The SAFe agile framework is increasingly being utilised by the different Federal departments within the Commonwealth. The reason for this transition in delivery culture is because it is agreed that, if utilised properly, SAFe has the ability to bring together the technical delivery teams and enabling functions, such as operations, change management and stakeholders in a more efficient manner across multiple Branches or Divisions. Even though this is a gradual transition over the last few years that has been seen in our Commonwealth departments, one basic project management planning practice is still often being overlooked. The standard practice I am referring to is dependency management.

The process of planning and overseeing software development activities in agile environments is far from simple, this is acknowledged. However, one major drawback of agile planning is the oversight of task dependencies within a project, driven by a culture that thinks dependency management is a traditional waterfall project management function that could hinder the flexibility of an agile project. Scaled Agile Framework does……

When tasks in software development plans are interconnected, critical paths can arise, where tasks must be strictly sequenced because their completion depends on the completion of others. Failing to manage these critical paths can lead to decreased team performance and delays in product delivery, especially if the Department or Agency leading the work is required to deliver outputs by specified dates.

Due to the principles of agile, it has been accepted in good scheduling practice that dependencies, Critical Path and Earned Value Management can be managed at the Feature level, rather than at the User Story level. This is in contrast to traditional plan-based projects, in which you would never place dependency logic against a summary task, but rather place it on those discrete tasks that sit under each summary task. Another consideration for dependency logic to be applied at the feature level is that many User Story dependencies can be identified during the execution of the Pl through progressive elaboration of scope.

The fundamental principle of agile methodologies is the belief that teams can work collaboratively when doing so in a controlled agile environment, such as on an Agile Release Train. Nevertheless, in the context of Federal Departments and Agencies within the Commonwealth, complex software development projects utilising a hybrid agile and waterfall structure will always substantially benefit by using established practices of traditional methodologies that guarantee more predictability, reliability, stability and effective use of resources through more rigid project controls.

Agile methods offer a structured approach to defining tasks and monitoring their progress. By incorporating Agile performance data with traditional project controls such as critical path management and Earned Value Management (EVM) system, a comprehensive and integrated perspective can be achieved, encompassing scope, schedule and cost. This integration allows for a seamless connection between development activities and programme performance metrics.