As we consider leveraging SAFe®, there is a strong need to evolve how we work and execute. This entails moving away from a project (Waterfall) mindset and segueing towards a product/solution mindset. In SAFe, a solution is a product, good, and/or service that we are seeking to deliver to our customer.
Why Are Solutions Important?
SAFe emphasizes the need to work towards solutions (i.e. products). This marks a distinct shift in the mindset of many legacy organizations whereby in the past there is a custom of thinking in terms of projects.
In a project-based approach (Waterfall), teams are often disconnected from the purpose of the work they are doing. In Waterfall, the teams oftentimes work in phase-stage gates. These lengthy phase-stage gates do not allow for frequent feedback. This feedback is essential for the Team to ensure that as they execute, they are working towards the preferred solution. SAFe advocates that as we work in an Agile environment, the execution should be one defined by timeboxes, these timeboxes allow for the opportunity for feedback to be exchanged between the team(s) and the business as we partake in incremental delivery to build a solution. Below is a slide that illustrates the application of this process and the importance of feedback as we execute in incremental delivery (Agile).
Building Complex Solutions
In the Essential SAFe & Portfolio SAFe configurations, we work towards solutions by placing Agile Teams on Agile Release Trains (ARTs), and placing these ARTs on Development Value Streams. Each Development Value Stream is responsible for creating a desired solution.
Building a complex solution in SAFe means testing and releasing regularly, it also requires a mindset of continuous exploration guided by concepts such as forecasting, customer centricity, and set-based design. A solution-approach towards development is very effective because it allows stakeholders and the Agile team to continuously evaluate and integrate increments of the solution being created.
In Conclusion
Mik Kersten, the acclaimed theorist and author of “Project to Product,” advocates that organizations must fundamentally change how they work to remain competitive in the Digital Age/Age of Software. Part of this is “organizing around value” so that we work towards delivering solutions and steering away from completing projects (Waterfall) as we have oftentimes done in the past. Ultimately, by doing so, this allows for work to be more fulfilling and thus more effectual long-term.
