My opinion has derived from the research conducted by Jeyasingham (2016) which has assumed that Agile Working has described as the practices to perform more flexible working throughout time and place, however, the shift is not as slightly around when and where the work appears. Instead, Agile Working is appealed to discuss around working differently with trust as the foundation slightly than classified relationships and based on the innovation slightly than bureaucracy. Agile Working has depicted as the practices to perform increasingly adaptable working all through time. Agile working additionally draws in the specialists to perform increasingly free working and furthermore being competent to respond to the adjusting administrations requests and it would likewise build profitability makes groups extra effective.

Moreover, Agile Working also engages the experts to perform more independent working and also being capable to react to the modifying services demands, as well as the modifications that unable to be fully expected.In brief, Agile Working gathers the people, processes, technology, and connectivity, along with time and space, with a purpose to figure out the most effective and applicable method of working to complete a specific task (Jeyasingham 2016).

Another research performed by Keeling, Clements-Croome, and Roesch (2015) has presented that an increment in agile workplace and isolated working has converted the practice of how the work is completed and how the workplace is constructed. On the other hand, there are only a few people recognized around how this type of work could influence the experience of the workers related to their privacy, satisfaction, and gathering as well. However, the business activities which have moved towards Agile Working is in some measure driven by a requirement to strengthen the place utilization, as well as in part from an effort to perform better collaboration and communication of the employees. Thus, this research has concluded that Agile Working benefits for the collaboration along with the interactions (Keeling, Clements-Croome and Roesch 2015).

There is the importance of agile development in every organization; agile development can result in iterative and incremental set practices of management. Agile project management results in productivity, flexibility and continuous improvement. There is the importance of the agile development in companies as it could provide satisfaction to the employees and there would be high quality in work through this collaborative culture. Agile project management also supports software development, adaptability, delivers visibility, accountability and it also minimizes the risks. Agile development needs to focus on the proper and continuous planning because there could be an increase in visibility and transparency in the company. It would also increase productivity makes teams extra efficient.

Agile development can enhance business value by creating predictability, efficiency, collaboration in the tasks. Agile working assembles the individuals, procedures, innovation, and availability, alongside reality, with a reason to make sense of the best and pertinent strategy for attempting to finish a particular task. Agile working has advantages for the company as there is collaboration. Agile development supports the holistic set of habits and it is the awareness of the development process from which the company can be aware of the potential issues (Crispin 2010).

Agile Working has been approved in delivering many advantages that made the companies have decided to implement this latest business trend with a purpose to motivate the employees, improve flexibility, and also strengthen trust within the entire employees. There is the significance of the coordinated advancement in organizations as it could give fulfillment to the people or managers and there would be high quality in work through this shared culture.

Some advantages delivered by Agile Working have mentioned by Deshpande, Advait, Barroca, and Gregory (2016) such as:

1). Competitive business

            The business has benefited by Agile Working with a competitive control, in which there is a decrease on time needed to respond with such a flexible working situation integrated into the working place.

2). Flexibility and mobility

            One of the main objectives of performing Agile Working is to practice the business activities with presenteeism which defines as the activity of requiring the presence of employees, whether they have a mind presence or not. In Agile Working, this means that there is less restriction for the employees, and they could start to work beyond the official working place.

3). Enhanced productivity

            In Agile Working, there will be frequent group projects, in which the Agile workplace is designed to make collaboration among the team members to be easier.

4). Decrease the costs

            It is obvious that numerous employees who are working their own workspace will able to decrease the requirement for the company to provide a huge property for office. Thus, the companies will eventually be able to cut-off the costs for this, while at the same time, providing all of the employees with flexibility which will definitely result in improved productivity(Deshpande, et al. 2016).

            Even though there are many advantages that have delivered by Agile Working, but on another side, Agile Working also conveys some disadvantages that as well. The disadvantages mentioned by Williams (2015) such as:

·         Agile Working might not suitable for the culture of the company

·         Agile Working is created only for smaller ventures

·         Agile Working demands effective work from co-location

·         Agile Working has claimed to be lack or weakened the practices of project management

In brief, Agile Working has claimed to assume that all of the employees in the company are talented and competent. In fact, Agile Working expects high performance along with forcing the action if it would not appear. Furthermore, Agile Working also assumed that all of the employees to understand and know properly what are they working and also delivering an obvious work for them to present what they really can do (Williams 2015).

Despite both advantages and disadvantages delivered by Agile Working, a research conducted by Denning (2015) has explained that Agile Working has the capability to enable the companies to cope with the enduring changes in the business industry. Not only that, instead, this Agile Working has allowed the companies to flourish within a business world that is progressively uncertain, unstable, indefinite, and complicated. The appearance of Agile Working is, indeed, driven the companies with an insight that there is a requirement these days to make a life-changing exploration, whereas this is an exclusive way for the companies to survive sustainably with the business industry in these modern days by embracing Agile Working.

 Moreover, the article also has stated that in a company that practicing Agile Working, the self-organizing teams would consistently delivering the innovative value for its customers.Since all the tasks are completed within an iterative style along with performing continuous communication with the team member or players, then the company will be able to consistently upgrade the work anytime. In fact, if the entire team members could perform well in Agile Working condition, then it is a big possibility that they would deliver the generating value for the company itself (Denning 2015).

