This Agile case study is drawn from the Agile Experience Report “A 6-Month Cultural Transformation with Scrum” written by Jeff Bubolz and Laura Henderson.
By early 2019, Penta Technologies, an established construction software provider in Milwaukee, was at a crossroads. The company was struggling with a disengaged workforce, inefficient delivery processes, and a culture shaped more by micromanagement than collaboration. Two-thirds of employees reported feeling disengaged, and organizational silos had made cross-functional work nearly impossible. Facing mounting pressure to adapt or decline, leadership chose to pursue a company-wide Agile transformation.
Rather than limiting change to the development teams, they applied Scrum principles across the organization. Within three months, employee-reported empowerment rose from 38% to 98%, and the company began operating with greater transparency, consistency, and purpose.
The challenge
Penta had long operated with a traditional mindset, shaped by its construction-industry clients and a pay-for-feature development model. Over time, this created a complex, difficult-to-scale product and a fragile organizational culture. Key problems included:
- Functional silos that prevented effective collaboration
- Micromanagement that eroded trust and initiative
- Inconsistent delivery and reactive firefighting
- Disconnect between teams and business value
The business faced an existential risk: unless it could modernize how it worked, the company’s ability to compete and retain staff would deteriorate.
The approach
Rather than begin with process implementation, leadership focused on identifying core organizational problems. They engaged Scrum.org trainers and consultants to guide a full-company transformation grounded in Agile principles. The approach included the following:
- Company-wide Scrum training and certification (PSF and PSM I)
- Self-selection of cross-functional teams aligned by product
- A 90-day full commitment to Scrum without deviation
- Shifting leadership’s role from directing to supporting
What made this approach different was the deliberate shift in mindset. Leadership acknowledged their own need to change, creating space for team autonomy rather than prescribing new processes.
Implementation and iteration
Change began with an all-employee offsite to identify pain points. Staff expressed a desire to eliminate silos, reduce complexity, and increase ownership. Within a month, the organization moved to a Scrum-based structure, beginning with pilot teams.
Milestones included the following:
- Formation of Scrum teams through facilitated self-selection
- Delivery of potentially releasable increments from the first Sprint
- Team-led experiments with workspaces, tooling, and practices
- Adaptation of team structures based on delivery challenges
A notable example was the merger of two ERP teams into a single 16-person team. Despite initial concerns, the team improved coordination and sustained short Daily Scrums through additional practices like the “16th minute” for deeper discussion. Leadership chose not to intervene, reinforcing trust in team decision-making.
Customer validation and technical practices also evolved. Teams initiated internal user feedback sessions and collaborated with external consultants through mob programming sessions, tackling architectural risks directly.
Results and impact
The impact of the transformation was visible within three months:
- Employee empowerment rose from 38% to 98%
- Negative workplace sentiment dropped from 67% to 12%
- All teams delivered “Done” increments by the end of the first Sprint
- Stakeholder visibility and engagement increased through transparent Sprint Reviews
Strategically, the company shifted from reactive product decisions to data-informed roadmaps. Product Owners gained increased autonomy and financial accountability. Teams began using empirical tools such as Monte Carlo simulations for forecasting.
A feedback-oriented culture took hold, with retrospective learning becoming a regular rhythm. Leadership alignment improved through scheduled strategic reviews, replacing informal interventions with structured planning.
Lessons learned
Penta’s transformation underscored several key insights:
- Leadership mindset change is essential to any Agile adoption
- Trust and autonomy, once modeled by leadership, enable team ownership
- Changing behavior is easier than changing beliefs—ongoing coaching is vital
- Transparency, including financial and strategic, is critical for alignment
- Agile frameworks succeed when applied consistently and adapted contextually
Key Agile takeaways
- Reframed change as iterative learning, not a one-time fix.
- Used Agile ceremonies to surface communication gaps early.
- Prioritized delivering value incrementally over big-bang releases.
- Emphasized cross-functional collaboration in pilot projects.
- Built psychological safety through retrospective reflection.
Read the original Experience Report “A 6-Month Cultural Transformation with Scrum” by Jeff Bubolz and Laura Henderson.
