Adrian Barkus
When a project is bleeding, you call the Cleaner.
I'm the senior delivery operator your teams call when a project has gone sideways — over budget, overdue, or being blocked by difficult customers and frustrated specialists. I take on the hard or old projects nobody else wants, and I finish them. My peers call me the Cleaner. 19 years shipping complex work on time, without the drama.
Trusted by
Market Reality
Delivery Is What Ships Value. Most Teams Can't Rely On It.
The backlog is a wishlist. The sprints slip. Dependencies pile up and risks surface at go-live. It's rarely a capability problem — it's a delivery problem. No one is running the machine.
Teams that ship reliably have one thing in common: someone owns the ceremonies, the backlog, and the risks. That's the gap I fill — until the team can run it themselves.
Recent Work
Delivery Evidence. Work Shipped With Real Teams.
Servant Leadership
The team gets the credit. The outcomes speak for themselves.
My job is to make the team fast, safe and self-sufficient — not to be the most important person in the room. I run the ceremonies, clear the blockers, and coach people until they can run the delivery without me. The best sign a project is going well is that my involvement is quietly shrinking.
The Cleaner
I take on the hard projects — the ones that are losing money — and finish them.
Most delivery consultants want a clean project. I want the opposite. When you call me in, it's usually because a project has gone over budget, run past its deadline, or is being blocked by difficult customers and specialists who are one meeting away from quitting.
That's where I'm best. My peers call me the Cleaner — I take on the hard or old projects nobody else wants, and I finish them.
The first thing I do is handle the people. Upset customers, frustrated specialists — they get real acknowledgment and understanding before anyone moves. Then I align everyone on one agreed goal.
My stable datum: production is the basis of morale. When a team starts shipping again, the quitting stops, and the project closes.
Engagement
How I Run Delivery With Your Team
Delivery Health Check
A structured look at your ceremonies, backlog, and risk register. Where work gets stuck, where dependencies hide, and what is actually slowing the team down. Most complete within two weeks.
Embed & Run The Ceremonies
I step in as Scrum Master or delivery lead. Sprints get planned, refined, and reviewed properly. Jira and Confluence become tools the team actually trusts, not overhead.
Coach & Hand Over
As delivery stabilises, I coach the team and the existing leads to run it themselves. The goal is a team that ships reliably long after my last day on the engagement.
What I Deliver
Three Ways I Can Support Your Team
Assessment
Delivery Health Check
Two-week look at your ceremonies, backlog, and risk register. A clear picture of what is slowing the team down and how to fix it.
Send me the specEmbedded
Scrum Master & Delivery Lead
I run the ceremonies, keep the backlog honest, and manage risks and dependencies so the team can focus on shipping.
See how I run deliveryCoaching
Team Coaching & Ways of Working
Servant leadership for your existing leads and teams — so your delivery runs itself, long after I'm gone.
Send me the specContact
Send me the spec.
If you've got a delivery that needs running properly — or a team that needs coaching — send me the spec and your biggest pain point. I'll tell you honestly whether I'm the right person and how I'd approach it. No obligation.