Essential SAFe
Hi,
I'm reaching out for some guidance from anyone with strong experience in SAFe, as I’m encountering challenges in my current role as a SAFe Product Owner.
Early last year, our organisation went through a significant reorganisation, which included removing several roles – notably, the Business Analyst capability. At the time, I was a Senior Agile BA in a delivery-focused environment.
We also undertook a complete replatforming, resulting in a major change to our tech stack. We are a large enterprise, and I successfully moved into a PO role, with responsibilities aligned to the SAFe framework (I’ve included relevant extracts from the job spec if needed).
Following a period of stability, we began enhancing our feature set and are now delivering new features within two-week iterations. We’ve had a few PI sessions so far, so we’re still relatively early in our SAFe adoption. Our setup includes roles such as the RTE and a Tribe Lead (my direct manager), both introduced during the org changes.
Recently, we brought in a new RTE who has started identifying gaps in how we work — many of which are strategic in nature. As a result, there’s been pressure from above to extend my remit to include strategic ownership.
This is where I’m struggling. My strengths are in delivery and analysis — areas where I believe I add real value. I don’t have the background or skillset for strategic ownership, and frankly, I don’t feel comfortable or equipped to take this on.
While I believe the RTE understands this, it feels like it’s easier for leadership to push these responsibilities down to me than to address the lack of proper role alignment at higher levels. I’m starting to feel backed into a corner.
Many of the other POs in our organisation transitioned from traditional Scrum roles and see themselves more as strategic owners. They don't engage in story writing or acceptance criteria — viewing that as outside their scope. In fact, they often assume strategic ownership outright.
To be honest, I don’t think the distinctions in SAFe PO responsibilities are well understood. I’m still learning myself, but I’ve done a lot of research and shared insights internally to try and clarify the intended PO role in SAFe. Despite that, it feels like I’m banging my head against a wall.
It's very easier to ser the difference using AI. The absence if PM is clear, but this isn't acknowledged.
I'm actually unsure of the Tribe Lead role remit?
Any advice or similar experiences would be greatly appreciated.
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What’s the role?
We are seeking a dynamic and driven Product Owner to join our team and play a pivotal role in our Agile development process within a scaled scrum framework. As a Product Owner, you will be responsible for defining and prioritising the product backlog, collaborating with cross-functional teams, and ensuring the successful delivery of high-quality products that meet customer needs and drive business value. Your expertise in agile practices and principles will be essential in maintaining alignment between stakeholders, product vision, and development efforts.
Key responsibilities will include:
- Connect with the Customer: Act as the primary point of contact for stakeholders, representing their interests and providing transparency into the product development process. Gather feedback, communicate product changes, and manage expectations throughout the development lifecycle.
- Contribute to Product Vision and Strategy: Contribute to the development and refinement of the overall product vision, strategy, and roadmap in alignment with business goals. Stay current with industry trends and emerging technologies to ensure the product remains competitive and innovative.
- Manage and Prioritise the Product Backlog: Collaborate with stakeholders to understand business objectives, customer needs, and market trends to create and maintain a well-defined product backlog. Prioritising backlog items based on this understanding.
- Requirement Definition and refinement Gather and translate high-level business and user requirements into clear, actionable user stories, acceptance criteria, and technical specifications.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Collaborate with Agile teams, including developers, designers, and testers, to ensure the successful execution of features and user stories during sprint cycles.
- Support the team in delivering value: Participate in sprint planning and review meetings, ensuring that development efforts are aligned with the product vision and goals. Review and accept completed user stories, verifying that acceptance criteria have been met and the delivered product meets quality standards.
What do you need to be great at this role?
- Strong Communication: Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to effectively convey complex concepts and influence stakeholders at all levels. With proficiency in creating clear and concise user stories, acceptance criteria, and technical specifications.
- Agile Knowledge: Familiarity with agile principles and values, as well as knowledge of Scrum framework and related practices. Preferably including familiarity with ART (Agile Release Train) and PI (Program Increment) planning practices.
- Confidence and courage: Ability to make data-driven decisions and continuously improve product features based on value, with the courage to de-prioritise where there is less value.
- Collaboration and Leadership: Ability to foster collaboration, lead by example, and promote a positive team culture.
- Certification: Certifications related to Agile or Scaled Scrum (e.g. Certified Scrum Product Owner) are a plus but not essential.
it feels like it’s easier for leadership to push these responsibilities down to me than to address the lack of proper role alignment at higher levels. I’m starting to feel backed into a corner.
SAFe is more elaborate than Scrum and gives people many places to hide. It is smokier and noisier with lots of bits, and any accountability for quality or for value is easily obscured.
It's the Done increment that's being backed into a corner. You might vaguely discern it in the bottom left of the SAFe "Big Picture". Those who care about empiricism and transparency often fade away with it.
Let me use a classic apology
"SAFe is more elaborate than Scrum and gives people many places to hide. It is smokier and noisier with lots of bits, and any accountability for quality or for value is easily obscured.
It's the Done increment that's being backed into a corner. You might vaguely discern it in the bottom left of the SAFe "Big Picture". Those who care about empiricism and transparency often fade away with it."
Then you're doing something wrong. Read SAFe with understanding.
Haha. Now that we had some fun...
I can recommend this publication - https://www.packtpub.com/en-us/product/safe-coaches-handbook-9781839214127
Should shed some light or at least give some insights.
