SAFe Core Values

I'm excited to start a conversation with you about the Core Values. Why is this topic of interest to me? Since SAFe is a framework, not a methodology, it does not provide a recipe for every situation, but it rather allows for adaptation to the given context. When you find yourself in an unprecedented and undocumented situation, what do you do? If the path is new and you don’t see any landmarks or signposts then you look inside yourself, at your values, for guidance.

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The core values of SAFe are alignment, built-in quality, transparency and program execution.

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Alignment makes sure everyone is on the same page in terms of where we are headed. It doesn’t only coordinate the where and what, but also the how of the journey, from requirement to value delivery. It starts with the business objectives and strategy: from a clear high-level Portfolio Vision we get to a more detailed roadmap of the product and to the further detailed backlog of individual teams. The clear vision does not mean command and control, as the teams are empowered to take local decisions.

One way to align is through the PI Planning, where expectations and commitments are communicated at a cadence that allows for adaptation at market or environment changes.

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Built-in quality refers to doing the job right, without having someone constantly inspecting your work. Built-in quality ensures the empowerment of the team member. The team member who did the work is also accountable for the work. If the built-in quality is not enforced, this causes a lot of rework, which in turn increases lead time and effort. All this also disrupts flow, which impacts happiness and morale*. What is the best ally for built-in quality? Tests! Make your best and most informed guess, test it, see what does not work and change until you reach the desired result.

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Transparency takes into account our human nature, imperfect as it is. It accounts for the fact that solution development is hard, that we cannot predict everything and that we will make mistakes. How we deal with those situations is what matters. To have integrity and be open about something going wrong is not only commendable from a human and spiritual perspective, but it makes sense business-wise: we identify the problem and it’s cause and we will know to avoid it. Sure, in creating an alternative solution we might be wrong again, but we keep trying (testing) until we reach the desired outcome. Transparency is about the accountability of opening up and also about receiving (uncomfortable) updates and understanding that, despite one’s best efforts, things might not go as planned. It is based in trust, in the belief that each team member did the best they could in the context they were given, with the knowledge that they had. Increasing the knowledge will improve the result.

Transparency is the base for the in the Inspect and Adapt, Review and Retrospective sessions and is the catalyst for improvement.

Transparency is seen everywhere in the Agile way of working: from The Portfolio Kanban to the team’s backlog as well as other Program Backlogs. So all the strategic initiatives and the incremental progress is visible to anyone interested.

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Program execution. This is the rolling of the sleeves and getting the work done continuously, at the necessary quality and in sync with the business/client’s requirements. It is facilitated by the previous three values and by the support of the ART.

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These 4 values make sense in the SAFe context, but to maximize them, I believe we should connect them to our own personal values. For example, transparency is my favorite of the core SAFe values, as it complements perfectly with the value I place on relationships. I believe that having meaningful human connections is possible only through vulnerability and openly communicating about one’s self: about expressing one’s self in an authentic manner and acknowledging the entire range of emotions that come from the successes as well as the failures and the lessons learned.

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I encourage you all to reflect and what your personal core values are and how can you connect them to the SAFe values.

*If you are interested in knowing more about the concept of flow and its connection to happiness in both professional and personal life, I’m sure you’ll enjoy Mihaly Csikszentmihaily’s book Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience.