Customized Transformation Journey for Financial Services

About the Client

The client is a division of a global financial institution, responsible for managing financial planning and business governance through advanced planning tools. The team supports the organization’s strategic goals by streamlining business planning and reporting processes.

Problem Statement

The team faced several challenges in their processes and delivery capabilities:

• Inefficient Planning Cycles: Planning requirements were not aligned with continuous delivery goals, leading to delays.
• Lack of Transparency: Teams struggled to provide real-time insights into progress, causing miscommunication and missed deadlines.
• Disorganized Backlogs: Poorly prioritized backlogs led to frequent task reassignments and scope changes.
• Low Deployment Success Rate: Build and deployment processes had high failure rates, affecting release timelines.
• Delayed Defect Resolution: Prolonged defect resolution times impacted stakeholder satisfaction

‍

Solution Offered: Agile Coaching and Process Optimization

BaffleSol provided agile coaching and introduced structured processes to address the challenges faced by the financial planning team.

Phase 1: Diagnostic and Problem Prioritization

• Conducted a comprehensive diagnostic of the team’s workflows, tools, and backlog management.
• Identified bottlenecks in continuous integration, deployment, and backlog refinement.
• Collaborated with team members and stakeholders to prioritize issues based on business impact and feasibility.

Phase 2: Implementation of Agile Practices

• Continuous Requirement Planning:
  • Introduced continuous planning cycles to align requirements with incremental delivery goals.
  • Outcome: Enhanced requirement clarity and better sprint focus.
• Kanban for Workflow Visualization:
  • Implemented Kanban boards to visualize backlogs, in-progress work, and blockers.
  • Outcome: Improved task prioritization and real-time transparency for stakeholders.
• Build and Deployment Optimization:
  • Enhanced CI/CD practices to improve deployment frequency and success rates.
  • Outcome: Reduced build failures and faster release timelines.
• Defect Resolution Framework:
  • Established a structured defect triage process to minimize defect resolution time.
  • Outcome: Faster issue resolution and improved quality metrics.
• Show & Tell Sessions:
  • Introduced regular demos to improve stakeholder engagement and validate work progress.
  • Outcome: Improved alignment between teams and stakeholders.

Key Metrics Monitored

• Deployment Frequency: Increased by 40% within 6months.
• Defect Resolution Time: Reduced by 50%, improving customer satisfaction.
• Team Lead Time: Shortened significantly, enabling faster delivery.
• Planned vs. Actual Automation Coverage: Achieved 90%alignment through structured testing frameworks.

Benefits Achieved

• Improved Delivery Efficiency: Continuous planning and optimized workflows led to faster and more reliable delivery.
• Enhanced Transparency: Kanban boards and progress bar KPIs provided stakeholders with real-time insights.
• Increased Stakeholder Satisfaction: Regular show-and-tell sessions ensured alignment with business goals.
• Higher Deployment Success Rates: Improved CI/CD practices minimized failures and delays.

Exciting Takeaway: Visualizing Workflow with Kanban

The introduction of Kanban boards revolutionized the team’s ability to prioritize tasks and identify bottlenecks, fostering a culture of accountability and efficiency.

Conclusion

This case study demonstrates how agile coaching and process optimization enabled the financial planning team to overcome operational inefficiencies, improve delivery timelines, and achieve stakeholder satisfaction.