger (www.rgalen.com and www.agile-moose.com) and podcaster (at www.meta-cast.com )
Connect with Bob here
10 Trends & Potentiale für wertstiftenden OKRs und neue Perspektiven rund um das Konzept OKRs und einen Überblick über aktuelle Trends
Langsam aber sicher etablieren sich OKRs als feste Größe in Organisationen. Aber ist das eigentlich gut und sinnvoll, oder verkommen sie bald zur nächsten Checkbox im Rahmen von Transformationen, deren Wirkung oft ausbleibt? Wie hilfreich ist die
steigende Popularität für die Weiterentwicklung von OKRs als Framework und die
umgebende Community? Und geht es auch anders?
In ihrem Vortrag werden Cansel Sörgens und Natalija Hellesoe zehn aktuelle Trends zum Thema aufdecken – von OKR-Architekturen bis zur skalierten Umsetzung, von strategischen Kompetenzen bis zum Rollenverständnis im Prozess.
Die OKR Expertinnen gleichen erhoffte und tatsächliche Auswirkungen der Trends ab und hinterfragen deren Sinn für die Organisationsentwicklung. Außerdem zeigen sie auf, wie ein durchdachter Einsatz von OKRs jenseits der “simplen Idee” Wert stiften kann.
Egal ob Ihr erst darüber nachdenkt, mit OKRs zu arbeiten oder diese bereits
eingeführt habt und nach Möglichkeiten suchen, die Strategieumsetzung zu
verbessern: Steigt ein in eine praktische Diskussion, wie die Zukunft von OKRs
neu gestaltet werden kann, um dazu beizutragen, die aktuellen und künftigen
Herausforderungen zu meistern!
:::::::::::::::
Cansel Sörgens
Cansel beschäftigt sich seit 2011 mit Agile Organisationsentwicklung. In schnell wachsenden Organisationen verantwortete sie strategische, abteilungsübergreifende Projekte und Agile Transformation. Seit 2016 implementiert Cansel Sörgens OKR in B2B-, B2C-, B2B2C-Organisationen jeder Größe aus unterschiedlichen Branchen wie E-Commerce, Retails, MedTech, FinTech, InsureTech, Consumer Electronics, Pharma. Ihre langjährige und praxiserprobte Expertise in OKR, Strategie und Leadership teilt sie als Rednerin, Autorin und Gründerin der ersten OKR Lean Coffee und Reshaping the Future of OKRs. Mehr: https://cansel-soergens.com
Natalija Hellesoe
Natalija ist Unternehmerin, Trainerin und Coach und konzentriert sich vor allem auf die Themen Leadership & Responsibility, OKRs sowie auf Agile HR & Learning. Sie unterstützt Teams und Organisationen dabei, ihre Herausforderungen besser zu verstehen, wertschöpfende Ziele zu definieren und sich kontinuierlich zu verbessern.
Vor ihrer Selbstständigkeit war Natalija viele Jahre an der Schnittstelle zwischen HR, IT und Kommunikation tätig und hat Transformationen in verschiedenen Organisationen begleitet. Ihre Arbeit ist geprägt durch Perspektivwechsel und dem Experimentieren mit neuen Methoden und Möglichkeiten, die sie aus der Zusammenarbeit mit globalen Netzwerken, ihren Reisen und der großen Freude an persönlicher Weiterentwicklung schöpft.
Unter der Marke “OKRs AT THE CENTER” begleitet Sie Organisationen auf verschiedenen Abschnitten ihrer OKR Reise von der Einführung, Skalierung, internen Ausbildung bis zur nachhaltigen Verbesserung. Zusammen mit Sonja Mewes hat Natalija das Buch “OKRs AT THE CENTER: How to use goals to drive ongoing change and create the organization you want” bei Sense & Respond Press veröffentlicht und ist seit vielen Jahren sehr aktiv in der OKR Community, u.a. mit monatlichen Meetups, Open Space Events und Beiträgen zu internationalen Konferenzen
FIND OUT HOW WE CAN SUPPORT YOU
Schedule a free get-to-know call
Schedule a talk with one of our experienced consultants & discover fresh ideas. Feel free to reach out directly or use the contact form.
Jens Coldewey
Managing Partner
