This document describes an agile transformation case study that involved stages described as "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly". It summarizes the transformation journey from traditional to agile approaches, including establishing shared services, implementing SAFe, establishing Kanban boards, and focusing on outcomes over outputs. Challenges involved different agile approaches, silos, and individual mindsets. Successes came from establishing a common agile approach, rewarding teamwork over individual contributions, and focusing on continuous improvement.

1. The Good, the Bad & the Ugly:
An Agile Transformation Case Study
Jacqueline Sanders-Blackman
CBAP, PMP, SSBB, SAFe Agilist, SAFe Practioner, CSM

2. Start with the
Outcome First
The Ugly
The Bad
The
Good

3. Past Present Future
Portfolio Management Traditional Top Down Agile Metric Centered Dashboard Bottom Up and Capacity Awareness
Enterprise Priorities Multiple Work Streams & Decision
Makers
Single decision Making Committee Create a balanced ROI and value
decision making body
Teams and Capacity Different Agile Approaches & Silos Common and Complementary Agile
Approaches
One Tribe made of many Tribes
Roles and Skillsets Job Titles and Boundaries Voluntary OTJ Cross Functional tasks Pro-active cross functional based on
pipeline
Resource Management Managers Own resource Managers Coaching resources and
support SM
Managers focus on log term upstream
impediments and helping develop
talent
Professional Development Jobs are not shared T shape resources work Jobs that are
open and flexible based on type of
work
Identify skills need for upstream
initiatives and proactively mold
resources
Flexibility People assigned tasked and decide
what they want to work on in a silo
Team consulted most of the time on
work assignments
Team consulted all of the time. No
decisions made in a silo.
Rewards & Recognition People reward by tenure, heroics,
individual contributions and
knowledge
Resources rewarded for knowledge
sharing, mentoring/coaching teams,
team mindset
People rewarded by outcomes,
reputation and by team mates
Culture Work together with an individual
mindset, Work as a group
Acknowledging the soft skills and
communication gaps which will help
the team bond and insure every team
member is valued
Citizenship, collective decision
making, shared values
Outcomes - How Can You Improve If You Don’t’
Measure?

4. Scrum and Kanban
Product Owner
Developer
Tester
Shared Services
Product Owner

5. #Mindset Monday

6. Stage 1:
Life
Sucks!
Stage 2:
My Life
Sucks!
Stage 3:
I’m
Great!
Stage 4:
We’re
Great!
Stage 5:
Life’s
Great!
5 Stages of Tribal Culture
“What makes some tribes more effective
than others is culture.” – David Logan
Source: Tribal Leadership by David Logan

7. Business to Technology
Team Value to Business
Value

8. Agile Transformation Roadmap

9. A smooth sea never made
a skillful sailor.

10. Assess Current State
PI Planning
KanbanBoard
Estimating
Baseline
The
Client
50+ Product
Owners
Planned,
Unplanned,
Technical Debt
Specialized
Resources Data
and Rules
Developers

11. Nothing is perfect on the human
stage.

12. In the beginning…
11/8/2016 – 11/9/2016

13. Nothing is perfect.
Life is messy.
Relationships are complex.
Outcomes are unpredictable.
People are irrational.

14. Crawl, then Walk
April 2017

15. Transformation Kanban
SAFe Rollout PI Planning Agile for Management
Overview
Cross Training Agile Bootcamp
UserStory Training ValueManagement
Establish Shared Services Scrum Ceremonies
KanbanBoard KanbanBoards
Estimating/Sizing Jira
Baseline

16. If agile is the answer,
what is the question:
(Faster, Cheaper, Less
Resources?)

17. What are the important things we
to measure?
Is the customer engagement healthy?
Are we creating things that are high value?
Is our pace and velocity sustainable?
Is our backlog healthy?
Are we scaled to meet our future demand?

18. It Takes Time to Get Steady on Your Feet
November 2017

19. Destination and the journey are
both equally important.

20. Trip and Stumble
January 2018

21. Those who spend their time
looking for the faults in others,
usually spend no time correcting
their own.

22. Keep Walking and Looking Forward
March 2018

23. Superficial goals lead to
superficial results.

24. Making Every Step Count
June 2018

25. When your business values
are clear, making decisions
becomes easier.

26. Keep Walking and Don’t Look Down
June 2018

27. Picking your team, help them
find a real connection and letting
them do the rest.

28. Running in the Right Direction
August 2018

29. Success is not delivering a
feature, it is learning how to
solve problems - your customer
problems and team problems.

30. Are We There Yet – Never…..
Initiative:
Converting to the Cloud
Proactive Skill
Development
Additional Resources -
Onboarding
Initiatives Planning
Roadmap and
Capacity WIP
Growth , Career
Development
Continuous
Improvement…
November 2019 and Beyond
Automation Testing
Realignment
COPS & Guilds
Consistent Ceremonies
Create Enterprise Group
Scrum Master Coaching
Executive Dashboard

31. O
U
T
C
O
M
E
S
Working
Out Loud
Team
Contributor
Knowledge
Catalyst
Open Digital
Collaboration
SLACK
Leadership
Network
Radical
Transparency
DYI Cross
Training
Workshop
Working
Network
Agility
Scalability
Adaptability
Sustainability
Growth
Power Laws:
Results
Team
Decision-
Making
Machine
Training +
MLS

32. Paradigms are a very simple way
of describing something very
complicated.

34. Progress is impossible without
change, and those who cannot
change their minds cannot
change anything.

35. The Meeting of the
Minds
The
Mindset
The
Approach
The
Road
Blocks

36. Stay in Touch
jsb@technologyexpresso.consulting
@Jacqueline007
linkedin.com/in/jacqueline007
Like us on Facebook

37. The Good – Leaning In
The Bad – Abandonment & Reverting Back
The Ugly – Bringing Others Down