Case Study
UST’s change management process fueled transformation and led to 75% DevSecOps/SAFe adoption
OUR CLIENT
Founded more than 30 years ago, this European multinational information services company provides data and technology solutions for different industries, including finance, legal, and healthcare. With nearly 20,000 employees, the company generates over €5 billion in annual revenue.
THE CHALLENGE
Overcoming challenges in an agile development transition
The company embarked on a global initiative to reduce technical debt by shifting from traditional application development to DevSecOps using a Scaled Agile Framework® (SAFe®) methodology. Functional teams and their application management responsibilities were realigned to work within the new application development process improvements. Although department leaders attempted some change management strategies, they were largely ineffective because of a lack of direction, training, communications, and executive engagement—putting the DevSecOps initiative in jeopardy. The company’s IT team needed help to guide the organization through this critical change.
THE TRANSFORMATION
Using best practices to implement DevSecOps with SAFe methodology
By establishing a change management office (CMO), UST guided the IT organization through the transition to agile development—so the company could modernize and streamline its application footprint. After conducting one-on-one interviews and group discussions with key stakeholders, executives became more engaged and supportive of the agile transformation, issues were identified and trust in the initiative improved. From there, the CMO:
- Developed a change framework—to outline key deliverables, trainings, timelines, roles, and responsibilities
- Launched an awareness campaign—to explain the rationale and benefits of DevSecOps and also communicate key dates, events, and trainings
- Established a change champion network—of key influencers to advocate for the change
- Supported IT leaders as they hosted weekly user meetings—to increase awareness, answer questions, and build acceptance for the shift to DevSecOps
- Built a self-service knowledge repository for IT teams—to house regularly updated articles, FAQs, onboarding materials, and other resources about the new DevSecOps and SAFe methodologies
- Conducted monthly meetings with executives—to share progress, ensure alignment, and foster a positive atmosphere for change
THE IMPACT
Achieving 75% agile adoption in North America with comprehensive change management strategy
The thorough change management initiative created an atmosphere of trust and awareness to support the new DevSecOps approach to application development. It also paved the way for widespread acceptance of the agile transformation—estimated to be 75% in North America and 60% globally. The stakeholder engagement and communications-based approach set a new benchmark within the company for managing organizational change. Business leaders plan to use the same change management framework for future transition initiatives.
RESOURCES
https://www.ust.com/en/what-we-do/strategy-implementation-operations