Case Studies

Driving Scalable Agile Transformation in Enterprise Environments

By Tonya “Taz” Brown – Enterprise Coach | Technical Program Manager | Agile Strategist

LinkedIn Profile | tazbrown007@gmail.com | Maryland Heights, MO

Client Overview

Cisco Systems – A global leader in networking, cloud, and cybersecurity solutions.

Business Challenge:

Cisco sought to modernize its product delivery model and reduce time-to-market across distributed teams operating in complex infrastructure environments. Legacy systems, siloed teams, and inconsistent Agile practices hampered predictability and velocity across global programs.

Solution:

Agile and DevOps Transformation

Role:

Enterprise Agile Coach & Technical Program Manager, embedded within the CX Transformation Office. Taz Brown led the charge in unifying Agile, DevOps, and CI/CD capabilities across global teams.

Approach & Execution

• Enterprise-Wide Agile Implementation:
Deployed scaled Agile practices across multiple business units, introducing metrics-driven governance and embedding a culture of continuous improvement.

• CI/CD Integration:
Introduced DevOps practices including Jenkins-based pipelines and GitHub Actions to automate deployments, cutting software release timelines by 40%.

• Strategic Roadmap Development:
Aligned Agile delivery plans with business OKRs using tools like WorkBoard and Jira Portfolio, improving delivery predictability by 20%.

• Leadership & Stakeholder Alignment:
Presented transformation metrics to executive stakeholders, aligning KPIs with business value and reducing decision latency by 15%.

• Global Team Enablement:
Led 13+ cross-functional coaches and program leads across geographies. Standardized ceremonies, metrics, and Agile coaching protocols that improved workflow efficiency by 30%.

Key Capabilities Applied

• Strategic Program Management: Oversaw multi-million-dollar IT programs, integrating Agile frameworks at scale (SAFe, Kanban, Scrum).

• Agile & DevOps Integration: Unified software delivery through DevOps tooling, CI/CD pipelines, and automated QA.

• Organizational Change Coaching: Leveraged ICAgile and Systems Coaching frameworks to evolve leadership mindsets and team autonomy.

• Cross-Functional Leadership: Coordinated across engineering, security, operations, and business stakeholders for aligned delivery.

Technologies & Tools

Jira, Confluence, Miro, Jenkins, GitLab/GitHub Actions, Tableau, PowerBI, Kubernetes, ServiceNow, AWS, Ansible

Certifications

• PMP, ICE-EC, SPC, KMP I/II, A-CSM
• Certified Professional in Business Agility, Product Ownership, Delivery at Scale
• Workboard OKR Certified Coach
• Generative AI Bluebelt – Cisco

Leadership Philosophy

Taz champions a servant leadership approach rooted in systems thinking, somatic coaching, and managed evolution. Her leadership style creates empowered, self-organizing teams that deliver purpose-driven outcomes with resilience and sustainability.

Conclusion

Taz Brown’s work at Cisco exemplifies how experienced enterprise coaches can bridge the gap between strategy and delivery. By combining Lean-Agile principles, executive alignment, and technical program management, she transformed delivery operations into a responsive, data-driven, and scalable system that continuously delivers business value.