Do you need to maximize delivery of value in your complex enterprise but you struggle to orchestrate work across multiple interdependent teams? Are you looking for ways to provide visibility into development and delivery at the right level for multiple roles across your organization who need insight into health and status of delivery in order to meet business goals? Are you unsure about how to tackle the planning and execution of work in a multi-speed IT environment? Consider building on agile team successes by scaling lean and agile principles across your organization with a solution that supports collaboration across business and engineering to get the entire team of teams moving in the same direction
New in the IBM Collaborative Lifecycle Management (CLM) 6.0.1 solution is complete end-to-end support for the Scaled Agile Framework® (SAFe) which combines tooling with an industry-leading set of best practices and guidance to address the key aspects of an IBM DevOps transformation: people, process and tools. Templates delivered in CLM can help you establish a Portfolio tooling infrastructure with associated Programs and Teams consistent with SAFe—right out of the box!
The support for SAFe in CLM builds on the key concepts of the SAFe process, combining the flexibility and scale you need in your enterprise. Whether you are an organization of purely agile teams, or one that must coordinate work of teams using agile and waterfall processes delivering side-by-side in a multi-speed IT environment, the CLM solution with SAFe can help.
Get up and running quickly
In v6.0, we provided an easy way for you to get up and running quickly to lead a SAFe-based transformation for your Programs and Teams. In v6.0.1, we expand our support by adding SAFe Portfolio tooling through a set of templates delivered across the application domains:
- SAFe Program/Team process template for Change Management
- SAFe Portfolio process template for Change Management
- SAFe Portfolio process template for Quality Management
- SAFe Portfolio project template for Requirements Management
Let’s take a look at the key details.
SAFe Program/Team Support in v6.0
The SAFe 3.0 Program process template for Change Management—delivered in v6.0 and updated in v6.0.1—allows you to easily establish a SAFe Program-level tooling infrastructure. The default infrastructure established with this template is shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1: SAFe Program/Team infrastructure (out of the box)
This infrastructure is useful when your Teams are using the Agile/Scrum process that comes with the SAFe process template, but you can easily configure the tooling to support multi-speed Programs, as described in the next section. For more details on the SAFe Program/Team support, please read the post introducing this capability in v6.0.
SAFe Portfolio Support in v6.0.1
The SAFe Portfolio templates delivered in the CLM 6.0.1 applications allow you to establish project areas in the Requirements Management, Change Management, and Quality Management domains. You can easily associate these domains under a single CLM Lifecycle Project Area, providing complete traceability across the artifacts. And, by associating your SAFe Portfolio with your SAFe Programs, you have a complete SAFe Portfolio environment as shown in Figure 2.
Figure 2: SAFe Portfolio end-to-end tooling infrastructure (out of the box)
The reality is that, in many cases, your organization will need to coordinate the work of teams using different processes as part of your SAFe Program—if not forever, at least for some period of time as you build up your SAFe-based enterprise. In this case, you will want a tooling infrastructure such as that shown in Figure 3.
Figure 3: SAFe Portfolio end-to-end for multi-speed programs
You may even have a combination of SAFe Programs: some that are completely agile and others that are multi-speed. Any of these topologies will work using the SAFe templates.
SAFe Portfolio artifacts
The SAFe Portfolio artifacts are manifested across the CLM applications, enabling multiple roles to own and develop the artifacts that make sense for their job.
In Rational DOORS Next Generation (RDNG), an application that might typically be the tool of choice for a Solution Architect or Business Analyst role, we support the SAFe Strategic Theme, Value Stream, and Lightweight Business Case artifacts, shown in Figure 4.
Figure 4: SAFe Portfolio RDNG artifacts
During the Portfolio Kanban process, Portfolio Epics are pulled for analysis and these business-level artifacts are typically developed as requirements artifacts. Other requirements artifacts not prescribed by SAFe might also be developed as part of this high-level analysis.
Rational Team Concert (RTC) contains the artifacts that drive change as these require a workflow and track the status of delivery at the Program and Team levels. The SAFe Portfolio Epic and Task are in RTC, shown in Figure 5.
