SAFe 5.0 Distilled; Achieving Business Agility with the Scaled Agile Framework

After growing up using the LeSS framework, I've been looking forward to learning about #SAFe in detail and comparing it to some of the myths associated with it.Myth busters of SAFe:1. Waterfall milestones ❌️ Products governed by self-managing mission-focused agile teams; objective measures and milestones based on working solutions, delivering early and incrementally ✔️2. People organised in functional silos and temporary project teams ❌️ People organised in value streams/agile teams; continuous value flow ✔️3. Overly detailed business cases based on speculative ROI ❌️ Lean business cases with MVP, business outcome hypothesis, Agile forecasting and estimating ✔️4. Doesn't support Lean Startup principles/innovation ❌️ SAFe Lean Startup Cycle to support high levels of uncertainty using the build-measure-learn Lean startup cycle ✔️5. It's not Agile ❌️ Thinking Lean and embracing agility combine to make up a new management approach with a Lean-Agile mindset which aligns with the values and principles in the Agile manifesto ✔️6. It doesn't have any compelling principles ❌️ SAFe is based on a set of Lean-Agile principles ✔️:1. Take an economic view; deliver early and often2. Apply systems thinking3. Assume variability; preserve options4. Build incrementally with fast, integrated learning cycles5. Base milestones on objective evaluation of working systems6. Visualise and limit WIP, reduce batch sizes, and manage queue lengths7. Apply cadence; synchronise with cross-domain planning8. Unlock the motivation of knowledge workers9. Decentralise decision-making10. Organise around valueCase studies show, that many enterprises - large and small - are getting extraordinary business results from adopting SAFe eg.• 10-50% happier, more motivated employees• 30-75% faster time-to-marketI particularly enjoyed reading about how important a continuous learning culture is to SAFe:"In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work - brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment.""Our mindsets are the foundation for achieving success and happiness in life. With the right mindset, anything is possible."I'd definitely recommend this book, especially for those who want to get an overview of where the Product Manager/PO split comes from.

I'm rating the book. 5 stars. All useful information in a single book. I use it when I have doubts or don't remember something. Just one thing. Don't buy the paperback version. thin paper, you can see the other side through the paper. So thin it's hard to flip the pages.

No lo compres en físico. Si te interesa el contenido cómpralo en digital o búscalo por la red o infórmate en la web oficial de la certificación.Lo único que en pleno 2022 te pueda empujar a comprar un libro así es la comodidad de tenerlo en físico, sentarte y leerlo tranquilamente.Pues ese único valor añadido se lo han cargado en la versión en físico. Las hojas son tan finas que se ven las letras y dibujos de las paginas posteriores. La calidad del físico en general es mala tirando a muy mala.Solo lo recomendaría comprar si lo quieres poner en la librería y que la gente lo vea.La encuadernación es muy mala con pegamento donde no debería, las hojas están onduladas seguramente de guardarlo en algún sitio con humedad, el papel es finísimo y complica la lectura, las imágenes impresas son de muy baja calidad, las fotos o los dibujos tienen muy poca calidad.Revisar bien las fotos antes de comprar y si te fue útil dale al botón!

The book is a great introduction to SAFe and I found it worthwhile reading. For an experienced agile practitioner, SAFe is a very eclectic theory which assembles a lot of practical and theoretical elements in a presumably unified framework. While the book gives a good overview and touches on lots of topics, it circumvents a bit the question, what could possibly go wrong when implementing SAFe, by strongly suggesting to deploy agile coaches - „SPC“ in SAFe lingo - and heavily invest in trainings. In this sense, it is too self-referential and not explicitly critical enough about pitfalls in implementing SAFe and the book leaves the aftertaste that it is a lead generator for SAFe training traffic. Besides, it is quite comprehensive to get a quick intro. The chapters about identifying „development value streams“ and „operational value streams“ and creating corresponding ART are superficial and could go a bit deeper. A chapter for comparing SAFe with alternative agile scaling frameworks (LeSS, Nexus, Scrum@Scale, etc.) and a chapter why business agility is only loosely coupled with an agile framework like SAFe might have been useful.

Das Buch kam nach drei Wochen aus den Staaten, was weitere 8 Euro Zoll und DHL-Gebühr nach sich zog. Die Druckqualität ist sehr schlecht, dadurch sind viele Abbildungen völlig unlesbar. Dem bekannten SAFe-Poster gönnt man bspw. kaum eine halbe Seite. Ich bin wirklich verärgert. Addison-Wesley war für mich bisher ein Qualitätsmerkmal.