Scope analysis of large-scale organisations agility: influence and impact on departments at BNP Paribas Fortis and Proximus

Details

Supervisors

Kolp, Manuel

Faculty

Louvain School of Management

Degree label

Master [120] : ingénieur de gestion, à finalité spécialisée

Abstract

This thesis aims to investigate agility in large-scale companies, more specifically in the IT, HR, marketing, and finance departments of BNP Paribas Fortis and Proximus. The intention is to provide an understanding of agility in each of these departments and the challenges that this method raises. To achieve this, a literature review was carried out, and the relevant articles were summarised to bring together all the knowledge on the subject in question. Then, to gather the data, a qualitative study was effectuated to gain a comprehensive understanding of how each department operated, the areas where agility was present, and the effects it was bringing. For this purpose, eight semi-structured interviews were carried out in each of the departments mentioned in both companies. By analysing the obtained results, it was achievable to determine the application level of Agile theoretical concepts in each department and the difficulties that determined particular applications. The key results analysed comprise that, besides the already mature IT, the marketing department is the most developed in terms of adoption of agile practices, far ahead of HR while the finance department is more reluctant, the latter sees the benefits of an Agile philosophy but less practical for its operation. However, these large companies are faced with a major challenge: an unattainable end-to-end flow. These companies continue to test and learn as they have not found the perfect way to operate. Continuous improvement is the keyword.