Complete Details of SAFe Core Values
Introduction
The fundamentals of SAFe are centered around its core values. To understand these SAFe core values, it is first important to understand what SAFe is all about. SAFe is an acronym that means Scaling Agile Framework and as its name suggests, it is a framework used to scale Agile.
The repetitive and incremental nature of Agile development is one in which team spirit and cooperation aid the evolving process of solutions.
The short repetitive or iterative processes are so that risks and requirements aren’t predicted upfront but are rather done within shorter time frames (1 to 4 weeks), going hand in hand with the changes in needs of the business.
SAFe is more suitable for larger and complex teams at different levels; project, program, and portfolio. It improves productivity, efficiency, and engagement through its speedy feedback loop.
SAFe Core Values
Four values are the core of the maximum effectiveness of this framework. They are; Alignment, Built-in quality, Transparency, and Program Execution.
- Alignment
Alignment is necessary to get a business or organization to its desired goals or destination. This can only happen when the various subunits of a business work together as one.
In other words, employees having a clear understanding of organizational goals with a carefully thought out plan to achieve these goals is crucial in maintaining an aligned enterprise.
Trained Agile teams can be of great influence in achieving this alignment but strategic management and responsibility rests entirely on the shoulders of the enterprise.
Think of a misaligned company like a vehicle whose parts have been juxtaposed. If a car engine is kept in the boot instead of its appropriate position, will the car move? I guess not. It doesn’t matter if the passengers know their destination, there’s no means of getting there.
Alignment also means that all functional units of an organization; product development, marketing and sales, user research etc are in line with the clearly set out goals and have pragmatic road maps to ensure they get there.
Alignment does not encourage centralized organizational structures, on the contrary, decentralized organizational structures can benefit from this because with the high level of personal agency, value is being increasingly implemented across the board leading to better decision-making processes.
- Built-in Quality
This core value of SAFe makes sure that every developmental stage throughout the project lifecycle is up to par as far as quality is concerned. Quality isn’t checked at the end of the development process.
Think about it as individual efforts that bring about a collective result. If quality isn’t checked at every stage of the development lifecycle, then it’s pointless when you have a finished product.
The result of not building quality leads to a slower pace and more reworking sessions. Built-in quality is also a prior condition for Lean and Flow, else, the business risks dealing with enormous amounts of inaccurate and unauthentic work.
Five aspects can be used as checklists for built-in quality. They are flow, architecture and design quality, code quality, system quality, and release quality.
It is also worth knowing that as far as the size of the system goes, SAFe is obligatory for large operating systems.
- Transparency
Building solutions is never an easy process. A lot of unforeseen circumstances here and there, or things just fail. If facts are hidden, speculations and assumptions become the basis of decision-making, this doesn’t help anyone and it is not scalable.
To ensure transparency, trust has to be built. This can only happen when both business and development are able to depend on each other’s work ethic especially when the hard days come.
Trust is also a fundamental attribute of high-performing teams and healthy working environments.
Several SAFe practices influence transparency;
- Program logs and portfolio kanban are accessible to management and other stakeholders, they’re also well versed with every Agile solution train and Program Increment (PI) objectives.
- Teams and Programs Backlogs can be seen by Agile Release Trains (ARTs).
- WIP and velocity of teams are clear to all.
- Teams and solution trains have insight into new ventures through enabler Epics.
- Program Execution
All this discourse on SAFe wouldn’t matter if teams are unable to implement and execute effectively. This is why SAFe doesn’t focus only on systems but also on outcomes.
Improving value efficiently and consistently can be arduous even for Agile teams because as we earlier mentioned developing solutions isn’t easy.
This is why solutions trains are important, and also why execution begins at Essential SAFe. The ability of solution trains influences the ability of value streams to provide value.
Transparency, alignment, and built-in quality set a good foundation that is execution-centric. Inspect and Adapt workshops are there for times when teams struggle.
All these ensure better incremental value changes throughout the development lifecycle.
Overview of the benefits of the SAFe core values
The four core values of SAFe are alignment, built-in quality, transparency, and program execution. They all work together to align organizations so that they meet their desired goals.
SAFe is very instrumental in large teams and focuses both on business systems and outcomes. Organizations that have gone ahead to implement SAFe best practices can boast of higher levels of productivity, engagement, and efficiency amongst their employees.
Major Challenges Involved in Scaling Agile in Organizations.
While the benefits of scaling Agile frameworks are enormous; increased productivity, improved product quality, increased employee engagement, etc. This however doesn’t shield it from inherent challenges that come with operating in grand size organizations.
The main challenges are;
- Habit
When people are used to doing things a certain way, it is hard to make them do it an alternative way. This can also be referred to as a cultural shift.
Very few people like stepping out of their comfort zones and this can pose a problem as far as scaling Agile is concerned.
In large organizations, the changes have to be massive in order to influence complete organizational processes. The reluctance to change can come in different ways such as second guessing the ability of Agile technologies, managerial reluctance, and overall defensiveness from bottom to top.
However it is not impossible, with a little push and consistency, teams eventually adapt.
- Knowledge Gaps
Another challenge with scaling Agile comes with the knowledge gaps about the technology. This can be as a result of no training and/or guidance in using the technologies, limited resources available for education, misinformation and general inexperience of personnel in working with and delivering through these frameworks.
For effective scaling of enterprises, executives have to invest in training sessions for employees, educating them about processes and frameworks and also benefits involved in using these frameworks.
Without a clear understanding of what Agile technologies are, implementation will always be met by resistance thereby causing chaos within organizational structures.
- Support from Leadership
In a case where executives have little to no understanding of what Agile frameworks are, it becomes impossible to manage any uproar that comes from employees.
Implementing change has the ability of causing several shifts internally such as employee engagement, etc. It requires firm and sturdy leadership to convince employees of the need to become Agile.
Education about the importance of this framework, therefore, has to start from the top especially in centralized organizational structures where the flow of command is hierarchical. This helps manage impending frictions.
The success of scaling Agile in enterprises is highly dependent on leadership that is intentional about innovative and collaborative solutions that drive productivity.
- Employing Proper Agile Methods
Another reason why scaling Agile may fail is because the Agile methodologies used do not match the needs of the organization.
Understanding the needs of an organization will help in picking out appropriate technologies that fit these needs. If Agile technologies are not in line with organizational needs, they will always fail.
Conclusion
Organizations working towards achieving set strategic goals are better off applying the core values of SAFe. It helps align goals with methods towards achieving defined goals.
A prerequisite for effective use of SAFe core values is determining organizational values.
SAFe is a value-focused method proven to work for large enterprises in scaling Agile. It doesn’t only help in meeting the goals of organizations alone but also personal goals.
It provides a centralized framework for value delivery and makes the path towards achieving organizational success clearer, defined, consistent and also creates room for building team spirit among teams.
Understanding the possible challenges to the implementation of Agile frameworks allows enterprises to work on possible solutions way beforehand, to save time and money.
References:
- https://www.scaledagileframework.com/safe-core-values/
- http://AgileManifesto.org
- https://www.plutora.com/blog/scaled-agile-framework-understand-safe-and-4-core-values
