Foundations of the

Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe ) 4.5

® ®

V4.5.0

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We thought we’d be
developing like this.

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But sometimes it
feels like this.

Library of Congress
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And our retrospectives
read like this: Late
Too little Problems
delivery
visibility Too early discovered
No way to commitment too late
improve to a design
systematicall that didn’t
y work
Phase gate
Massive SDLC isn't
growth in Hard to helping
Under- complexity reduce risk
estimated manage
dependencies distributed
teams Poor
morale

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Management’s challenge

It is not enough that management commit

themselves to quality and productivity. …
They must know what it is they must do.

Such a responsibility cannot be delegated.

—W. Edwards Deming

“… and if you can’t come, send no one.”

—Vignette from Out of the Crisis, Deming,1986

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What it is they must do

Embrace a Lean-Agile mindset

Implement Lean-Agile practices

Lead the implementation

Get results

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 Embrace a Lean-Agile mindset

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Embrace Lean-Agile values

House of Lean Agile Manifesto

VALUE We are uncovering better ways of developing software by doing it and
helping others do it. Through this work we have come to value:
people and culture

improvement
Respect for

Relentless
Innovation

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools

Flow

Working software over comprehensive documentation

Customer collaboration over contract negotiation

LEADERSHIP Responding to change over following a plan

Value in the shortest That is, while there is value in the items on the
sustainable lead time right, we value the items on the left more.

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 SAFe Lean-Agile principles

#1 - Take an economic view

#2 - Apply systems thinking
#3 - Assume variability; preserve options
#4 - Build incrementally with fast, integrated learning cycles
#5 - Base milestones on objective evaluation of working systems
#6 - Visualize and limit WIP, reduce batch sizes, and manage queue lengths
#7 - Apply cadence, synchronize with cross-domain planning
#8 - Unlock the intrinsic motivation of knowledge workers
#9 - Decentralize decision-making

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Building incrementally accelerates value delivery

Requirements
Design
WATERFALL
Implementation
Verification

4 444 :
Documents Documents Unverified System System
INCREMENTAL
DELIVERY

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And delivers better economics

Early delivery provides fast value with fast feedback

Fast feedback

Waterfall
Value Delivery

Incremental

Time
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 Implement Lean-Agile practices

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Knowledge for people building the world's most important systems

SAFe is a freely revealed knowledge base

®

of integrated, proven patterns for enterprise

Lean-Agile development.

scaledagileframework.com

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Essential SAFe provides the basis for success

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Nothing beats an Agile Team

Cross-functional, self-organizing entities that can define, build and

test a thing of value

Applies basic scientific practice: Plan—Do—Check—Adjust

Delivers value every two weeks

Do
Team Plan
1
PDCA Chec
k
Team
n Adjus
t

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That integrates frequently
Integration points control product development.
— Dantar Oosterwal, The Lean Machine

Full system
System Team integration at least System
Avoid physical branching Agile Team 1
once per iteration demo

for software
Story
Frequently integrate hardware
Check out most Check newest
branches current functionality changes back in

Mainline
Use development by intention in Check in
Story each story
for inter-team dependencies
Always current
mainline increases
program velocity

Agile Team 2

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Applies test automation

Test automation supports rapid regression testing

 Test 1  Test 1
Test 2  Test 2
Implemented in the same iteration  Test 3  Test 3
Test 4  Test 4
 Test 5  Test 5
Maintained under version control … …

Passing vs. not-yet-passing and

Progress
broken automated tests are the real

Done
iteration progress indicator

Building functionality

Test automation
Iteration
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Except a team of Agile Teams

Align 50-125 practitioners to a common mission

Apply cadence and synchronization, Program Increments every 6-12 weeks
Provide Vision, Roadmap, architectural guidance

D D D D
P P P P
P D P D P
D

C C C C
C

A A A A
A C A C A

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With some Architectural Runway

Architectural Runway—existing code, hardware components, etc. that

technically enable near-term business features

Feature  Enablers build up the runway

Feature

Feature
 Features consume it
 Architectural Runway must be continuously maintained
Implemented now …
… to support
 Enablers extend the runway
Enabler
future features

Architectural Runway

©
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Bringing together the necessary people

Business Product Arch/ Program Hardware Software Testing Deployment

Mgmt Sys Eng.

AGILE RELEASE TRAIN

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Synchronizes with PI Planning
Future product development tasks can’t be pre-determined. Distribute planning and control to those who can
understand and react to the end results. — Michael Kennedy, Product Development for the Lean Enterprise

 All stakeholders face-to-face (but typically multiple locations)

 Management sets the mission, with minimum possible constraints
 Requirements and design emerge
 Important stakeholder decisions are accelerated
 Teams create—and take responsibility for—plans

For a short video PI planning example, see: https://youtu.be/ZZAtl7nAB1M

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Demonstrates the full system every two weeks

An integrated solution demo

Objective milestone

Demo from the staging environment,

or the nearest proxy
Full system

System
Team

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Continuously delivers value to customers with DevOps

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Inspects and Adapts every PI

Every PI, teams systematically address the

larger impediments that are limiting velocity.
Agree on the Apply root cause analysis Identify the biggest root
problem to solve (+ five whys) cause using Pareto Analysis

Insufficiently
reliable release
commitments?

Restate the new problem Identify improvement

Brainstorm solutions
for the biggest root cause Backlog items

Insufficient
architectural
runway

©
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Portfolio SAFe aligns strategy and execution

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Large Solution SAFe coordinates ARTs with a Solution Train

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Full SAFe for large enterprises

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 Lead the implementation

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Leadership foundation

VALUE
people and culture

People are already doing their best; the

improvement
Respect for

Relentless
Innovation
problems are with the system. Only
Flow

management can change the system.

—W. Edwards Deming
LEADERSHIP

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Implementation Roadmap

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 Get results

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Business results

10 – 50% happier, 30 – 75% faster

more motivated time-to-market
employees

BUSINESS
RESULTS

20 – 50% increase 25 – 75%

in productivity defect reduction

See ScaledAgileFramework.com/case-studies
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Financial Services / Electronics / Software / Telecom / Retail & Distribution / Government / Healthcare / Insurance /
Medical Technology / Pharmaceutical / Media / Manufacturing / COTS Software / Customer Care & Billing / Outsourcing

See ScaledAgileFramework.com/case-studies
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 Gain
Gainthe
the Knowledge
Knowledge

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 ScaledAgileFramework.com
Explore the SAFe knowledge base
and find free resources:

 Articles
 Guidance
 Presentations
 White papers
 Videos
 Case studies

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 ScaledAgile.com
Find SAFe
training worldwide

CORE
 Leading SAFe
 SAFe for Teams
 SAFe Scrum Master
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ADVANCED
 SAFe Advanced Scrum Master
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 SAFe for Lean Enterprises ®

130,000 130 SAFe is a Freely Available

SAFe’s body of knowledge is freely
framework of
SAFe certified Scaled Agile Partners available at scaledagileframework.com
professionals in 35 countries mindset, principles,
in 100+ countries and practices for
Configurable
scaling Lean-Agile SAFe is able to accommodate enterprises

70% US Fortune 100 enterprises have

SAFe certified professionals
development
throughout the
of all sizes and industries

enterprise Fastest Growing Method

1.7 million Pledged 1%

Scaled Agile stock Annual Gathering
11th Annual State of Agile Survey by VersionOne
28% cite SAFe as preferred method for scaling
Annual visitors to SAFe
and Scaled Agile websites
equity & employee time
to Pledge 1% campaign
Agile, making SAFe the most popular scaling
method above Scrum and Scrum of Scrums 28%

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