Suncorp’s transformation from a 120-year-old legacy insurer into a modern, high-velocity enterprise stands as a compelling example of how strategic alignment and operational reinvention can drive measurable business outcomes. By leveraging Atlassian’s Strategy Collection as the foundation of its transformation, Suncorp achieved remarkable results: doubling its business value, tripling throughput, and significantly improving team health and resilience. Operating in a highly regulated industry and facing the unpredictability of natural disasters, Suncorp’s challenges were immense. The historic floods in Queensland and New South Wales in 2022, followed by the Auckland floods in 2023, underscored the need for agility and resilience. In response, Suncorp’s leadership launched an ambitious three-year strategy in 2020 to modernize operations, drive growth, and build resilience.

At the heart of this transformation was the adoption of Strategy Collection, a centralized and dynamic approach to strategic planning and execution. This tool enabled Suncorp to align its teams around clear, outcome-driven strategies, breaking down silos and fostering a culture of continuous improvement. By organizing work around outcomes, embedding governance into teams, and transitioning to agile practices at scale, Suncorp created a unified system of work that connected strategy to execution. The results speak for themselves. Suncorp not only achieved its ambitious goals but also set a new standard for operational excellence in the insurance industry. This blog explores the key elements of Suncorp’s journey, highlighting the strategies, tools, and principles that enabled this success. For organizations seeking to navigate complexity, enhance resilience, and accelerate outcomes, Suncorp’s journey offers a powerful blueprint for transformation.

Strategic Goals and Objectives

Suncorp’s transformation journey was driven by a bold and ambitious vision to modernize its operations, enhance resilience, and drive sustainable growth. As one of Australia and New Zealand’s largest insurers, Suncorp faced unique challenges stemming from its legacy systems, regulatory complexities, and the unpredictable nature of natural disasters. These factors made large-scale transformation a daunting task, but the organization’s leadership recognized that a fundamental shift in strategy and execution was necessary to remain competitive and agile in an evolving market.

In 2020, Suncorp set out a three-year strategic plan with clear, measurable objectives. These goals were designed not only to address immediate operational inefficiencies but also to future-proof the organization against emerging challenges. The key objectives included:

Doubling business value: Suncorp aimed to significantly enhance its overall value delivery by aligning its operations with strategic priorities and improving efficiency across the board.
Tripling throughput: By increasing the speed and volume of work delivered, Suncorp sought to meet customer demands more effectively while maintaining high-quality standards.
Reducing lead times by 30%: Shorter lead times were critical to improving responsiveness, particularly in the context of processing claims during natural disasters.
Enhancing team health and resilience: Recognizing the importance of its workforce, Suncorp prioritized initiatives to improve employee well-being, engagement, and productivity.

These objectives were set against the backdrop of a significant organizational shift: the sale of Suncorp’s banking division. This move added complexity to the transformation process, requiring careful coordination and alignment across all levels of the organization.

The Rationale Behind the Goals

The rationale for these ambitious goals was rooted in Suncorp’s need to adapt to a rapidly changing business environment. As a legacy insurer with over 120 years of history, Suncorp faced increasing pressure to modernize its operations and deliver greater value to its customers and shareholders. Key drivers for the transformation included:

Regulatory and compliance demands
Customer expectations for faster, more personalized service
Operational inefficiencies due to legacy systems and siloed processes
The need for resilience in responding to natural disasters

By addressing these challenges head-on, Suncorp aimed to position itself as a modern, high-velocity enterprise capable of delivering exceptional value to its stakeholders.

The Role of Strategy Collection

To achieve its transformation goals, Suncorp turned to Atlassian’s Strategy Collection—a centralized, living framework for strategic planning and execution. This approach allowed Suncorp to break down its ambitious objectives into actionable, outcome-driven strategies that were visible and accessible to all teams. By leveraging tools like Strategy on a Page and the Focus dashboard, Suncorp was able to align its vision with day-to-day execution, ensuring that every team was working toward the same overarching goals.

