"One is not treated like a child" - Agile Work, Happiness and Engagement in an Insurance Company
Inkeroinen, Juuso (2025)
2025
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2025052615967
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2025052615967
Tiivistelmä
The goal of this qualitative research was to explore perceptions and experiences related to agile work culture and wellbeing. In recent years, many organisations have transitioned from traditional hierarchical structures to agile cultures that refers to minimal hierarchy and self-management. The introduction of agile practises is assumed to positively impact work and benefit both employees and organisations. Agility is believed to enhance job satisfaction, commitment and productivity, and work wellbeing and productivity are linked according to many studies.
The theoretical framework of this study is divided between wellbeing and agile. Wellbeing was narrowed down to two main perspectives of happiness and engagement that are presented in one theoretical chapter while the concept of agile is discussed in another. The research was conducted with the target company OP Financial Group, and more specifically with its insurance segment Pohjola Insurance Ltd. The Group is among the many companies in recent years to adopt agile practises gradually between 2019 and 2020. Data for the research was collected through semi-structured interviews. Eight Pohjola employees with different work titles were interviewed, all of whom had been with Pohjola prior to the introduction of agile practises. The findings were analysed using abductive analysis method, with phenomenology serving as a starting point. This thesis was made between September 2024 and May 2025.
The results indicated that happiness is associated with a balanced life that is a mixture of fulfilled basic needs, relationships, meaningfulness, appreciation, respect, freedom and responsibility all enhanced by a sense of control and successful moments. Also, engagement was linked to freedom, responsibility and meaningfulness, as well as interesting, challenging and dynamic work, flow moments and sense of time lost that were interpret with engagement. In specialist work, challenges were found to be positive, as routine jobs were deemed unsuitable by the interviewees. Regarding agile perceptions and experiences, agile culture was considered to include characteristics typical of flatter organisation, such as good decision-making possibilities, self-organisation, shared leadership, trust and also freedom and responsibility. While generally viewed positively, some aspects, such as split managerial duties, received mixed opinions.
Overall, Pohjola was perceived more contemporary company with improved team spirit, where individuals feel trusted and motivated and take responsibility of their work. On the other hand, overly free and unstructured team decisions can lead to development of procedures that are difficult to synchronise with each other and link to schedules and budgets. Interviews revealed that the organisation is reverting to some traditional practises to fix these kind of issues, which is also natural, as agile is considered an evolving journey.
The theoretical framework of this study is divided between wellbeing and agile. Wellbeing was narrowed down to two main perspectives of happiness and engagement that are presented in one theoretical chapter while the concept of agile is discussed in another. The research was conducted with the target company OP Financial Group, and more specifically with its insurance segment Pohjola Insurance Ltd. The Group is among the many companies in recent years to adopt agile practises gradually between 2019 and 2020. Data for the research was collected through semi-structured interviews. Eight Pohjola employees with different work titles were interviewed, all of whom had been with Pohjola prior to the introduction of agile practises. The findings were analysed using abductive analysis method, with phenomenology serving as a starting point. This thesis was made between September 2024 and May 2025.
The results indicated that happiness is associated with a balanced life that is a mixture of fulfilled basic needs, relationships, meaningfulness, appreciation, respect, freedom and responsibility all enhanced by a sense of control and successful moments. Also, engagement was linked to freedom, responsibility and meaningfulness, as well as interesting, challenging and dynamic work, flow moments and sense of time lost that were interpret with engagement. In specialist work, challenges were found to be positive, as routine jobs were deemed unsuitable by the interviewees. Regarding agile perceptions and experiences, agile culture was considered to include characteristics typical of flatter organisation, such as good decision-making possibilities, self-organisation, shared leadership, trust and also freedom and responsibility. While generally viewed positively, some aspects, such as split managerial duties, received mixed opinions.
Overall, Pohjola was perceived more contemporary company with improved team spirit, where individuals feel trusted and motivated and take responsibility of their work. On the other hand, overly free and unstructured team decisions can lead to development of procedures that are difficult to synchronise with each other and link to schedules and budgets. Interviews revealed that the organisation is reverting to some traditional practises to fix these kind of issues, which is also natural, as agile is considered an evolving journey.