SAFe® 4.0 Distilled: Applying the Scaled Agile Framework® for Lean Software and Systems Engineering, First Edition

SAFe® 4.0 Distilled: Applying the Scaled Agile Framework® for Lean Software and Systems Engineering, First Edition

by Richard Knaster, Dean Leffingwell
Released March 2017
Publisher(s): Addison-Wesley Professional
ISBN: 9780134209487

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Book description

SAFe®: The World’s Leading Framework for Enterprise Agility

“SAFe® 4.0 Distilled is the book we’ve all been waiting for. It breaks down the complexity of the Framework into easily digestible explanations and actionable guidance. A must-have resource for beginners as well as seasoned practitioners.” —Lee Cunningham, Sr. Director, Enterprise Agile Strategy at VersionOne, Inc.

To succeed in today’s adapt-or-die marketplace, businesses must be able to rapidly change the way they create and deliver value to their customers. Hundreds of the world’s most successful companies—including Hewlett Packard Enterprise, AstraZeneca, Cisco, and Philips—have turned to the Scaled Agile Framework® (SAFe®) to achieve agility at scale and maintain a competitive edge.

SAFe® 4.0 Distilled: Applying the Scaled Agile Framework® for Lean Software and Systems Engineering explains how adopting SAFe can quickly improve time to market and increase productivity, quality, and employee engagement.

In this book, you will

  • Understand the business case for SAFe: its benefits, the problems it solves, and how to apply it

  • Get an overview of SAFe across all parts of the business: team, program, value stream, and portfolio

  • Learn why SAFe works: the power of SAFe’s Lean-Agile mindset, values, and principles

  • Discover how systems thinking, Agile development, and Lean product development form the underlying basis for SAFe

  • Learn how to become a Lean-Agile leader and effectively drive an enterprise-wide transformation

