Accelerating agility: A journey from siloed legacy to high-performing systems and processes

Executive Summary

In its pursuit of a more adaptable approach to work, our client, a top European financial institution, joined forces with BearingPoint for tailored SAFe training that fostered practical skills. Adopting an agile way of working led to improved communication, delivery speed, and compliance throughout the organization.

Addressing organizational silos in a changing market

Our client, one of Germany’s foremost financial institutions, found itself at a crossroads. With rapidly changing market conditions, the company’s legacy development and operations processes, which operated independently from one another, were no longer adequate to address new requirements. Lengthy release cycles and the lack of cross-functional collaboration hindered innovation. To remain competitive and responsive, the company recognized the urgent need to modernize its approach.

The organization had already initiated a technical process transformation (SAFe Framework); however, the integration of new developments posed significant challenges. Internal teams lacked the shared mindset and skills to implement continuous integration, delivery, and security effectively. Moreover, scaling agile practices across a large, regulated enterprise required a consistent framework that could adapt to the institution’s unique governance and compliance needs. In this context, a cultural shift was essential. Our client needed more than just new tools, they needed to rethink their ways of working radically. 

Tailoring SAFe training for sustainable change

BearingPoint, as a long-standing partner in the transformation process, was tasked to deliver training on the SAFe framework to support the professional development of the company's employees. Following an assessment of the client’s needs, the team tailored training to combine SAFe principles with internal processes, terminology, and regulations.

The training phase focused on practical, interactive learning, with certified SAFe trainers providing theory, simulations, exercises, and tool demos. The financial institution’s employees explored topics like continuous integration, automated testing, and security in the development pipeline, directly applying these concepts to their daily work. This approach ensured immediate relevance and high engagement.

Following the training, BearingPoint provided on-the-job coaching to assist teams in integrating their new skills into live projects. Internal Release Train Engineers and SAFe Program Consultants worked alongside external trainers to support early Program Increment planning and DevOps tool adoption. This collaborative model turned trainees into “multipliers,” spreading agile practices across the organization and ensuring long-term sustainability.

Accelerated delivery, empowered teams, and continuous innovation

The impact of the training was both immediate and far-reaching. Development cycles accelerated significantly, enabling the financial institution to bring new features and products to market faster. Employees reported shorter delivery times, improved throughput, and fewer errors, all these ultimately bringing a clear competitive advantage in the financial sector.

Cross-department collaboration improved as shared SAFe and DevOps practices enhanced communication and decision-making. Integrating security into development pipelines resulted in higher software quality and stronger regulatory compliance.

Perhaps most importantly, the training provided by BearingPoint fostered a cultural transformation. Employees felt empowered and engaged, with many becoming internal champions of agile and DevOps practices. This shift reduced reliance on external consultants and built internal capacity for continuous improvement. The initiative aligned seamlessly with the enterprise’s strategic goals, laying the foundation for future innovation and adaptability in a fast-changing environment.