Key Takeaways for Other Enterprises

Set clear, measurable objectives aligned with the organization’s broader vision
Adopt a centralized approach to strategy to break down silos
Empower teams with visibility and alignment using tools like Strategy on a Page
Prioritize resilience and adaptability to respond to fast-paced changes

Implementation of Strategy Collection

Suncorp’s adoption of the Strategy Collection was a pivotal step in its transformation journey, enabling the organization to align its strategic goals with day-to-day execution. This integration was not merely a technological upgrade but a fundamental shift in how the company approached work, collaboration, and governance. By embedding Strategy Collection into its operations, Suncorp created a unified system that connected priorities, teams, and outcomes across the enterprise.

A Centralized Approach to Strategy

At the heart of Suncorp’s transformation was the need to break down silos and create a cohesive framework for strategic alignment. Strategy Collection provided the tools and methodologies to achieve this by centralizing all strategic initiatives into a single, living system. This approach ensured that every team, from leadership to frontline employees, had visibility into the organization’s goals and their role in achieving them. Each team developed a “strategy on a page,” a concise and actionable document that outlined their objectives, priorities, and progress. This standardized framework allowed Suncorp to cascade enterprise-wide goals down to individual teams while maintaining alignment with the broader vision. The result was a seamless connection between strategy and execution, enabling faster decision-making and greater agility.

Key Principles of Integration

Outcome-driven team structures focused on measurable results
Unified governance through a Value Realization Office
Smaller, faster iterations for continuous improvement
Embedded governance for compliance and speed
Agile at scale, connecting all teams through a centralized system of work

The Role of Technology in Transformation

Strategy on a Page: Unified framework for documenting and sharing strategic plans
Focus Dashboard: Real-time dashboard for leadership visibility into team contributions

Overcoming Challenges

Change management through training, workshops, and ongoing communication
Tiered guardrails balancing speed and safety, including lean controls, safety teams, and escalation forums

The Results: A Blueprint for Success

Doubling business value delivered
Tripling throughput
Reducing lead times by 30%
Improving team health by 15%
Achieving a 200% shareholder return over five years
Increasing employee Net Promoter Score by 21 points

Key Principles of Transformation

Organizing Teams Around Outcomes: Teams were structured to focus on outcomes, ensuring every effort was tied to measurable results and strategic objectives.
Centralizing Work Through a Value Realization Office: The Value Realization Office unified governance, broke down silos, and streamlined decision-making.
Descaling Releases for Quicker Iterations: Suncorp shifted from large, long-term projects to smaller, faster cycles, enabling rapid delivery and continuous improvement.
Embedding Governance into Teams: Governance was integrated into daily operations, empowering teams to move quickly while maintaining compliance.
Transitioning to Agile at Scale: A centralized system of work connected all teams, fostering organization-wide agility and collaboration.
Strategic Alignment: Top-Down Meets Bottom-Up: Standardized work breakdowns allowed enterprise-level goals to cascade across all teams, unlocking clarity and focus.
The Enterprise Racetrack: A unified system provided a consistent cadence for planning, execution, and improvement, ensuring alignment with enterprise priorities.
Guardrails for High-Velocity Execution:
- Lean controls for cybersecurity, engineering, and architecture
- Safety teams for expert oversight
- Forums for escalation of complex issues

Lessons for Other Enterprises:
- Align strategy with execution
- Foster a culture of continuous improvement
- Leverage modern tools to overcome legacy challenges

Dashboard view showing project focus areas, status indicators, countdowns for due dates, and a list of tasks with progress labels.

Impact and Results

Suncorp’s transformation journey, powered by the Strategy Collection, delivered measurable and transformative outcomes that redefined its operational capabilities and business value.

Quantitative Outcomes

Metric	Pre-Transformation	Post-Transformation	Improvement
Business Value Delivered	Baseline	More than double	2x
Throughput	Baseline	Over triple	3x
Lead Time	Baseline	30% reduction	-30%
Shareholder Return (5 years)	Baseline	200% increase	200%
Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS)	Baseline	+21 points	+21
Team Health	Baseline	15% improvement	+15%

Qualitative Improvements

Enhanced resilience: Ability to pivot resources and handle a year’s worth of claims in days during natural disasters
Improved team health: 15% improvement in team health and engagement
Cultural shift toward continuous improvement: Teams encouraged to iterate, learn, and adapt
Stronger strategic alignment: Top-down, bottom-up approach ensured every team’s work was tied to enterprise priorities

Resilience in Action

During the historic floods in Queensland and New South Wales in 2022 and the Auckland floods in 2023, Suncorp processed tens of thousands of claims in days—a feat made possible by its new system of work.

