Scrum SAFe-Practitioner - SAFe Practitioner Exam (6.0)

 Product roles, such as Product Owner and Product Manager, act as proxies for the customer in representing their needs to the teams. They are responsible for defining, prioritizing, and validating the requirements that deliver value to the customer and the business. They also collaborate with the development teams and other stakeholders to ensure that the product vision, strategy, and roadmap are aligned with customer and stakeholder needs. Product roles are the voice of the customer for the teams and the primary link to business and technology strategy12. References: = 1: Product Owner - Scaled Agile Framework2; 2: Product Manager - Scaled Agile Framework3

 = The “3 Cs” of user stories are three criteria that help to ensure that the requirements in your story are clear, complete, and correct. These three criteria are Card, Conversation, and Confirmation1.

Card: A user story card is a placeholder for a conversation. It is a brief and informal description of a software feature written from the perspective of the end user. It captures the essence of the user’s need, without going into too much detail or technical jargon. It is usually written on a physical or digital card that can be easily moved and prioritized2.

Conversation: A user story card is not enough to convey all the information needed to develop and deliver the feature. It is meant to trigger a conversation between the product owner, the development team, and other stakeholders. The conversation is where the details, assumptions, risks, and acceptance criteria are discussed and clarified. The conversation is also an opportunity to collaborate, negotiate, and validate the user story3.

Confirmation: A user story is not complete until it has a confirmation. This is a set of criteria that define what done looks like for the feature. It is also known as acceptance criteria, and it specifies the conditions that must be met for the user story to be accepted by the product owner and the customer. The confirmation is usually written as a series of testable statements that can be verified by the development team and the product owner4.

The principle that includes “working software is the primary measure of progress” is one of the twelve principles behind the Agile Manifesto. The Agile Manifesto is a declaration of four values and twelve principles that guide the Agile software development movement. The value that corresponds to this principle is “working software over comprehensive documentation”. The principle states that the ultimate goal of any software development project is to deliver working software that satisfies the customer’s needs and expectations, and that any other intermediate or auxiliary artifacts, such as plans, documents, models, or reports, are secondary and should not distract from the main objective. The principle also implies that working software should be delivered frequently and continuously, and that the progress of the project should be measured by the amount and quality of the software delivered, not by the adherence to a predefined plan or schedule. References: Principles behind the Agile Manifesto, Agile Manifesto - Scaled Agile Framework

One of the tools associated with Design Thinking is empathy maps, which are a visual way to capture and organize the user’s needs, goals, pains, and gains. Empathy maps help the team to understand the user’s perspective, empathize with their emotions, and design solutions that address their problems and aspirations. Empathy maps are typically created during the Discover phase of Design Thinking, where the team conducts user research and synthesizes the findings. References: SAFe for Teams Student Workbook: materials and exercises from Lesson 1; v5.scaledagileframework.com/design-thinking/; v5.scaledagileframework.com/get-feedback/

Differentiating business objectives are those that provide competitive differentiation and strategic advantage for the enterprise. They reflect the unique value proposition and vision of the enterprise and guide the portfolio strategy and decision-making. One example of differentiating business objectives is Strategic Themes, which are portfolio-level business objectives that connect a portfolio to the strategy of the enterprise. They are written in Objective and Key Result (OKR) format and influence the vision, budget, and backlogs for the portfolio, large solution, and program levels. They also provide business context and alignment for the agile teams and ARTs in the portfolio. References: Strategic Themes, SAFe 4.5 Reference Guide: Scaled Agile Framework for Lean Enterprises, How to use GOST + SAFe to increase your company’s agility

SAFe provides a second operating system that enables Business Agility by creating a network of Agile teams and trains that are aligned to a common vision and strategy, and empowered to deliver value to customers and users. SAFe leverages the Lean-Agile mindset, the core competencies, and the principles and practices to foster a culture of innovation, learning, and collaboration. SAFe also supports the continuous delivery pipeline, which enables fast feedback and frequent value delivery. References: SAFe® for Teams - Know Your Role on an Agile Team | Scaled Agile, Exam Study Guide: SP (6.0) - SAFe® Practitioner - scaledagile.com, SAFe 6.0 for Teams with SP Certification - ICON Agility Serviceswq

According to the SAFe framework, an Agile Team is a cross-functional group of typically ten or fewer individuals with all the skills necessary to define, build, test, and deliver value to their customer. Agile Teams are self-organizing and self-managing and are accountable for delivering results that meet the needs and expectations of their customers and stakeholders. Agile Teams collaborate with other teams to deliver ART solutions. They contribute to the Vision and Roadmap, and participate in ART events. Agile Teams are not stand-alone units, nor are they large or phase-gated. They are agile, lean, and customer-centric1. References: Agile Teams - Scaled Agile Framework

One of the Lean Thinking Principles is to make value flow without interruptions. This means that the organization should optimize the entire value stream, from the customer’s perspective, and eliminate any waste or delays that prevent the smooth and fast delivery of value. Waste can be anything that does not add value to the customer, such as defects, overproduction, waiting, inventory, transportation, motion, or overprocessing. Delays can be caused by handoffs, queues, approvals, dependencies, or variability. By making value flow without interruptions, the organization can increase customer satisfaction, reduce costs, improve quality, and accelerate time to market. References: Lean Thinking: Overview, Principles, Benefits, & Applications Explained, Lean Thinking – Lean Practice | Planview LeanKit

The SAFe Implementation Roadmap is a strategy and an ordered set of activities that have proven to be effective in successfully implementing SAFe. It is based on organizational change management strategies and provides the critical moves for adopting SAFe. The roadmap consists of 14 steps, from reaching the tipping point to sustaining and improving1. References: 1: Implementation Roadmap - Scaled Agile Framework

According to the SAFe for Teams SP (6.0) - SAFe Practitioner handbook and study guide, the factor that helps unlock the intrinsic motivation of knowledge workers is autonomy. Autonomy means giving knowledge workers the freedom and responsibility to make decisions about their work, such as what to work on, how to do it, and when to do it. Autonomy fosters creativity, innovation, and engagement, as knowledge workers can pursue their own interests and passions, and feel a sense of ownership and accountability for their outcomes. Autonomy also supports the Agile principle of self-organizing teams, which are more productive and responsive to change than traditional, command-and-control teams. References: Principle #8 - Unlock the Intrinsic Motivation of Knowledge Workers - Scaled Agile Framework, Which factor helps unlock the intrinsic motivation of knowledge workers?, Principle #8: Unlock the intrinsic motivation of knowledge workers …