SAFe and ITIL® 4– Friend or Foe?

Barry Corless – Global Knowledge

The traditional view

Development are… Operations are…

Agile approach preferring

frequent releases

Slow and ponderous looking to

maintain stable environments

Liberated and free Weighed down by process

Driven by functional

requirements related to

business need

Driven by non-functional

requirements: capacity,

availability

Deliver code without involving

Ops in decisions

Don’t make development

aware of changes to run time

environments

Etc. Etc.

Let’s remind ourselves

Can ITSM and Agile co-exist?

Give up now?

Why was this a good idea?

Our Hypothesis

• That the fundamental philosophies of Scaled Agile (SAFe) and IT service

management (ITIL) are broadly compatible. We should therefore be able to find

ways to make them work within one framework

• To do this we will explore: -

• SAFe’s 9 Lean / Agile guiding principles and 4 core values

• ITIL 4’s 7 guiding principles of service improvement and do some matching

• Give examples of how the two can interact

Think hard

• Where do you see alignment with ITIL?

SAFe’s Lean / Agile Principles

• Some tailoring and customization may be required

• Safe practices are based on nine concepts that have evolved from Agile principles and methods, Lean product development, systems thinking, and observation of successful enterprises.

1. Take an Economic View

• Delivering the best value and quality for people in

the shortest sustainable lead time

• Trade off between

• Risk

• Cost of Delay

• Operational costs

• Development costs

2. Apply Systems Thinking

• In SAFe, systems thinking is

applied to the organization

that builds the system, as

well as to the system under

development. It also

acknowledges how that

system operates in its end-

user environment.

3. Assume Variability; Preserve Options

• Maintain multiple requirements and design options for a longer period in the development cycle. Empirical data is then used to narrow the focus, resulting in a design that creates better economic outcomes.

4. Build Incrementally with Fast Learning

• Develop solutions incrementally in a series of short iterations. Each iteration results in an integrated increment of a working system. Subsequent iterations build on the previous ones. Increments allow fast customer feedback and risk mitigation.

5. Base Milestones on Objective Evaluation of Working

Systems

• In Lean-Agile development, integration points provide objective milestones in which to evaluate the solution frequently and throughout the development life cycle. This regular evaluation provides the financial, technical, and fitness-for-purpose governance needed to assure that a continuing investment will produce a commensurate return.

6. Visualize and Limit WIP

1. Visualize and limit the amount of work in process (WIP) to limit demand to actual capacity.

2. Reduce the batch sizes of work to facilitate fast and reliable flow through the system.

3. Manage queue lengths to reduce the wait times for new capabilities

7. Apply Cadence, synchronize with cross domain

planning

• Cadence creates predictability and provides a rhythm for development. Synchronization causes multiple perspectives to be understood, resolved, and integrated at the same time.

• VELOCITY MEANS NOTHING WITHOUT VALUE

8. Unlock the intrinsic motivation of Knowledge

Workers

• Individual objectives cause internal competition and destroy the cooperation necessary to achieve the larger aim of the system. Providing autonomy and purpose—while minimizing constraints—leads to higher levels of employee engagement, resulting in better outcomes for customers and the enterprise.

9. Decentralize Decision Making

• Decentralized decision-making. This

reduces delays, improves product

development flow, enables faster

feedback, and creates more innovative

solutions by those closest to the local

knowledge.

• Creating a reliable decision-making

framework is a critical step in ensuring

a fast flow of value.

SAFe has four core values

Alignment Built in Quality

TransparencyProgram

Execution

SAFe

Seven guiding principles

• ITIL 4’s 7 guiding principles are designed to guide all

your decision

Adopt and Adapt

• SAFe: Some tailoring and customization may be required, as not every SAFe recommended practice will apply equally in every circumstance.

Adopt: Commit to adopting a

service-oriented, customer-

focused culture

Adapt: Understand and then

apply critical thought to

adapting ITIL best practices to

your organization’s

circumstances, needs, goals

and objectives

Focus on value

• SAFe: 1. Take an economic view

• SAFe CV: Alignment

Defined primarily by the consumer

Affordable mix of features

Achievement of objectives

Changing over time and

circumstances

Think and work holistically

• SAFe: 2. Systems thinking acknowledges that a system is complex. It has many interrelated components; Applies to the organization building the system and the system itself

The 4 dimensions of service

management; Organisations and

people; Information and technology;

Partners and suppliers; Value

streams and processes

Progress iteratively with feedback

• SAFe: 4. Build incrementally with fast learning

Small improvements are easier to

maintain

Can run in series or parallel based on

dependencies

Each iteration leaves a sense of

achievement

Focus each iteration on adding value

Keep it simple and practical

Over complexity rarely maximises value

If it doesn’t add value it’s waste (Lean

principles)

Beware of conflicting objectives

Lean: Manage, improve, and smooth your process flow to eliminate non-valued-added activity

Collaborate and promote visibility

• SAFe: 6. Visualise; 8. ..individual objectives cause internal competition; engagement and shared purpose

• SAFE CV: Transparency

Involving the right people

Appropriate communication important

Collaboration is not consensus or co-

operation

Start where you are

Don’t rip everything out

Tools, practices, processes

Look at existing state objectively

Align existing initiatives where possible

Organizational change management is

very important

SAFe Implementation Roadmap says about its identifying CURRENT value streams step

“Attempting to shortcut or breeze through this step would be the same as putting your

foot on the brake at the same time you are trying to accelerate”

Optimise and automate

Find out what really happens

Don’t just rely on measures

Ask questions

Where does it hurt?

Can we simplify?

Avoid relying on assumptions

SAFe: Empirical data is then used to narrow the focus, resulting in a design that creates better economic outcomes.

Applying the guiding principles

These principles are not unique to ITIL – they work!

In multiple framework environments it’s not about ‘survival of the fittest’

The result or outcome is what matters

Putting frameworks together

• WARNING: This is a guide only. Each

organisation is different.

• Take the best of each

• The good bits of one will only enhance

and be complementary to the other

Strategy Relationship PortfolioService LevelAvailabilityCapacityEnterprise ArchitectureBusiness AnalysisInformation SecurityService Models ChangeConfigurationReleaseDeploymentIncidentProblemContinual ImprovementSoftware DevInfrastructure & platform

To break down the wall you need…

• Shared goals

• Common understanding

• Integrated toolsets

• Common practices

• Common lexicon

• Communication and collaboration

• Freedom to choose within corporate boundaries

We wanted top prove…

We dream the same dream we want the same things

Thank You! Don’t forget to provide a review of this

presentation.