    •

    Table of contents

    1. About This E-Book
    2. Title Page
    3. Copyright Page
    4. Dedication Page
    5. Contents
    6. Preface
      1. Why SAFe?
      2. About This Book
    7. Acknowledgments
    8. About the Authors
    9. Part I: Overview
      1. 1. Business Need for SAFe
        1. Why Do Businesses Need SAFe?
        2. The Challenge of System Development
        3. Applying New Bodies of Knowledge
        4. Improving System Development Outcomes
        5. The Business Benefits of SAFe
        6. Summary
      2. 2. SAFe Overview
        1. The Big Picture
        2. The Levels
        3. The Foundation
        4. The Spanning Palette
        5. Summary
    10. Part II: The Foundation of SAFe
      1. 3. Lean-Agile Mindset
        1. Overview
        2. Thinking Lean
        3. Embracing Agility
        4. Applying the Agile Manifesto at Scale
        5. Summary
      2. 4. Lean-Agile Leaders
        1. Exhibit the Lean-Agile Mindset
        2. Lead the Change
        3. Know the Way and Emphasize Lifelong Learning
        4. Develop People
        5. Inspire and Align with Mission. Minimize Constraints
        6. Decentralize Decision-Making
        7. Unlock the Intrinsic Motivation of Knowledge Workers
        8. Evolve the Development Manager Role
        9. Summary
      3. 5. SAFe Principles
        1. Why Focus on Principles?
        2. Principle #1: Take an Economic View
        3. Principle #2: Apply Systems Thinking
        4. Principle #3: Assume Variability; Preserve Options
        5. Principle #4: Build Incrementally with Fast, Integrated Learning Cycles
        6. Principle #5: Base Milestones on Objective Evaluation of Working Systems
        7. Principle #6: Visualize and Limit WIP, Reduce Batch Sizes, and Manage Queue Lengths
        8. Principle #7: Apply Cadence; Synchronize with Cross-Domain Planning
        9. Principle #8: Unlock the Intrinsic Motivation of Knowledge Workers
        10. Principle #9: Decentralize Decision- Making
        11. Summary
    11. Part III: Program and Team Level
      1. 6. The Agile Release Train
        1. Overview
        2. ART Organization
        3. Develop on Cadence. Release Any Time
        4. Vision
        5. Features
        6. Program Backlog
        7. Roadmap
        8. Agile Teams Power the Train
        9. User Stories and the Team Backlog
        10. Summary
      2. 7. Planning a Program Increment
        1. Overview
        2. Preparation for the PI Planning Event
        3. Day 1—Create and Review Draft Plans
        4. Day 2—Finalize Plans and Commit
        5. Summary
      3. 8. Executing a Program Increment
        1. Overview
        2. The Iteration Cycle
        3. Building Quality In
        4. Improving Team Flow with Kanban
        5. Managing ART Flow
        6. System Demo
        7. Innovation and Planning
        8. Inspect and Adapt
        9. Summary
      4. 9. Inspect and Adapt
        1. Overview
        2. PI System Demo
        3. Quantitative Measurement
        4. Retrospective and Problem-Solving Workshop
        5. Inspect and Adapt at the Value Stream Level
        6. Summary
    12. Part IV: Value Stream Level
      1. 10. Value Stream Overview
        1. Overview
        2. Economic Framework
        3. Capabilities and the Value Stream Backlog
        4. Value Stream Epics
        5. Defining and Building the Solution
        6. Value Stream Flow
        7. Summary
      2. 11. Defining Large and Complex Solutions
        1. Overview
        2. The Solution
        3. Solution Intent
        4. Fixed and Variable Solution Intent
        5. Developing Solution Intent
        6. Documenting Solution Intent
        7. Solution Context
        8. Summary
      3. 12. Coordinating ARTs and Suppliers
        1. Overview
        2. Value Stream PI Planning
        3. ART PI Planning
        4. Value Stream Post-PI Planning
        5. Frequent Solution Integration
        6. Value Stream Sync
        7. Solution Demo
        8. Value Stream Inspect and Adapt
        9. Summary
    13. Part V: Portfolio
      1. 13. Portfolio Level Overview
        1. Overview
        2. Connecting the Portfolio to the Business
        3. Defining Strategic Themes for a Portfolio
        4. Influence of Strategic Themes
        5. Measuring Progress against Strategic Themes
        6. Portfolio Roles
        7. Lean-Agile Program Portfolio Management
        8. Advancing Solution Behavior with Portfolio Epics
        9. Establishing Enterprise Value Flow
        10. Coordinating Value Streams
        11. Summary
      2. 14. Lean-Agile Budgeting, Forecasting, and Contracting
        1. Introduction
        2. Lean-Agile Budgeting
        3. Lean-Agile Planning and Forecasting
        4. Lean-Agile Contracting
        5. Agile Capitalization Strategies
        6. Summary
    14. Part VI: Implementing SAFe
      1. 15. The Guiding Coalition
        1. Introduction
        2. The Implementation Roadmap
        3. Reaching the Tipping Point
        4. The Need for a Powerful Coalition
        5. Train Lean-Agile Change Agents
        6. Train Executives, Managers, and Leaders
        7. Charter a Lean-Agile Center of Excellence
        8. Summary
      2. 16. Design the Implementation
        1. Introduction
        2. Create the Implementation Plan
        3. Summary
      3. 17. Implementing Agile Release Trains
        1. Introduction
        2. Prepare for the ART Launch
        3. Train Teams and Launch the ART
        4. The Quick-Start Approach to ART Launch
        5. Coach ART Execution
        6. Launch More ARTs in the Value Stream
        7. Launch More Value Streams in the Portfolio
        8. Summary
      4. 18. Sustain and Improve
        1. Introduction
        2. Advance Organizational Maturity
        3. Implement Agile HR Practices
        4. Measure and Take Action
        5. Improve Agile Architecture and Technical Practices
        6. Focus on DevOps and Continuous Delivery
        7. Reduce Time to Market with Value Stream Mapping
        8. Summary
      5. 19. Essential SAFe
        1. Overview
        2. Lean-Agile Principles
        3. Agile Teams and Release Trains
        4. Cadence and Synchronization
        5. Essential Team and Program Roles
        6. PI Planning
        7. System Demo
        8. Inspect and Adapt
        9. IP Iteration
        10. DevOps Pipeline
        11. Lean-Agile Leadership
        12. Summary
    15. Abbreviations
    16. Glossary
    17. Index

    Product information

    • Title: SAFe® 4.0 Distilled: Applying the Scaled Agile Framework® for Lean Software and Systems Engineering, First Edition
    • Author(s): Richard Knaster, Dean Leffingwell
    • Release date: March 2017
    • Publisher(s): Addison-Wesley Professional
    • ISBN: 9780134209487