Agile and Adaptive Leadership in the Public Sector

This IBM Center for The Business of Government report explores how agile leadership enables government organizations to respond effectively to increasing complexity, digital transformation, and evolving public expectations. Dr. Ines Mergel explains how public sector leaders can adopt agile principles, servant leadership, growth mindsets, iterative learning, and cross-functional collaboration to improve mission outcomes. The report examines practical frameworks including Scrum, Kanban, PDCA, psychological safety, user journey mapping, and agile project management while offering actionable recommendations for building adaptive organizations that can continuously innovate and deliver better public services.