Top 13 Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) Tools

The Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) is a framework that has been developed to help enterprises to adopt agile in large organizations. When dealing with growth in businesses, it becomes complex to control agile methodologies across the teams and departments. SAFe provides a framework that is easy to follow and helps to integrate development processes with the organization’s strategic objectives to achieve the best results with minimal waste of resources.

 

Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) Framework

 

SAFe is a framework and a set of principles, and in order to effectively apply these concepts, people need to utilize the proper instruments for the successful completion of these undertakings. It is indispensable to overestimate their importance when it comes to communication and information exchange within and across organizational departments and tiers.

 

Scaled agile framework training used in setting out how work is to be performed, in planning and control of work progress, handling out relations and in attaining the organization’s strategic plans and goals using Agile frameworks.

 

Also Check - Top 10 Advantages of SAFe Certifications in 2024

 

In this article, we will discuss about 13 key tools that are critical to the effective operation of SAFe. All of them will be discussed with focus on its functionality, its advantages and how it influences the process of achieving the goal of agile transformation at scale. Thus, recognizing the strengths and opportunities of these tools, organizations can be better prepared for the challenges that arise during the scaling of agile and achieve significant changes in the effectiveness of their delivery approaches and results.

 

List of Top 13 Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) Tools

 

1. Jira Align: 

 

Overview: Jira Align is an application that is expected to connect the strategy with the outcomes and offer full visibility. This aids in linking business strategies to the behavior of the agile teams on the ground.

 

Key Features:

•    The real-time monitoring of portfolio, program, and team’s performance indicators.
•    Road mapping as well as release planning.
•    Dependency management.
•    Monitoring of the financial data and preparing of the reports.

 

Impact: According to a Forrester study, organizations using Jira Align reported a 340% return on investment over three years, driven by improved alignment and decision-making.

 

2. VersionOne Now Digital ai : 

 

Overview: VersionOne is an enterprise level agile project management tool that can be used from the concept to the testing phase of software development. It is especially useful for big companies that are applying SAFe.

 

Key Features:

 

•    Portfolio and program level visibility as well as team level visibility.
•    Strategic planning and road mapping.
•    Comprehensive reporting and analytics.
•    Compatibility with other commonly used DevOps tools.

 

Impact: The VersionOne users have reported the productivity increase to the level of 40% and the time to the market has been cut by 30%.

 

3. Rally Software (CA Agile Central): 

 

Overview: Rally Software that is now a part of Broadcom is a mature agile compliance tool that enables work to be planned and prioritized according to SAFe.

 

Key Features:

 

•    Portfolio management as a concept in strategic management.
•    Release and iteration planning.
•    Advanced analytics and reporting.
•    Kanban, Scrum, and a mixture of Kanban and Scrum.

 

Impact: According to a research done by Broadcom, Rally users gained 20% productivity and 25% less risk projects.

 

4. Targetprocess:

 

Overview: Targetprocess is an effective tool for managing agile projects with SAFe support and provides templates for working with a portfolio and programs.

 

Key Features:

•    Visual roadmaps and timelines.
•    Portfolio and program management dashboards.
•    Customizable workflows and reporting.
•    Compatibility with widely used IDEs.

 

Impact: The organizations that have implemented Targetprocess have noted that their teams collaborate more by 50% and the predictability of deliveries has improved by 30%.

 

5. Planview AgilePlace (formerly Planview LeanKit) : 

 

Overview: Leankit is one of the products from the Plainview that provides lean and agile visualization options to organizations that are using SAFe. Kanban-style interface is one of the features that the tool is famous for.

 

Key Features:

 

•    Visualization of work with the possibility of individual settings of boards.
•    Portfolio and program visibility.
•    Advanced analytics and metrics.
•    Interacts with other Agile and DevOps tools.

 

Impact: Organizations that have implemented Leankit have seen their through put increase by 35% and their cycle time reduce by 25%.

 

6. Planview Enterprise One:

 

Overview: Planview Enterprise one is an application that helps work to be done to be aligned with business goals and objectives; thus, it is appropriate for SAFe.

 

Key Features:

 

•    Strategic planning and road mapping.
•    Resource and capacity management.
•    Financial management and tracking.
•    Comprehensive analytics and reporting.

 

Impact: A report by Planview revealed that users of Enterprise One saw their projects’ success rate go up by 30% and the cost of projects going down by 20%.

 

7. Azure DevOps

 

Overview: Microsoft Azure DevOps is an end-to-end solution that includes a collection of development tools based on agile and that can be incorporated into SAFe.

 

Key Features:

 

•    Planning boards for general and detailed planning and a progress board.
•    Repositories for source control.
•    Pipelines for CI/CD automation.
•    Use for Test Plans for automated testing.

