Qantas is Australia’s largest domestic and international airline. With a strong reputation for excellence in safety, operational reliability, engineering and customer service, Qantas is widely regarded as a leader in the aviation industry.

Qantas partnered with ThoughtWorks to increase the speed at which they respond to the needs of the market. The goal was to co-create new principles, frameworks, and processes to improve the outcomes delivered to their internal and external customers.

A key focus was cross-company collaboration, including portfolio management and adaptive funding approaches. The coaching team worked closely with Qantas product teams to develop leadership and delivery capabilities.

Low maintenance visual systems were created to increase visibility throughout the portfolio of work. This has helped improve the Executive Leadership teams’ ability to make faster decisions. 

The team also addressed how work is structured and delivered. By introducing product-focused, cross-functional teams, and establishing a Lean Project Management Office (PMO), they have ensured the right levels of governance across projects.

Agile and Lean capability took the form of training, coaching, communities of practice and embedded practitioners to support and enhance team learning. These new ways of working have resulted in better communication between business and IT, a focus on architectural principles and smaller, more frequent releases.