"So on any given day, I'm just managing those planes and flight patterns and trying to make sense and create that sequencing of road maps. Or at least highlight, hey, you're not going to achieve that, because this strategy over here in this portfolio isn't even thinking that way” - Christine Babowicz

When we decided to start inviting guests to join us, we were passionate about finding people with real lived experience to share their hard-won insights and wisdom. We were very grateful when Christine Babowicz agreed to join us as our second guest, and she certainly brought plenty of wisdom.

Christine currently serves as Head of Global Execution Excellence at MetLife. She joined MetLife almost nine years ago after spending time at Intel and Adesa. Initially serving in a PMO capacity, she became involved in the launch of MetLife’s Global Lean-Agile CoE 6 years ago. It quickly became a pull-based global agility and ways of working transformation.

Her role has recently expanded into partnering with Enterprise Strategy and 16 portfolios across MetLife to bring their AI strategy to life, focused on creating differentiated experiences for their associates and customers.

Over the years, she's spoken at various Agile Conferences and SAFe Summits, and her topics show her passion for leadership empathy during times of change. She was also a founding member of Raleigh-Durham Women in Agile. Recently, her leadership style and transformation efforts have earned her the Triangle’s Business Journal 40under40 award.

Our conversation takes us through her journey as a change leader over the past six years. Christine shares the challenges of forming an Agile PMO amidst established practices and how her background in lean thinking shaped her approach. We discuss the importance of translating between old and new methodologies, building empathy and trust with stakeholders, and focusing on the problems portfolio leaders face rather than the solutions the textbook provides. She also shares the value of grounding conversations across portfolio boundaries in the organizational mission and a deep understanding of business processes.

As a leader, she highlights the privilege of these transformative roles and the importance of staying humble and prepared when navigating such complex landscapes.

In this episode, we cover:

• (00:00) Introduction
• (05:44) What was it like forming an agile PMO in the middle of a very project-centric world?
• (11:01) How do you navigate the translation between the old and new worlds?
• (15:21) What triggered your transition to portfolio?
• (21:03) With 16 portfolios, how did you pick where to start?
• (24:50) What was your first step once you found your leverage point?
• (30:08) What’s critical for a coach trying to connect with portfolio-level leadership?
• (35:27) What secrets have you found to enabling change across portfolio boundaries?
• (39:56) As a change leader, how do you make it safe for your team to tackle challenging conversations?
• (47:28) Have you found recurring patterns that enable scaling of your change efforts?
• (52:46) How do you help leaders balance aspiration and obligation?
• (59:52) What parting wisdom would you share?

Cast:

Christine Babowicz

Eric Willeke

Mark Richards