 

Impact: Microsoft claims that Azure DevOps clients have been able to develop 25% faster and deploy 30% faster.

 

8. SAFe Community Platform: 

 

Overview: The SAFe Community Platform is the online center shared by Scaled Agile, Inc. which includes tools, resources and standards of SAFe.

 

Key Features:

 

•    Able to take SAFe courses and obtain certifications.
•    Collaboration and networking opportunities.
•    Large repository of all things SAFe.
•    Resources that are related to the assessments of the SAFe framework and its deployment.

 

Impact: The majority of the users of the SAFe Community Platform have pointed out that it has enhanced the probability of adopting SAFe and also has enhanced the integration of teams.

 

9. IBM Engineering Lifecycle Management (ELM):

 

Overview: IBM ELM is a set of tools, which can be implemented at each of the identified stages of product development; therefore, it can be used in SAFe.

 

Key Features:

 

•    Requirements management and traceability.
•    Agile planning and tracking.
•    Quality management and testing.
•    Configuration and change management.

 

Impact: According to IBM, ELM has helped its users to enhance product quality by 35% and at the same time reduce the development cycle time by 20%.

 

10. Agile Hive: 

 

Overview: Agile Hive is an application that works in Jira and is aimed at SAFe environments. It offers various features that are specific to SAFe practices.

 

Key Features:

 

•    Program and portfolio management.
•    PI Planning and support of the execution of projects.
•    SAFe related reports and the dashboard that will incorporate all the facets of the framework.
•    Seamless integration with Jira.

 

Impact: Agile Hive has been implemented in organizations and has been proved to have an impact on the planning of the organization by having an increased planning efficiency of 40% and an improved organizational team and business goals match by 30%.

 

11. Miro:

 

Overview: Miro is a digital whiteboard that can be used in SAFe ceremonies and planning sessions as it has the functionality of planning and visualizing.

 

Key Features:

 

•    Co-authoring on digital boards.
•    Forms for SAFe PI Planning and Retrospective meetings.
•    Integration with other popular agile tools that are in use in the industry such as Jira and Azure DevOps.
•    Graphic facilitation during the brainstorming and planning sessions.

 

Impact: It has been found that the teams using this tool have increased the efficiency of collaboration by 50% and reduced the time taken to complete the planning cycle by 25%.

 

12. Kendis:

 

Overview: Kendis is a flexible planning tool that helps to conduct SAFe PI Planning and manage programs. It also links with apps such as Jira and Azure DevOps.

 

Key Features:

 

•    Visual PI Planning boards.
•    Real-time integration with Jira and Azure DevOps.
•    Accounting for what is happening at the program level and the subsequent reporting.
•    Risk and dependency management.

 

Impact: Kendis users have achieved an increase of 30% in the efficiency of PI Planning and a decrease of 20% in planning errors.

 

13. AgilityHealth Radar: 

 

Overview: AgilityHealth Radar is a SaaS tool that is used to facilitate the SAFe assessment and measurement of an organization’s agility.

 

Key Features:

 

•    SAFe maturity assessments.
•    KPI and performance indicators for all aspects of operations.
•    Actionable insights and recommendations.
•    Collaboration with other agile and DevOps tools.

 

Impact: AgilityHealth Radar users have reported that their organization’s agile maturity has improved by 40% and the organizational performance by 25%.

 

Conclusion - Top Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) Tools

The successful implementation of the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) requires more than just understanding its principles and practices. It requires the utilization of robust tools that can address the different facets of the agile planning, execution, and delivery in the enterprise. The tools that have been discussed in this article include Jira Align, VersionOne, Rally Software, Targetprocess, Leankit, Planview Enterprise One, Azure DevOps, SAFe Community Platform, IBM Engineering Lifecycle Management, Agile Hive, Miro, Kendis, and AgilityHealth Radar to help organizations to attain agile transformation at scale.

 

All of these tools have their own characteristics and advantages that help to achieve better alignment, integration, efficiency, and outcomes in SAFe implementation. Thus, with the help of the right set of tools, the challenges of scaling agile practices can be effectively addressed and organizations can achieve a step change in their ability to deliver value to customers.

 

For anyone who wishes to gain more knowledge and mastery of SAFe, Vinsys provides SAFe Agile Certification Training. Our training programs are offered to professionals to enable them to understand and apply SAFe in their organizations. Being more skills-oriented and application-based, Vinsys makes sure that the participants are ready to spearhead change in their companies. 

 

Discover our Scaled Agile Framework training now and continue your agile learning with Vinsys. List of Top 13 Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) Tools According to Vinsys . If you are looking for corporate training program for any of the SAFe tool then connect with Vinsys which is Bronze transformation partner of Scaled Agile.