Unilever has described agile Working as “an approach to getting work done with maximum flexibility and minimum constraints. It goes beyond just flexible working or telecommuting and focuses on eliminating the barriers to getting work done efficiently” (Agile.org.uk 2019). The company has started to implement Agile Working a few years ago with an approach all around providing choice and empowerment for its every single employee about when and where they have to complete their work effectively.

Thus, whatever the disputes around the real definition and vocabulary, the main objective of Agile Working is to shape up further efficient, responsive, and effective companies which grounded on more motivated, balanced, productive and innovative individuals. All of the terms mentioned are considered as the most fundamental ingredients for the companies to survive and flourish in the challenging globalization business industry that they are working daily. In fact, this phenomenon of Agile Working is not new thing for the business industry, instead, it is more to be an innovative way of completing the work.

Thus, Agile Working can certainly be integrated with the ‘smart working’ term, which defines around applying the advantages achieved from the modified business practices, positioning the innovative technologies to be used, and also building up the fresh and innovative working environments which enable the companies to give flexibility for all of the employees to give their best performance within the most convenient situation for them. As we acknowledged that some of employees might feel uncomfortable and unable to give a commitment to the working hours or working place environment, and thus, the Agile Working system would really support these types of employees to do their flexible work as they desired to. This will definitely lead to the job satisfaction of the employees which will result the improved productivity for the company as well (Agile.org.uk 2019).

However, in the end, it totally depends on the company itself whether they would implement Agile Working or not in accordance with their organizational culture. If the company found that Agile Working is not suitable with their organizational culture, then they might refuse to implement it since it would only make some confusion for the employees in performing their work (Younger and Smallwood 2016).

It can be concluded after conducting the research on agile working has described as the practices to perform more flexible working throughout time and place, it is the most effective and applicable method of working to complete a specific task. Therefore, Unilever has taken an effort to perform better collaboration and communication of the employees. Agile project management results in productivity, flexibility and continuous improvement. Agile Working can fulfill the requirement to strengthen the company efforts to perform better collaboration and communication of the employees; as there could be better involvement and tasks could be efficiently performed. There are fewer disadvantages reported as compared to the advantages of agile project management. Therefore, Unilever can get the benefits related to the agile project management.

In my point of view, there is the significance of the coordinated advancement in organizations as it could give fulfillment to the people or managers and there would be high quality in work through this shared culture. There are advantages and disadvantages delivered by agile working as advantages include modified business practices, positioning the innovative technologies and disadvantages delivered by agile working are it is not suitable for the culture of the company, it is created only for smaller ventures, it has demands effective work from co-location, it is also said to be weakening the practices of project management.

It should be noticed that agile project management also supports software development, adaptability, delivers visibility, accountability and it also minimizes the risks and agile development supports the holistic set of habits and it is the awareness of the development process from which the company can be aware of the potential issues. Therefore, it can be implemented for the effectiveness in any organization. Agile project management should be implemented as concerned with the organizational culture so that proper implementation and productivity can place.

References of opinion of Agile Working? Do you think there are any disadvantages associated with this flexible work arrangement?

Agile.org.uk. 2019. WHAT IS AGILE WORKING? https://www.agile.org.uk/what-is-agile-working/.

Bruin, Esther I. de, Rachel T. van der Meulen, Jorien de Wandeler, Bonne JH Zijlstra, Anne R. Formsma, and Susan M. Bögels. 2018. "The Unilever Study: Positive Effects on Stress and Risk for Dropout from Work after the Finding Peace in a Frantic World Training." Mindfulness 1-12.

Burke, Ronald. 2010. "Do managerial men benefit from organizational values supporting work-personal life balance?" Gender in Management: An International Journal 25 (2): 91-99.

Crispin. 2010. Agile Testing: A Practical Guide For Testers And Agile Teams. Pearson Education India.

Denning, Stephen. 2015. "Explaining agile."

Deshpande, Advait, Helen Sharp, Leonor Barroca, and Peggy Gregory. 2016. "Remote working and collaboration in agile teams."

Jeyasingham, Dharman. 2016. "Open spaces, supple bodies? Considering the impact of agile working on social work office practices." Child & Family Social Work 209-217.

Keeling, Trevor, Derek Clements-Croome, and Etienne Roesch. 2015. "The effect of agile workspace and remote working on experiences of privacy, crowding and satisfaction." Buildings 880-898.

Lazar, Ioan, Codruta Osoian, and Patricia Ratiu. 2010. "The role of work-life balance practices in order to improve organizational performance." European Research Studies 13 (1): 201.

McCarthy, Alma, Colette Darcy, and Geraldine Grady. 2010. "Work-life balance policy and practice: Understanding line manager attitudes and behaviors." Human Resource Management 20 (2): 158-167.

Shanafelt, Tait D., Omar Hasan, Lotte N. Dyrbye, Christine Sinsky, Daniel Satele, Jeff Sloan, and Colin P. West. 2015. "Changes in burnout and satisfaction with work-life balance in physicians and the general US working population between 2011 and 2014." In Mayo Clinic Proceedings 90 (12): 1600-1613.

Williams, David. 2015. "The Agile Organisation."

Younger, Jon, and Norm Smallwood. 2016. "Aligning your organization with an agile workforce." Harvard Business Review.