By Danilo S.
Agile Provides Rapid Feedback & Results
Agile is a set of values, principles, and practices for iterative development which guides developers on the best way to create valuable software products. Agile does not prescribe a particular methodology but its values serve as a reminder for us to emphasize individuals and interaction, daily collaboration with customers, frequent incremental delivery of working software, and responsiveness to change, even late in the development process. Agile’s focus on frequent incremental delivery of working software and responsiveness to change directly address the challenges encountered by rigid “waterfall-style” projects where valuable customer feedback is often received quarters or even years after a project is initiated.
Scrum and Kanban Frameworks used to “Go Agile”
Two lightweight frameworks that have been used by many teams to work in an Agile manner are the Scrum and Kanban frameworks. Scrum maximizes the delivery and flow of valuable business features by organizing work into customer-oriented stories to be built and demonstrated in time-boxed iterations (sprints). This provides frequent opportunities for the business to provide feedback and ensures a steady, predictable pace of product development. A key flow metric for Scrum is Velocity which is a measure of the amount of work completed within a sprint which indicates both team productivity and helps reliably forecast future delivery.
Like stories, Kanban breaks the work of software development onto “cards” which also describe desired software functionality. Kanban then adds the idea of visualizing how these cards flow through the phases of a process (often ready, in process, and done) until they are complete and deliver value from a customer perspective. The concepts of establishing “work in process” (WIP) limits, pulling rather than pushing work through system phases, reducing waste, eliminating bottlenecks, and optimizing continuous flow towards customer value are key in Kanban.
In truth, Scrum and Kanban are largely complementary as Scrum itself often uses a Board to visualize work within a sprint and the fixed 2 week sprint iteration serves as a natural “WIP” limit. Kanban is often used by teams to deliver services in just in time environments where both the acquisition of work items and release cadence is unpredictable and continuous.
SAFe- An Agile Framework Built to Scale
Scaled Agile refers to the application of Agile values and principles at a larger scale, typically across multiple teams or departments within an organization. It aims to enhance collaboration, improve efficiency, and deliver business value more effectively and uniformly in complex environments. The Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) is one of the most widely used frameworks for implementing Scaled Agile, providing structured guidance for aligning teams, managing dependencies, and achieving business agility. The framework provides a comprehensive toolset complete with the structured roles, processes, competencies, concepts, and templates needed to deliver complex products built by anywhere from 3-100+ teams. For a large organization it ensures a common taxonomy and body of knowledge is available to all avoiding different groups adopting different standards and reinventing the wheel. SAFe provides a proven and robust framework at up to four distinct levels of scale: (1) Agile Team, (2) Agile Release Train [ART], (3) Solution Train, and (4) Portfolio. For comprehensive descriptions of the full SAFe framework visit the https://scaledagile.com/what-is-safe/.
SAFe a Comprehensive Agile Toolbox
ActioNet provides Certified & Experienced SAFe Consulting and Training
ActioNet provides comprehensive training for all the roles and processes needed to fully implement SAFe from the individual agile team level to the strategic enterprise-level that potentially supports hundreds of teams.
SAFe Practice Consultant (SPC) ActioNet SAFe implementations are typically guided by a SAFe Practice Consultant (SPC) who has led multiple SAFe transformations in large complex organizations. SPCs have received comprehensive training and exams certifying them as having mastered the body of knowledge needed to provide the skilled consulting and training needed to ensure a successful SAFe journey for your organization.
The SAFe Agilist (SA) professional certification provides leaders, product managers and team members comprehensive knowledge of the wide array of SAFe principles, techniques, and templates needed to leverage the SAFe framework within your organization. The knowledge is validated through a comprehensive 2 day course and exam ensuring that participants are familiar with how to leverage the broad array of processes, roles and tools proven on thousands of SAFe implementations.
Over 15 proven role-specific certifications for Business Owners, Product Owners, Scrum Masters/Coaches, Release Train Engineers, Architects and Systems Professionals are available and can be taught or arranged by the SPC assigned to your SAFe implementation and familiar with your organization.
For more information on how ActioNet can support your organization, please contact dstapula@actionet.com.