Scaled Agile, Inc. Releases SAFe® 4.5 Enabling Enterprise Innovation with Lean Startup, Scalable DevOps, and Continuous Delivery

Newly configurable SAFe 4.5 for Lean Enterprises shortens product development cycles, empowering large businesses to compete more effectively in the digital marketplace.

BOULDER, Colorado, June 26, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Scaled Agile, Inc., provider of the world's leading framework for enterprise agility, today announced the general availability of SAFe® 4.5 for Lean Enterprises. This release reflects the latest in Lean-Agile thinking, more visibly incorporating DevOps and the Continuous Delivery Pipeline. The new version also demonstrates advancements in configurability, implementation guidance, and enhanced capabilities for improving the user experience (UX) and accelerating time-to-market.

Key enhancements in SAFe 4.5 include:

• Additional flexibility with four new configurations. SAFe 4.5 supports the full range of development environments, from the simplest to the most advanced. The configurations include: Essential SAFe—a simpler entry point for organizations that want to start practicing and realizing the benefits as soon as possible—as well as Portfolio SAFe, Large Solution SAFe, and Full SAFe options that address varying degrees of organizational size and complexity.
• Faster innovation with the Lean Startup Cycle and Lean UX. This fosters an environment where feedback is introduced as early as possible into the development process so that it can be used to test ideas and make decisions more quickly.
• Accelerated new feature delivery with Scalable DevOps and Continuous Delivery Pipeline.
  The centerpiece of the 4.5 update, this new mechanism enables the organization to seamlessly define and deliver solution elements to the end user, without handoffs, excessive external production, or operations support. The result is a more flexible and stable production environment that is able to deliver value more frequently.
• Improved guidance with the new SAFe Implementation Roadmap. Designed for the business to achieve early wins as well as sustainable long-term gains, the Roadmap describes a series of steps an enterprise can take to ensure an orderly, reliable, and successful SAFe rollout.

SAFe 4.5 is fully backward compatible, allowing for easy migration. An organization can update to the new version, adopt the new practices at its own pace, and gain the benefits of the new features without significant impact on its current implementation. SAFe 4.0, and its associated courseware, will be supported until June 2018.

Three courses from Scaled Agile's role-based curriculum have been updated to reflect the new features of SAFe 4.5. They include Implementing SAFe, Leading SAFe, and SAFe for Teams. The remaining courses will be updated over the coming weeks.

Learn more about SAFe 4.5 at scaledagileframework.com/whats-new-in-safe-45 and find SAFe classes worldwide at scaledagile.com.

About Scaled Agile, Inc., provider of SAFe®

Scaled Agile, Inc. (SAI) helps enterprises build better systems, increase employee engagement, and improve business outcomes through adoption of Lean-Agile principles and practices based on the Scaled Agile Framework® (SAFe). SAI supports over 130,000 practitioners of the Framework through training, certification, services, and a global partner network that reaches over 35 countries. SAI is a contributing member of the Pledge 1% corporate philanthropy and community service movement.