Rigid systems slowed progress, and teams felt it
This leading financial services firm set out to become a product-led organization capable of responding to regulatory shifts and market demands with speed and clarity. The vision was clear, but legacy systems, strict compliance workflows, and siloed operations inhibited value flow to the customer.
Processes that should have moved at market speed were slowed by manual approvals and risk-averse governance. Even minor changes required extensive signoffs, creating decision bottlenecks that impacted time to market. Meanwhile, rising demand outpaced delivery capacity. Teams operated in isolation, cultural resistance to change was strong, and visibility into work and value streams was limited. The organization needed to rewire its delivery model and leadership systems to align strategy with execution.
Flow unlocked: portfolio governance rewired for speed
To orchestrate flow between governance, execution, and transformation goals, we introduced Lean Portfolio Management and launched SAFe-based Agile Release Trains (ARTs). Coaching and consulting were delivered through an embedded model, with transformation leaders working directly alongside client teams to ensure context-specific, actionable guidance.
By training internal change champions, we enabled the organization to scale new ways of working organically. These champions drove adoption across teams and ensured that transformation wasn’t just a one-time initiative but an enterprise capability. Executive sponsorship played a pivotal role in accelerating decisions, breaking down silos, and reinforcing the shift toward autonomy, speed, and transparency.
Faster decisions, smarter delivery, measurable impact
Following deployment, the organization recorded significant improvements in speed, efficiency, and decision-making effectiveness:
- Lead time reduced from 229 days to 92 days
- Flow efficiency increased from 18% to 25%
- Delays due to missing requirements cut from 2 months to 1 week
- Time to approve change requests reduced from 2 weeks to 3 days
- Reprioritization requests reduced by 90%
- 67 man-days saved per quarter by eliminating unnecessary change request analysis
- Internal NPS score of 9, reflecting strong partner alignment and value
A senior stakeholder highlighted the strength of the partnership:
“Cprime consultants act as part of the team and have embedded themselves within the organization to drive value. They care and are willing to push difficult decisions forward in the interest of the company. This is a strong partnership with open and honest communications channels.”
This transformation established a responsive, transparent operating model that empowers teams, aligns investments with outcomes, and scales continuous improvement across the enterprise. Together with their leaders, we fostered a culture of autonomy and proactivity, aligned around a collective understanding of what really matters to the business and its customers.
