People Management in SAFe©

The Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) now incorporates the JLS approach to Transforming People Development as an extended competency, and it can be accessed through SAFe Studio.

Ultimately, people management emerges as key differentiator for organizations seeking a competitive edge, especially within SAFe© transformations.

The Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe©) excels at organizing around value and ensuring high value delivery with customer-centricity on a large scale. The companies leveraging SAFe are typically large organizations, oftentimes with a proud tradition and strong leadership, whereby SAFe is only one of two or more operating systems. Combining the needs of the agile, network structure with the established organizational setup with its leadership paradigms and processes is a fine balancing act. A balancing act, that is – at the end of the day – decided by your approach to leadership and culture, culminating in the way you run people management.

This makes people management the linchpin for a successful dual operating system. And while SAFe provides guidance on the dual operating system, it does not clearly define the approach to and setup of people management and instead leaves it up to the organization to figure out where to put that lever and define the interfaces.

Therefore, we provide here a clear guideline on how to transform People Management to hybrid organizations who want to take their SAFe implementation to the next level.

We will introduce you to the crucial role of the People Developer and enrich your knowledge of people management in a SAFe setting. You will explore why it is important, what it entails, and how it connects to the rest of the organization.

In this article you can explore:

• The Importance of Transforming People Management
• Rethinking People Management in SAFe
• The People Developer Role: Building the People Runway
• Steps to Transform Your People Management Approach
• Positive Impacts of Transforming People Management
• What Makes JLS A Unique Partner?
• Our Service Packages
• Further Reading & Resources
• Contact

Rethinking People Management in SAFe

How you and your organization perceive and perform the people management capability is a differentiating factor going forward.

Rethinking People Management Processes

Especially traditional and ‘fake agile’ HR processes are particularly harmful to your efforts and successes in the SAFe operations. A prime example that you may have come across too, is individual goals and incentives that go against collaborative value creation and discourage experimentation and innovation. Another one might be your performance management system, that is either still traditional or is run more frequently to simulate agility, but at the end of the day, you are investing time, money, and energy into a process that was initially set up to align, communicate, and rally behind goals and ensure high value contributions, something that SAFe already excels at.

You can certainly think of many more examples that illustrate the disconnect between agile ways of working and traditional people management. But we would be remiss to blame everything on corporate HR processes. While they need an overhaul here (and we will tell you what your contribution is shortly), there is also the leadership component to people management to consider.

Reexamining Reporting Lines & Managerial Setup

When you think back to the beginnings of your organization’s SAFe journey. You probably started with a virtual organization, which is a great thing to do. Your people started working in the network organization from day one without you having to alter the original reporting lines in your people management systems like SAP, PeopleSoft, or WorkDay. Now, this probably worked well at the beginning. Where it gets sticky is when it is no longer a means to an end (employees are allocated to one person in the system) but becomes a burden.

The original manager is still responsible for traditional people tasks from running though the annual performance management process, doing employee appraisals and distributing salary increases. Leading them to summon their direct reports to staff meetings and weekly 1:1s to discuss work and delivery topics that are already taken care of within their agile team or ART – wasting time and energy in the process.

It may feel like artificially keeping alive an outdated managerial structure, while being removed from the day-to-day planning and operations and yet fulfilling the vital role of people management. How often do you hear complaints about agile increasing the number of meetings? The problem is not that SAFe reconfigures how, when, and why people get together, the problem is that, that many or all of the original meetings are kept on the books.

The People Developer Role: Building the People Runway

People management has traditionally been part of the responsibility of line managers, the group of leaders responsible for content, design, process, and people topics.

This was oftentimes a challenging balancing act. You may have experienced yourself, how difficult it can be to get people topics like learning sessions on the team backlog, since people topics are oftentimes not seen as important or urgent enough to win out over a delivery responsibility.

And while the consolidation of power with to one managerial role was a successful model in the past, it is no longer a recipe for success in the age of fast changes. Agility, that thrives on creating and managing change, and diverse views and perspectives are needed to ensure learning and speed.

Therefore, SAFe gives us a leadership team consisting of the different authorities of the ART, who act as experts and advocates for their area of responsibility.

Product and Solution Management for content, System and Solution architect/engineering for design, and RTE/STE for flow and relentless improvement. This leaves the people topics and the core question of: Who has people as their first priority? Enter the role of the People Developer, who serves as the people authority on the ART. Together they form the Tactical Square (or Tetrad).

As a strategic partner within the Tactical Square, however, you provide expertise and advocacy and drive organizational success by building a robust talent pipeline through:

• Engaging in Talent Enablement
• Cultivating Performance Acceleration
• Conducting strategic Workforce Management
• Spearheading people matters
• Acting as People Advocate and Culture Champion
• Driving Resilience & Change Readiness

As outlined before, the new reporting structure shifts away from functional clusters and previous reporting lines, instead focusing on assigning People Developers to specific agile teams within a single ART. Each People Developer will be responsible for approximately 25-30 individuals, encompassing three to five agile teams. This focused approach aims to enhance your ability to build deeper relationships, understand team dynamics, and provide personalized guidance. By assigning entire teams within the same ART, the structure facilitates direct observation of team dynamics and enables effective translation of ART needs into strategic workforce planning, ultimately empowering People Developers to excel in their roles.

As a People Developer, you are a leader and champion for people, dedicated to fostering a culture of collaboration, learning, and adaptability. You act as a talent enabler, employee advocate, culture champion, and strategic partner. You may be called a People Manager or Agile People Leader, but at the end of the day you are not there to manage people. Instead, you have the critical task to help the people under your care reach their full potential, ensuring they are resilient and change-ready and well-equipped to navigate the challenges of a dynamic environment.

Steps to Transform Your People Management Approach

Rethinking your people management approach is not a small endeavor. But as the saying goes: A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

If you are part of an organization that has already successfully implemented SAFe, but are struggling with the hybrid organization setup when it comes to people management, or you have a setup in place, but are interested in taking it to the next level, here are a few steps you may want to take:

By taking these steps, your organization can effectively apply People Management and create a workplace where employees thrive, and the organization achieves its strategic goals.

People Development is not a one-time event, but an ongoing journey of adaptation and improvement, requiring commitment and collaboration from all levels of the organization. And while it is a long journey, it is a worthwhile opportunity to elevate the human factor to continued organizational success.

People Development is one of the most influential factors in taking your SAFe operations to the next level. Taking on this vital piece is nothing for the faint-hearted and requires courage and passion, but above all an in-depth understanding of the role and the intricate nuances between people management and people development. This forms the bedrock of successfully transforming people management and ensuring that this transition goes beyond a relabel to truly tackling the last bastion of hierarchical structure and managerial thinking.

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