Scaled agile framework: Difference between revisions

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{{Software development process}}

{{Short description|Set of workflow practices}}

The '''scaled agile framework''' ('''SAFe''') is a set of organization and workflow patterns intended to guide enterprises in [[Scaling of innovations|scaling]] [[Lean software development|lean]] and [[Agile software development|agile]] practices.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Scaling Agile Methods for Department of Defense Programs|last1=Hayes|first1=Will|last2=Lapham|first2=Mary Ann|last3=Miller|first3=Suzanne|last4=Wrubel|first4=Eileen|last5=Capell|first5=Peter|publisher=Software Engineering Institute|year=2016|id=CMU/SEI-2016-TN-005}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.techradar.com/news/software/why-continuous-delivery-is-key-to-speeding-up-software-development-1282498|title=Why Continuous Delivery is key to speeding up software development|last=Athrow|first=Desiree|date=29 January 2015|work=TechRadar|access-date=2017-11-27}}</ref> Along with [[Scrumdisciplined (softwareagile development)#Large-scale scrum|large-scale Scrumdelivery]] (LeSSDAD) and [[disciplined agile delivery]]S@S (DADScrum@Scale), SAFe is one of a growing number of frameworks that seek to address the problems encountered when scaling beyond a single team.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.infoq.com/news/2015/01/disciplined-agile-delivery|title=Scaling Agile with the Disciplined Agile Delivery Framework|last=Linders|first=Ben|date=January 22, 2015|website=InfoQ|access-date=2017-11-27}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Agile in-the-large: Getting from Paradox to Paradigm|last=van Haaster|first=K|publisher=Unpublished paper from Charles Sturt University|year=2014}}</ref>

SAFe promotes alignment, collaboration, and delivery across large numbers of agile teams. It was developed by and for practitioners, by leveraging three primary bodies of knowledge: [[agile software development]], [[lean product development]], and [[systems thinking]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=King|first=Michael|year=2017|title=Serving Federal Customers with SAFe Concepts|url=http://cmmiinstitute.com/sites/default/files/resource_asset/Serving%20Federal%20Customers%20Using%20Agile%2C%20SAFe%2C%20And%20CMMI%20Principles.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171003030023/http://cmmiinstitute.com/sites/default/files/resource_asset/Serving%20Federal%20Customers%20Using%20Agile%2C%20SAFe%2C%20And%20CMMI%20Principles.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 3, 2017|journal=Capability Counts Conference Proceedings}}{{dead link|date=September 2022}} </ref>

The primary reference for the scaled agile framework was originally the development of a ''big picture'' view of how work flowed from [[product management]] (or other [[Project stakeholder|stakeholders]]), through [[Project governance|governance]], [[Program management|program]], and [[Software developer|development teams]], out to [[customer]]s.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.drdobbs.com/tools/real-agile-means-everybody-is-agile/240159622|title=Real Agile Means Everybody Is Agile|last=Bridgwater|first=Adrian|date=August 7, 2013|work=Dr. Dobb's|access-date=2017-11-27}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.infoq.com/news/2014/08/death-by-planning-agile|title=Death by Planning in Agile Adoption|last=Linders|first=Ben|date=August 28, 2014|website=InfoQ|access-date=2017-11-27}}</ref> With the collaboration of others in the agile community, this was progressively refined and then first formally described in a 2007 book.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Scaling Software Agility: Best Practices for Large Enterprises|last=Leffingwell|first=Dean|publisher=Addison-Wesley|year=2007|isbn=978-0321458193}}</ref> The framework continues to be developed and shared publicly; with an academy and an accreditation scheme supporting those who seek to implement, support, or train others in the adoption of SAFe.

Starting at its first release in 2011, six major versions have been released<ref name="History of SAFe">{{cite web |title=About Scaled Agile Framework - A Brief History of SAFe |url=https://www.scaledagileframework.com/about/ |publisher=Scaled Agile Inc. |access-date=12 August 2020}}</ref> while the latest edition, version 6.0, was released in March 2023.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://scaledagileframework.com/blog/say-hello-to-safe-6-0/|title=Say Hello to SAFE 6.0|date=15 March 2023 |publisher=Scaled Agile Inc|access-date=2023-03-16}}</ref>

