The SAFe Core Values are the four fundamental beliefs that underpin the Scaled Agile Framework: Alignment, Transparency, Respect for People, and Relentless Improvement. They serve as the foundation for behavior, decision-making, and practices across all levels of SAFe.
With SAFe 6.0, the Core Values were updated. Previously they were Alignment, Built-in Quality, Transparency, Program Execution. Today they are Alignment, Transparency, Respect for People, Relentless Improvement.
Practical Relevance
How the Core Values appear in practice:
- Alignment – everyone working toward the same goals
Example: PI Planning aligns all ART teams on mission and objectives; sync meetings maintain direction.
- Transparency – visibility into work, risks, and results
Example: System/PI Demos and Inspect & Adapt reveal progress, quality, and problems; Kanban systems make work visible.
- Respect for People – valuing people and culture
Example: House of Lean pillar, servant leadership, decentralized decisions, dedicated learning time in IP Iterations.
- Relentless Improvement – continuous pursuit of better
Example: Inspect & Adapt, retrospectives, problem-solving workshops, and metrics like Measure & Grow drive ongoing learning.
Relevance for Organizations
- Predictability & focus through alignment.
- Better decisions via transparency.
- Engagement & ownership through respect and empowerment.
- Faster learning cycles through relentless improvement.
Real-World Examples (detailed)
Automotive – Vehicle Software (Alignment & Transparency)
An automotive company struggled with multiple teams building features for driver assistance systems. Without alignment, integration failed often.
PI Planning created alignment: all teams planned together with a shared business context. Dependencies were made visible on the ART Planning Board. Regular ART Syncs maintained transparency.
Impact: Issues were solved earlier, integration became more stable, delivery dates more reliable – predictability improved significantly.
Financial Services – Regulatory Platform (Respect for People & Relentless Improvement)
A large insurer needed to meet GDPR and BaFin regulations. Previously, top-down pressure created overwork and low morale.
With SAFe, leadership shifted to servant leadership. Teams gained decision-making space, used the IP Iteration for learning, and ran meaningful retrospectives. In the Inspect & Adapt Workshop, late handling of compliance work was identified as a root cause. Solution: Treat compliance as enabler work early in the backlog.
Impact: Teams felt respected, took ownership, error rates dropped, and compliance delivery became predictable.
Telecommunications – Digital Services (Transparency & Improvement in Portfolio Decisions)
A telecom provider invested in self-service apps, network upgrades, and analytics simultaneously. Without transparency, resource conflicts and political decisions dominated.
By introducing Lean Portfolio Management and Portfolio Kanban, initiatives were prioritized by business value. Measure & Grow assessments exposed bottlenecks like insufficient test automation, leading to targeted improvements.
Impact: Investment decisions became fact-based, lower-value projects were deferred, critical work was prioritized. Result: faster lead times and higher value delivery.
Practical Implementation
- Establish alignment: Regular PI/Iteration Planning, visible objectives, and dependencies.
- Live respect: Practice servant leadership, empower teams, create learning opportunities.
- Anchor relentless improvement: Make I&A and retrospectives meaningful, measure outcomes, feed improvements into the next PI.
- Ensure Built-in Quality: No longer a Core Value, but a dimension of Team and Technical Agility, defined across five domains (Flow, Architecture & Design, Code, System, Release).
CALADE Perspective
We often see organizations running SAFe events without embodying the values – PI Planning without true alignment, demos without transparency, retrospectives without improvement. At CALADE, we ensure the values are operationalized: sync cadences for alignment, radical visibility for transparency, servant leadership for respect, and disciplined I&A for improvement. This transforms values from slogans into effective routines.
Related Terms
Source: SAFe Framework