Figure 5: SAFe Portfolio RTC work item types
Portfolio Epics are easily associated with a Strategic Theme, Value Streams, and a Lightweight Business case in RDNG.
Finally, the Portfolio has a need to ensure capabilities deliver expected value as described in the acceptance criteria for a Portfolio Epic, Program Epic, Feature, or Story. The Rational Quality Manager (RQM) artifacts are aligned with the SAFe Program and Team artifacts to enable quality management across the Portfolio.
Figure 6: SAFe Portfolio RQM artifact types
In addition to the Test Plans shown in Figure 6, Test Suite and Test Case artifacts are also provided.
Key SAFe concepts
The concepts of Kanban planning and economic thinking based on lean principles are fully embraced at the SAFe Portfolio level in RTC through the use of the Kanban Plan View and the WSJF (Weighted Shortest Job First) attribute on Portfolio Epics. These concepts are consistent with our SAFe Program support, with some minor differences that enable traceability between the Portfolio Epic and the business artifacts in RDNG, as shown in Figure 7.
Figure 7: SAFe Kanban planning
The Kanban Plan View enforces the workflow prescribed by SAFe and alerts you when you have exceeded Work-In-Progress limits (or prevents you from violating them if you choose). The ability to triage and plan by setting the WSJF components and aligning the Epics with the necessary business artifacts (Strategic Themes, Value Streams, Lightweight Business Cases) is enforced all within a single view. The Roadmap view is also provided.
Reporting
In developing the SAFe Program-level reports for v6.0, we focused on making sure the information was actionable for the specific purpose and role that would be consuming the data. Building on this notion, we have developed an initial set of SAFe Portfolio reports that consider the business strategy and provide insight into work across the associated Programs related to that strategy. We also consider the need to understand balance of investments. A few examples are shown in Figure 8.
Figure 8: Really great reports!
The set of Portfolio reports will consider both functional and quality metrics.
SAFe with the Power of IBM DevOps
CLM 6.0.1 provides complete end-to-end SAFe support in fully integrated tooling that enables your organization to lead a DevOps transformation grounded in lean and agile principles. And by embedding the SAFe methodology across all application domains, it ensures all roles in your organization—business and engineering alike—can collaborate to deliver the right things right!
Please visit the Enterprise Scaled Agile page for the latest news on our support for SAFe.
(2 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)
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Hi Amy, where can I download the SAFe3.0 Template for CLM 6.0.1 from? I remember I had seen the link on CLM Download page while back, however since the update over the weekend I am unable to locate it.
Hi Samir,
The templates are part of the CLM product so you need to download CLM 6.0.1, install the RM, QM and CCM applications and then make sure you deploy pre-defined templates for RTC and RQM. The template will then be available for you to use or export.
Hi Amy,
I see in |RTC the following templates: SAFe 3.0 Process (Portfolio) and SAFe 3.0 Process (Program)
in RQM: Quality Management for SAFe but I don’t see any in DNG. How do we get the SAFe Portfolio Project Template for DNG?
HI Binoy,
The RDNG template is not a “process” template, it is a “project” template. You will need to create an RDNG project area and select to base it on an existing project template. Then you will see the SAFe option.
Hi Amy,
Which existing project template in RDNG should it based off?
Hi,
The project template is called “SAFe Portfolio Project Template”. Perform these steps:
— In your browser, go to the All Projects view in RDNG (e.g. https://jazz.net/rm/web).
— From the Administration drop-down (next to your logon id on the top right), select Create Project Area.
— In the New Project wizard, provide a Project Name, click Next.
— Select the “Use a template to initially populate the project” checkbox and a list of project templates is displayed.
— Select the “SAFe Portfolio Project Template” to create your project area.
You also have the option to use the “(SAMPLE) SAFe Portfolio: JK Enterprises – Banking” if you’d like to also have sample data.
Hope that helps,
Amy
Thanks so much. I didn’t see these template lists when I create the project area from the rm/admin page, Project Areas and then Create Project area. The above steps worked. Thanks!
Yes, it is tricky to get to the *right* Create Project Area wizard. I also have trouble each and every time I do it until I remember! Glad this helped.
Amy
how would you access and install the JKE Banking SAFe samples for 6.01 ?
