Agile transformations often focus on team-level practices like Scrum and Kanban. But even high-performing teams cannot overcome systemic barriers to faster, more predictable delivery. In this talk, I challenge the assumption that team “best practices” alone drive enterprise agility. Drawing on systems thinking, I’ll illustrate how organizational structures, upstream and downstream dependencies, and management behaviors often undermine team effectiveness.

Through real-world examples from my 25+ years in the field, I’ll share practical strategies for hacking the system, optimizing how teams work within constraints, addressing sources of delay and volatility, and nudging organizational behavior toward more predictable outcomes. Attendees will leave with actionable ideas for influencing change beyond the team level, even when they do not have executive authority, for better or worse.