Key Takeaways for Other Enterprises

Centralize strategy and execution for alignment
Embed agility at scale for faster value delivery
Integrate governance into workflows to eliminate bottlenecks
Foster a culture of continuous improvement

Lessons Learned

Centralized strategy drives clarity and focus across all teams
Outcome-driven teams enhance alignment and bridge the gap between strategy and delivery
Agility at scale requires breaking down silos and fostering cross-functional collaboration
Governance should empower teams, not hinder them
Iterative planning accelerates value delivery and responsiveness
Unified systems enable real-time insights for informed decision-making
Guardrails balance speed and safety, ensuring compliance without slowing execution
Strategic alignment requires both top-down and bottom-up approaches
Resilience is built through strategic flexibility and the ability to pivot quickly
Continuous improvement is a cultural imperative for sustained success

Applying These Lessons to Your Organization

Suncorp’s experience demonstrates that real transformation begins with a clear, centralized strategy that is visible and actionable for every team. By adopting tools like the Strategy Collection and fostering a culture of alignment and agility, organizations can achieve significant business impact.

Conclusion

Suncorp’s transformation journey is a powerful example of how strategic alignment, supported by the right tools and methodologies, can drive extraordinary business outcomes. By placing the Strategy Collection at the core of its operations, Suncorp successfully transitioned from a legacy insurer to a high-velocity enterprise capable of navigating complex challenges with agility and precision. The adoption of Strategy Collection allowed Suncorp to centralize its strategic planning and execution, ensuring that every team was aligned with enterprise-wide goals. This alignment was not just theoretical—it was actionable, visible, and measurable. The introduction of tools like Strategy on a Page and the Focus dashboard empowered teams to connect their day-to-day work with broader organizational priorities, fostering a culture of transparency and accountability.

The five cornerstones of Suncorp’s transformation—organizing teams around outcomes, centralizing work through a value realization office, descaling releases for quicker iterations, embedding governance into teams, and transitioning to agile at scale—provided a robust framework for achieving their ambitious goals. These principles ensured that Suncorp could deliver value at speed without compromising on compliance or quality. The results speak for themselves. Suncorp not only doubled its business value and tripled throughput but also achieved a 30% reduction in lead time and a 15% improvement in team health. These outcomes were complemented by a 200% shareholder return over five years and a significant boost in employee satisfaction, as evidenced by a 21-point increase in the employee Net Promoter Score. Perhaps most impressively, Suncorp demonstrated remarkable resilience in the face of natural disasters, processing a year’s worth of claims in just days when needed.

For other enterprises, Suncorp’s story offers valuable lessons. It underscores the importance of a centralized, living strategy that is accessible and actionable for every team. It also highlights the critical role of technology in enabling strategic alignment and operational efficiency. By leveraging tools like the Strategy Collection, organizations can break down silos, accelerate decision-making, and create a culture of continuous improvement. As businesses face increasing complexity and the need for rapid adaptation, the principles and practices demonstrated by Suncorp provide a blueprint for success. Whether it’s navigating regulatory challenges, responding to market volatility, or driving innovation, the key lies in aligning vision and execution through a unified system of work.

Interested in learning more? Contact Atlas Bench to book a complimentary consultation with our Certified Atlassian Experts.

Transform your strategy into results. Try Atlassian’s Strategy Collection today and align your teams for faster, measurable impact.

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Atlas Bench is an Atlassian Platinum Solution Partner with deep Cloud Specialization, helping Data Center customers move beyond migration and fully transform on the Atlassian Cloud Platform. We deliver Atlassian’s System of Work end to end through four collections: Strategy, Teamwork, Service, and Software, connecting planning to execution, aligning teams around outcomes, modernizing service delivery, and accelerating software development.

We are also recognized as an Atlassian World Class Software Development Partner of the Year (Americas), and we bring AI leadership to every engagement. By leveraging Rovo for automation and purpose built agents, we reduce manual work, unlock knowledge across tools, and speed up decision making so organizations realize measurable value faster in cloud.

Suncorp Grows with Atlassian Strategy Collection