Isabelle Decobecq, AG2R La Mondiale

Managing a complex digital project with obeya

Here is a unique opportunity to visit a real-life obeya! In 2014, Nicolas, improvement leader with AG2R LA MONDIALE, a large mutual insurance group, proposed the obeya approach to improve project management in the company through team collaboration. He launched the pilot project with Isabelle, project director, who has accepted to share her own obeya with you. Nicolas will act as a manager visiting Isabelle's obeya.

Isabelle has been managing a highly critical project for her company for the past few months: automating the processing of employer contributions for social insurance. This is one major strategic step towards the digital transformation of her company. Isabelle's challenge? Deliver a new system company-wide by January 2016, as imposed by French regulation. The risks? Any delay might cause costly penalties and loss of customers. The context? a complex architecture, over 15 teams involved, near-shored development centers, a clearly defined budget and not 1 more euro to spend, and a typical silo organisation to work with. Come see how she uses the obeya to help her face this huge challenge in order to deliver the right product on time and within budget.

Biography: Isabelle is a highly skilled computer professional, with over fifteen years of programming, analysis, project management and team management experience. She has worked on every possible phase of an IT project so she is well versed in all aspects of a project life cycle in large companies. She holds a master’s degree in business computer science. In 1995, after working 5 years in Paris as a programmer and an analyst in the automotive, retail and banking sectors, she joined AG2R LA MONDIALE, a major insurance company. She first held a business analyst position and soon after became project manager, leading projects of various sizes and complexity. She also worked for several years as manager of the company’s testing and quality teams. Today, at AG2R LA MONDIALE, she directs complex, transversal projects that are critical to the success of the company’s digital strategy. One year ago, she discovered the Lean approach as she was getting started with the scoping phase of a high visibility project. As she says it herself: "I found the Obeya method subjugating! So I asked the team if we could continue applying the method during the implementation phase of the project. I was then able to practice and learn several new Lean concepts, in particular, “pull and flow” and problem solving”.