Please point us to the guidance on this as well?
Hi,
At the moment, there is no way for you to get access to the JKE Banking SAFe sample. We are working on getting that set up in the sandbox on jazz.net. Stay tuned for an announcement on that.
Hi Amy, quick question, I was able to create safe pa in all the application and then wrap with a LPA (thank for your help). We have decided to use Safe for a multi-million dollar /multi year project. We do have some questions, 1. There is no Impediment work item in CCM (safe program) 2. There is no Risk or Risk Action work items types (in ccm safe program). Can you point me to documentation or provide steps say to get these WI types from say the Scum template into the SaFe Program template? Thanks for any help you can give.
Hi Homer,
1. Correct, there is no specific Impediment work item type, because we believe that you can reflect Impediments through the Risk work item type.
2. There is a Risk work item type, curious that you say there is not. Did you not see it?
In any case, it is easy to create a new work item type (relatively speaking). I suggest that you pick up the latest SAFe 4.0 configuration document, which has instructions in detail for creating work item types. You can simply follow those instructions but fill in the relevant details for the type you want to create. To get to that document, start here: https://jazz.net/safe/. Scroll to the bottom and follow the “SAFe 4.0 Assets” link. On that page, at the bottom is the configuration document. Let me know if you have trouble finding it.
Amy
Is there a SAFe template for those of us who, due to circumstances beyond our control, can’t update to CLM 6.x yet?
Hi Barb,
There is no template in a version of CLM before 6.x. However, we do publish migration guidelines that enable you to configure a pre-6.x template (for example the Scrum template) to support SAFe. A version of the migration guidelines for the SAFe Program support in RTC can be found here: https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/community/groups/service/html/communityview?communityUuid=c914709e-8097-4537-92ef-8982fc416138#fullpageWidgetId=Wedf911c66e55_4a99_b89e_1bbdb89a7919&file=82cb5dbf-46ec-45d3-aeca-2b206a3ec3fb. We are currently working on an updated version that describes how to do this for SAFe Portfolio across CLM (for both SAFe 3.0 and SAFe 4.0 support).
Thanks Amy. That doc is super helpful!
HI Amy, we went ahead and made of copy of the Program CCM process template, and added Impediment, added Time tracking to Defect & Task (not sure why that wasn’t included). We also added the Blocked and reason on WI types. We also noticed there is no Resource tab on the plans, was this deliberately left out??
Hi Homer,
The Blocked and Reason are added in 6.0.2. It was simply too late to include those in the 6.0.1 templates. As for the Time Tracking (and Resource on plans) we consider those more formal project management capabilities, not directly associated with SAFe or Agile, although clearly important to enterprise customers no doubt. We are prototyping an extension to SAFe to support this so did not include these in the SAFe 3.0 templates because we were still considering solution trade-offs, that’s all. If you need them, by all means include them!
Hello Amy,
We have noticed that in query results in the Safe 3 Program template, the priority field is not displaying. (field is blank in query results, but clearly displayed in the WI itself). if you hover over a WI type, in the popup that shows, it shows duplicated i.e. ” Unassigned Unassigned” or “High High” etc. this is happening for all work item types. ANy ideas? We have verified this in out test and production environments.
Thanks,
Homer
Hi Homer,
I see the same behavior, just looked when you mentioned it. This is a defect. I don’t know how to guide you to fix it in your environment, but I’ll get back to you on that once I’ve figured it out.
Amy
Hi Homer (and all),
We found the issue. The SAFe Portfolio RTC template does not have the issue because the Priority icons are in that environment. They are not in the SAFe Program RTC template environment, which is what causes the issue. Here is how you can fix it locally:
1) If you have an RTC Portfolio project area, go to the Eclipse client and connect to it
2) Open the project area and go to Process Configuration > Project Configuration > Configuration Data > Work Items > Enumerations and save the Priority icons (high, medium, low, unassigned) to your local file system
2) In either the Eclipse client or the browser, open your RTC Program project area
3) Go to the work item administration and import those icons for your Priority enumeration.
If you do not have a Portfolio project area and want the icons, send me a note and I will provide them to you.