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Why Big 'A' Agile Is Failing—and What to Do Instead

Written by John Corey | Aug 7, 2025 4:10:15 PM

Agile Used to Mean Innovation...Now It’s Just Noise 

When I first became an Agile practitioner, Agile meant something radical: flexibility, collaboration, and continuous improvement. It wasn’t just a methodology—it was a mindset. But somewhere along the way, Agile with a capital “A” lost its soul. 

Today, Agile has become a catch-all justification for corporate restructuring, downsizing, and drawn-out transformation programs that deliver little actual value. Organizations are waking up to the reality that big frameworks and bloated processes aren’t serving them anymore. 

 

Why Agile Isn’t Working for Mid-Sized Companies  

Across the board, we’re seeing medium-sized companies abandon traditional Agile frameworks in favor of more nimble, results-driven approaches. 
Here’s why: 

Restructuring disguised as transformation. 
  • Take Capital One: in 2023, they laid off over 1,000 employees in a single day, citing a need for “agility and innovation.” It wasn’t an isolated case. IBM, Mozilla, and Accenture have done the same—all in the name of Agile. [Capital One scraps 1,100 tech positions] 
Rigid processes, few real outcomes. 
  • Sprints, Scrum Masters, PI Planning—sound familiar? These tools should serve the goal of fast delivery and high impact. But too often, they become ceremonies without substance. 
Leadership resistance and lack of buy-in. 
  • According to the State of Agile report, 47% of companies cite organizational resistance, and 41% say there’s not enough leadership participation to make Agile successful. [https://stateofagile.com] 
 

Agile vs. agile: What’s the Difference? 

This is the heart of the issue. There’s a critical distinction between being Agile and being agile: 

  • Big “A” Agile is all about frameworks, terminology, and rituals. 
  • Lowercase “a” agile is about outcomes, speed, adaptability, and impact. 

At Callibrity, we see this contrast every day. Our clients don’t need a dozen Agile coaches. They need proven technologists who can deliver real solutions fast—without the red tape. 

 

When “Agile” Becomes the Problem 

Scalability is one of the biggest pain points. Traditional Agile struggles to adapt as companies grow. Processes become rigid. Teams spend more time updating boards than building products. 

The result? Frustration, missed deadlines, and stalled innovation. 

If your company has tried Agile and felt like it “didn’t work,” you’re not alone. The problem isn’t your team—it’s the model. 

 

The Future Is Outcome-Driven Agility 

It’s time to shift the conversation. The companies that are winning today are the ones that: 

  • Focus on outcomes, not frameworks. 
  • Empower small, cross-functional teams. 
  • Deliver value in weeks, not months. 
  • Treat agility as a mindset, not a method. 

Real agility means being lean by design. It means asking the right questions, solving the right problems, and measuring the right outcomes. 

 

Ready to Rethink Agile? 

If your organization is tired of process-heavy consulting and “Agile theater,” there’s a better way. 

Start with what matters: your users, your outcomes, and your ability to adapt fast. 

At Callibrity, we’ve helped financial institutions, healthcare leaders, and tech-driven enterprises ditch bloated Agile programs in favor of lightweight, high-impact delivery models that actually work.