Agile Didn’t Fail. Procurement Did.

<p>Most Agile transformations don’t fail in delivery.They fail at procurement.</p><p>Teams move fast.Contracts don’t.</p><p>That gap quietly kills momentum. Backlogs flow—until sourcing, legal, and vendors pull everything back into a months-long, document-driven process designed for predictability, not complexity.</p><p>In my recent conversation with <strong>Mirko Kleiner</strong>, one of the pioneers of <strong>Lean Agile Procurement</strong>, I learned how his teams flipped sourcing on its head:</p><p>* ERP vendor selected in <strong>2 days</strong></p><p>* Engineers talking directly to engineers</p><p>* All vendors in the same room</p><p>* Solutions <strong>co-created</strong>, not specified upfront</p><p>* Contracts negotiated <em>during</em> the workshop</p><p>* <strong>World Procurement Award</strong> winner</p><p>It all starts with one uncomfortable question:</p><p><em>“What if we had just one day to select a supplier — and sign the contract?”</em></p><p>That constraint forces a redesign of the system:less delegation, fewer handoffs, real ownership, and radically more transparency between buyers and suppliers.</p><p>This isn’t fringe thinking anymore.</p><p>Mirko and the Lean Agile Procurement community recently released a <strong>joint whitepaper with SAFe</strong> that directly addresses a problem many organizations feel but can’t name:Agile at scale breaks down when procurement and other supporting functions stay traditional.</p><p>You can read it here:👉 <a href="https://www.lap-alliance.org/resources/our-blog/boost-your-safe-implementation-with-lean-agile-procurement-n2km7" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">https://www.lap-alliance.org/resources/our-blog/boost-your-safe-implementation-with-lean-agile-procurement-n2km7</a></p><p>What’s emerging is bigger than procurement. It’s a global movement focused on <strong>cross-company collaboration and value streams that don’t stop at the company’s front door</strong>.</p><p>That movement is growing quickly—and they’re actively <strong>looking for trainers</strong> to help meet demand worldwide:👉 <a href="https://www.lap-alliance.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">https://www.lap-alliance.org</a></p><p>If your Agile teams move fast but your vendors don’t, you’re not missing another framework.</p><p>You’re missing procurement as part of agility.</p><p></p> <br /><br />Get full access to Better Ways of Working at <a href="https://bwow.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&amp;utm_campaign=CTA_4" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">bwow.substack.com/subscribe</a>