At the 2024 SAFe Summit Washington, D.C. (October 14-17, 2024), an exciting new chapter for SAFe was revealed! During the much-anticipated Reimagining SAFe keynote by Chief Methodologist Andrew Sales, a new SAFe Big Picture and a set of Enhanced Framework Articles were announced—both designed to better support organizations in their Lean-Agile journey. The announcements mark a pivotal step in the evolution of SAFe, simplifying key processes and amplifying the focus on what truly matters: driving product innovation, speeding up time-to-market, and delivering business value.
Key Reveals at the 2024 SAFe Summit Washington, D.C.
1. SAFe Big Picture
The new SAFe 6.0 Big Picture is designed to help organizations of all sizes more easily navigate the Framework, empowering them to focus on the most critical aspects that drive business results. The new SAFe Big Picture, based on 6.0, reflects the evolving needs of Lean-Agile enterprises, placing greater emphasis on what really matters without sacrificing the depth and flexibility that SAFe offers. Access the new SAFe Big Picture.
2. Brand New Guidance
Four significant new guidance articles have been incorporated into the new Big Picture. Portfolio Leadership describes the steps needed to build an effective cross-functional team that embodies Lean-Agile behaviors and has ultimate accountability for portfolio outcomes. It also goes over the responsibilities and behaviors of Portfolio Leaders.
Feedback systems are built into SAFe, and effective feedback is the foundation of the relentless improvement driven by Lean and Agile practices. This new guidance article, which can be seen as a natural evolution in the Flow story, explains the steps for implementing and harnessing effective feedback systems.
SAFe is a product-centric Framework, with ARTs organized around product value streams and optimized for continuous value delivery to their customers. The new Product Innovation article brings together and extends the key activities that help take an organization from good ideas to great products. It outlines the key activities, including product strategy, product design, product delivery, and product marketing, and how SAFe enables each step of this process. Expect to see much more on this topic in the future.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, Business Value. Maximizing business value for Enterprises, or Mission Value for Government Agencies, must be the ultimate goal. This is why we continue to pursue better ways of working: to delight our customers and create a motivational working environment for our employees. This new guidance article brings understanding to what has, for a while, been a fairly intangible concept. SAFe has always included expressions of business value in Features, Epics, PI Objectives, etc., and this new article now provides the mental models needed to truly discover what is valuable and better inform all decisions being made across the framework.
3. Enhanced Framework Articles
SAFe introduced Enhanced Articles that provide clear, actionable guidance on implementing SAFe in your context. These articles provide
- Clear explanations of core SAFe learnings
- Easier to read and understand explanations of guidance
- Easy navigation to each section of an article
- Summaries that are easy to share with others
Whether you’re adopting SAFe for the first time or looking to advance an existing implementation, these articles offer invaluable resources to ensure your success. Access an Enhanced Framework Article.
4. The State of SAFe Survey
As part of our continuous effort to improve the Framework, we are also thrilled to announce the State of SAFe Survey, which is now open for participation. This survey offers an important opportunity for SAFe practitioners, decision-makers, and change leaders to share their experiences, challenges, and successes with the Framework and the community.
What is the State of SAFe Survey?
The State of SAFe Survey is the first-ever annual survey that gathers feedback from organizations across the globe about their experiences with SAFe. Your insights are key in shaping the future of the Framework, helping us better understand how SAFe is used in different contexts and what improvements can be made to support your journey.
Why Should You Take the Survey?
- Influence the Future of SAFe: Your feedback will directly inform the evolution of the Framework, ensuring that it continues to meet the needs of organizations worldwide.
- Gain Insights: The Inaugural State of SAFe Report will be shared with the global community and will provide you with actionable insights into enhancing your business results, adapting to rapid changes in product development driven by AI, and more.
- Make Your Voice Heard: Whether you’re a SAFe beginner or an experienced practitioner, your unique perspective is invaluable in helping us refine the Framework.
Together, we can continue to Reimagine SAFe, helping organizations navigate the complexities of today’s business environment and achieve even greater results.
Thank you for being a part of Reimagining SAFe,
— The Framework Team