While SAFe continues to be recognised as the most common approach to scaling agile practices (at 30 percent and growing),<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.stateofagile.com/#ufh-i-521251909-13th-annual-state-of-agile-report/473508|title=13th Annual State of Agile Report|date=2019|website=State of Agile Survey|publisher=CollabNet VersionOne|access-date=2019-08-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Link|first1=P|last2=Lewrick|first2=M|date=29 September 2014|title=Agile Methods in a New Area of Innovation Management|url=http://www.brainguide.de/upload/publication/b0/2c3xg/c51b33fd2c6a9d032a7387f3273b9c62_1402133130.pdf|journal=Science to Business Marketing Conference}}</ref>{{page needed|date=April 2019}},<ref>{{cite web|url=http://computerworld.com.br/carreira/2015/01/28/profissionais-brasileiros-e-o-interesse-por-treinamentos-de-especializacao/|title=Profissionais brasileiros e o interesse por treinamentos de especialização|last=Baptista|first=Roberto|date=28 January 2015|publisher=Computerworld Brazil|access-date=28 January 2015}}</ref> it also has received criticism for being too [[Hierarchy|hierarchical]] and inflexible.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://kenschwaber.wordpress.com/2013/08/06/unsafe-at-any-speed/|title=unSAFe at any speed|last=Schwaber|first=Ken|author-link=Ken Schwaber|date=2013-08-06|work=Telling It Like It Is|access-date=2017-11-11}}</ref> It also receives criticism for giving organizations the illusion of adopting [[Agile software development|Agile]], while keeping familiar processes intact.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://jeffgothelf.com/blog/safe-is-not-agile/|title=SAFe is not Agile|last=Gothelf|first=Jeff|author-link=Jeff Gothelf|date=2021-10-05|access-date=2023-05-21}}</ref>

== Challenges of scaling agile principles and practices ==

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=== Coping with longer planning horizons ===

Development teams typically refine their backlog up to two to three iterations ahead, but in larger organizations the product marketing team needs to plan further ahead for their commitments to market and discussions with customers.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Industrial challenges of scaling agile in mass-produced embedded systems.|last1=Eklund|first1=U|last2=Olsson|first2=H|last3=Strøm|first3=N|work=Agile Methods. Large-Scale Development, Refactoring, Testing, and Estimation|publisher=Springer International Publishing|year=2014|isbn=9783319143583}}</ref> They will often work with a very high level, 12 to 18-month roadmap, then plan collaboratively with the teams for three months of work.{{cn|date=September 2022}} The development teams will still get into detailed refinement 2-32–3 iterations ahead, only getting into detailed task plans for the next iteration.{{cn|date=September 2022}}

=== Keeping agile at abstract levels of responsibility ===

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=== Synchronizing deliverables ===

Agile frameworks are designed to enable the development team to be autonomous and free to design how they work. SAFe acknowledges that, at the scale of many tens or hundreds of development teams, it becomes increasingly chaotic for teams to fully self-organize.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |urllast=http://searchsoftwarequality.techtarget.com/answer/Scaling-Agile-development-calls-for-defined-practices-consultant-saysStafford |first=Jan |date=December 9, 2013 |title=Scaling Agile development calls for defined practices, consultant says |lasturl=Stafford|first=Jan|date=Decemberhttps://www.techtarget.com/searchsoftwarequality/definition/agile-software-development 9, 2013|work=SearchSoftwareQuality|access-date=2017-11-27}}{{dead link|datework=September 2022SearchSoftwareQuality}}</ref> It therefore puts some constraints on this, so that where teams are working on the same product, their deliverables can be better synchronized for releasing together, although this has been one area in which SAFe has been criticized.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" />

=== Allowing time for innovation and planning ===

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According to its authors, SAFe is based upon ten underlying concepts, which are derived from existing lean and agile principles, as well as observation:<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=http://scaledagileframework.com/safe-lean-agile-principles/|title=SAFe Lean-Agile Principles|access-date=19 February 2016}}</ref>

# Take an economic view

# Apply [[systems thinking]]

# Assume variability; preserve options

# Build incrementally with fast integrated learning cycles

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== Further reading ==

* {{Citation |ref=none |last1=Dingsøyr |first1=Torgeir |last2=Falessi |first2=David |last3=Power |first3=Ken |date=February 2019 |title=Agile Development at Scale: The Next Frontier |journal=IEEE Software|volume=36 |issue=2 |pages=30–38 |doi=10.1109/MS.2018.2884884 |s2cid=57373760 |doi-access=free |arxiv=1901.00324 }}

* {{Citation |last=Heusser |first=Matthew |title=Introducing the scaled agile framework |date=17 June 2015 |url=http://www.cio.com/article/2936942/enterprise-software/introducing-the-scaled-agile-framework.html |ref=none |pages=1–2 |publisher=[[CIO magazine|CIO]]}} — contains a review of the pros and cons of the methodology and concludes it is a half-way-house to a fully agile system.

* {{Citation |ref=none |last=Leffingwell |first=Dean |year=2011 |title=Lean Requirements Practices for Teams, Programs, and the Enterprise |publisher=Addison-Wesley Professional |isbn= 978-0321635846}}

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[[Category:Software project management]]

[[Category:Software development philosophies]]

[[Category:Management frameworks]]