Welcome back to our Mastering SAFe® series! Below is the 6th installment — you can find previous articles in this series on our main insights page or you can start at the beginning with part one.
“Facts are friends.” The Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe®) repeats this often as one of their core values. It is the belief that everyone from executives to individual contributors should know what work is in progress and what is going on.
Solutioning complex business solutions is inherently prone to unforeseen issues – issues that should be communicated widely. Without transparency, problems are hidden, and information and decisions are based on assumptions rather than objective facts. It’s why SAFe® builds transparency into their framework through cascading backlogs, open demos and collaborative planning.
Build a Trust-Based Environment
Trust is the foundation of transparency and is built through action. Employees need to feel empowered to share information openly, which requires the organization to focus on solutions rather than blame. When everyone prioritizes making and keeping commitments, it fosters a culture of integrity, even during challenging times.
Visualize Work
Ensuring all work is visible is essential to transparency. Cascading visions mapped to upcoming quarters and Kanban backlogs ensure status and priority are visual.
Visualization of work increases collaboration, aids motivation and accountability of individual contributors, and aids in identifying issues early.
Ensure Easy Access to Information
Transparency requires access to information. When information is difficult to find or inaccurate, it’s as if the information were intentionally hidden. Visions, roadmaps, backlogs and knowledge repositories should be refined continuously to reflect the current state.
Transparency is a pursuit of the entire culture, but one TMG finds worth the effort while working with our clients. This openness requires work to establish, but drives toward long-term success. When we can make better decisions, we work more efficiently which improves employee engagement and development quality.