SAFe uses some of the Scrum framework's terminology but it does not follow the Scrum Guide. They have created their own version of Scrum that they call SAFe Scrum. It's defined to fit within the context of the SAFe framework. Some of us have experience with SAFe but you may be better off finding a forum specific to SAFe for answers.
@Ian's comment is better than I could come up with. My experience with SAFe has not been great. In the places I have been exposed to it, the procedure was more important than the results. And upper levels of the organization chart used it as a weapon to blame for problems with the products.
Daniel, your views are ultimately subjective based on a statistical analysis with a sample of 1, namely you.
Yes, there is a SAFe forum on SAFe website, yet it's not that active imo. There are some Reddit or other services groups dedicated to SAFe, sure. Maybe such are more active, I dunno.
I am an SPC and I'm not a SAFe zealot/apologist. I've read about some successful SAFe usage cases for example here:
https://www.reddit.com/r/agile/comments/1d2pv63/is_there_any_example_of_an_actual_successful/
There are more, but one would need to read ResearchGate articles and who reads boring science stuff, huh?
So I'd not demonize SAFe as some people do, examples here:
https://blogagility.com/2019/05/12/extremists-and-the-hate-safe-machine/
https://blogagility.com/2020/01/11/safe-hate-machine-update-remove-references-to-scrum-foolishness/
So yes, SAFe is using it's own flair of Scrum, as Scrum is using it's own flair of rugby references to Scrum.
The Original Poster went to great lengths to write/share his story. I was suggesting that this is probably not the best place for that and he should try to find somewhere that are more centric to SAFe in order to get better answers/advice. I did not direct him to any because I do not know any.
I won't disagree with you @Maciej. But truthfully, everything that anyone here responds is their opinions. Yes, my opinion of SAFe based upon my experience is not great. I have experienced a couple of places that were successful using SAFe but in truth they never claimed to be agile organizations. They claimed to be structured organizations that followed a specific program. In those cases, they were successful and had operations that worked for their needs. But from what I have experienced and from the feedback from people I know, those few organizations are not the norm. My associations usually provide feedback of how SAFe causes more problems than solutions.
Thanks for an honest answer Daniel.
I've also seen my fair share of mixed bag implementations.
Anyways - as you've said, there are other places where discussing SAFe is more hm relevant than here I guess. And it's perfectly OK.
Just a personal view, take it as that.
Scrum and SAFe diverge at the program and portfolio levels, at least crudely speaking these levels are added on top of the team level. At the team level the role of a SAFe Product Owner is quite similar to a Scrum Product Owner. Actually from your role description, it sounds very much like a PO role and that you are operating at this team level, with the RTE playing a facilitation role similar to a Scrum Master.
It may be that management wants you to step into a Product Manager–like role. If so, that is not unusual, and could be seen as an opportunity for you to operate with a broader product view.
Either way, you already understand PO responsibilities well. Gaining a wider perspective on product direction and vision across teams and the whole ART could be a valuable step up. Expanding your product vision and prodcut strategy to the whole ART, may prove both interesting and rewarding. My advice would be to engage with management to clarify their intent, connect with Product Managers (if possible), and start investigating the broader product vision, strategy and roadmap.
All the best.
Leaving alone SAFe vs Scrum discussion, I should say that biggest difference between the two is the understanding of PO. While Scrum guide encourages the organisation to give the PO full control of the product vision and states that whole org should respect his or her decisions, in SAFe PO is a low level manager who is working under supervision of RTE and System architect, people who work on higher level of the hierarchy and are actually responsible for RTE. So I would suggest just to follow the RTE strategy and adapt the own vision
I’d actually forgotten I posted this, but it’s now having a real impact on my mental health and wellbeing.
I realise this is a Scrum forum (and I appreciate the responses), but I couldn’t find any active SAFe forums. For context, my organisation is following SAFe, and I hadn’t expected to be asked to pick up strategic responsibilities that, in SAFe, would typically sit with a Product Manager (Essential SAFe). On top of this, the new RTE’s view of how the roles should work is at odds with what the previous RTE and Scrum coach had explained, which adds even more uncertainty and pressure.
I completely understand the point about seeing this as a development opportunity, but I’m not looking to progress further. Where I am in my career is already far beyond what I ever expected.
There are many reasons for this: I live with depression and PTSD, I have several disabilities that limit my capacity, and I also have a disabled grandchild and a vulnerable daughter. Life is already overwhelming, and I don’t have the capacity to take on additional pressure without serious risk to my health. The stress of all this has even caused a flare-up of my CFS.
What might look like great opportunities for some simply don’t suit me. My “life bucket” is already close to overflowing, and I manage it by listening carefully to my body and mind. I know some career-driven people struggle to understand why someone wouldn’t keep pushing forward, but this balance is what works for me. I’ve already exceeded my own expectations, and in the past my managers appreciated me for delivering strong results without needing to climb the career ladder.
That said, I’m not shutting the door completely. I’d be open to trialling new tasks if they feel manageable — but only on the understanding that they don’t automatically become permanent. It has to work for me, and not put me back into a dark place where I can’t cope. Sometimes, even tasks that seem manageable from the outside may not be possible for me in practice.
In this case, the only stakeholders would be directors — there isn’t a product team in the strategic space, no clear development pathway, and no mentoring or experience above me.
Thanks, and sorry to have deviated a bit. I was just after some advice so I could get my employer to listen.
Thanks again 👍