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What is SAFe?
Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) is a set of tools and practices that help organizations to implement Agile principles. This helps to provide a solution to the emerging conflicts between traditional and modern management.
What is Business Agility?
Business Agility is a terminology used in the digital age to signify the ability of an organization to respond rapidly to market changes and opportunities. Consumer needs are very dynamic and the market is competitive so, to survive in such situations quick decisions have to be made. A business should have the facility to pivot product lines without damage as per requirements. This ability is the strongest weapon for businesses to succeed in today’s time. The flexibility of the company directly influences the limit of innovation and technical changes that can be made to meet the desires of the customer.
What challenges do organizations face to achieve Business Agility? All organizations are aware of the digital transition happening but still, many of them fail to be a part of the next economic cycle. Every revolution has its own set of challenges that have to be dealt in order to succeed. Let us know some of the reasons why traditional businesses are struggling to achieve Business Agility:
Fast Adaptive Network- New-age startups or companies research the market for the taste of the customers and build around it. This adaptive network is focused on fulfilling the wants of the customer rather than making a huge enterprise. Organic collaboration of cross-functional teams is the key to the success of fast-moving enterprises. In such an environment, people work to grab opportunities while focusing on value delivery. Traditional organizations sometimes fail to transition so quickly.
Introduction of new roles in the Hierarchy- Expansion is the next step when an organization succeeds which means that each role should have well-defined responsibilities. Hiring professionals and specialists for new functions surfacing while expanding, conflicts with the idea of an entrepreneurial network.
Collision between Hierarchy and Adaptive Network- Aforementioned concepts eventually collide with each other after growing at a certain pace. The adaptive network demolishes but Hierarchy sustains. The biggest hit is suffered by the consumer as the focus deviates from their needs. To attain agility organizations need an entrepreneurial network, especially during a shift in customer needs or the emergence of a disruptive technology/competition.
Traditional organizations have built hierarchies with tested practices over the years that support the retention, growth, and recruiting of new employees. Dismissing everything known to build something new is not the solution to these challenges. Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) is introduced as the solution and seems to work fine.
SAFe as the Second Operating System
In the digital era, an organization needs to introduce specified job roles for the new functions but that contradicts the existing hierarchy. The management and hierarchy are still important to run the organization. The organizations that adopted SAFe to implement Lean-Agile principles have found the solution to this conflict. SAFe creates a second operating system is virtual and is organized around Development Value Streams. It is different as it does not build departments to form an entrepreneurial network. Let us understand how it works!
The DVS creates one or multiple Agile Release Trains (ARTs) to develop innovative products. ARTs plan, develop, build, and deploy the products with shared business. The ARTs team is self-organizing and self-managing in nature so they do not need regular directions to work. The existing management in the hierarchy and ARTs teams can work in harmony. The new virtual operating system helps to break down the departments further to smoothen the flow of the process. This SAFe system allows the organization to innovate and focus on consumer needs. It is flexible in nature and can make changes rapidly to adapt to the market needs.
Talking about advancements in technology we can say that it is one of the driving factors in the transition from traditional to Agile. An organization needs to have a deep understanding of the practices and principles of Business Agility to adopt the SAFe Business Agility Value Stream.
SAFe Core Competencies for Business Agility Fulfilling customer needs is at the heart of SAFe model. There are seven core competencies that help to attain this vision:
Enterprise Solution Delivery
Agile Product Delivery
Team and Technical Agility
Lean-Agile Leadership
Continuous Learning Culture
Organizational Agility
Lean Portfolio Management
Conclusion
Business Agility is the most significant factor in today’s digital era of software development and project management. Organizations that manage to adopt this new-age concept are definitely at the winning end. The economic world is revolving around consumer needs and organizations that want to thrive have to build accordingly. SAFe practices and principles are helping organizations to exist and succeed. Advance Agility is a platform that offers a number of SAFe courses that can help you understand its concepts in depth.
FAQs
1. What are the configurations of SAFe?
Ans- There are four configurations of Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe):
Essential SAFe
Large Solution SAFe
Portfolio SAFe
Full SAFe
2. What are the roles in Agile Release Trains team? Ans- The roles in Agile Release Trains team are:
Release Train Engineer
Product Management
System Architect
Business Owners
Customer
System Team
Shared Services
About Advance Agility
We, at Advance Agility, are the new-age Agile Coaching, Consulting, and IT services company. We enable end-to-end Digital Transformation. Agile execution is integral to our being. We are doing SAFe implementation with small, medium, and large organizations across the globe.
Our vision is to be the leading Agile execution player globally. To keep adding value at every process stage. We are on a mission to empower our clients and move from concept to cash in the shortest sustainable lead time by adopting the human-centric approach to business agility. Embracing change is in our DNA.
Things that keep us apart are Quicker and Seamless execution with End-to-end gamut of services. Our Global presence and Stellar Track Record give us an edge over our competitors.
Connect with us at advanceagility.com to learn about SAFe and SAFe implementation. Write to us at contact@advanceagility.com for any agile training or consulting needs. We are always looking for competent agile trainers as well. So if you are the one or want to become one, do get in touch with us to that we can learn, grow and achieve together.
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