ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Most Agile transformations don’t fail in delivery.They fail at procurement.
Teams move fast.Contracts don’t.
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.
In my recent conversation with Mirko Kleiner, one of the pioneers of Lean Agile Procurement, I learned how his teams flipped sourcing on its head:
* ERP vendor selected in 2 days
* Engineers talking directly to engineers
* All vendors in the same room
* Solutions co-created, not specified upfront
* Contracts negotiated during the workshop
* World Procurement Award winner
It all starts with one uncomfortable question:
“What if we had just one day to select a supplier — and sign the contract?”
That constraint forces a redesign of the system:less delegation, fewer handoffs, real ownership, and radically more transparency between buyers and suppliers.
This isn’t fringe thinking anymore.
Mirko and the Lean Agile Procurement community recently released a joint whitepaper with SAFe 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.
You can read it here:👉 https://www.lap-alliance.org/resources/our-blog/boost-your-safe-implementation-with-lean-agile-procurement-n2km7
What’s emerging is bigger than procurement. It’s a global movement focused on cross-company collaboration and value streams that don’t stop at the company’s front door.
That movement is growing quickly—and they’re actively looking for trainers to help meet demand worldwide:👉 https://www.lap-alliance.org
If your Agile teams move fast but your vendors don’t, you’re not missing another framework.
You’re missing procurement as part of agility.
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