Our experience was remarkably similar! We learned: Phase 1 (1 month) involved tool evaluation. Phase 2 (2 months) focused on pilot implementation. Phase 3 (2 weeks) was all about full rollout. Total investment was $100K but the payback period was only 6 months. Key success factors: automation, documentation, feedback loops. If I could do it again, I would set clearer success metrics.

The end result was 3x increase in deployment frequency.

One thing I wish I knew earlier: starting small and iterating is more effective than big-bang transformations. Would have saved us a lot of time.