We had an inspiring and enriching experience at the 2024 SAFe Summit in Washington, D.C.! It was great to connect with industry leaders, practitioners, and visionaries who are passionate about advancing business agility and value stream management.

The SAFe Summit brought together over 1,300 people, all eager to delve into the latest trends and advancements in Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe). With a rich agenda that included a variety of tracks and lightning talks, the summit catered to a wide range of interests and professional backgrounds.

There were several exciting announcements made at the event, including:

• The new SAFe 6.0 Big Picture was unveiled, offering enhanced support for organizations in their Lean-Agile journey by simplifying key processes.
• Four new guidance articles were introduced at the SAFe Summit 2024, discovering portfolio leadership, feedback systems, product innovation, and business value.
• New articles providing clear, actionable guidance on implementing SAFe, with easy navigation and shareable summaries.
• The inaugural State of SAFe annual survey aimed at gathering feedback from SAFe practitioners to shape the future of the Framework.

These announcements aim to drive product innovation, speed up time-to-market, and deliver business value.

First Platinum Tier Global Transformation Award

At the 2024 SAFe Summit, NTT DATA was proudly recognized as the world's first Platinum Tier Global Transformation Partner by Scaled Agile. This top-level certification highlights NTT DATA's exceptional skills and success in enterprise agility. NTT DATA boasts over 200 certified SPCs and approximately 1,500 SAFe-qualified professionals. This acknowledgement aims to enhance collaboration with Scaled Agile, supporting large organizations and global clients in achieving business agility and transformation.

NTT DATA showcased their ongoing commitment to innovation and excellence. The company not only participated in multiple sessions, but also led some of the most insightful discussions, reinforcing their position as a thought leader in the industry.

Interactive talks, sessions, and workshop

A big highlight was the array of booth talks and sessions led by NTT DATA and partners including Planview, Agility Health, and VSOptima. These sessions covered a broad range of topics, each designed to provide valuable knowledge and spark meaningful conversations among the attendees. We extend our heartfelt thanks to our partners for their invaluable collaboration and contributions to the event! Their expertise and insights were instrumental in making the summit a resounding success.

At the 2024 SAFe Summit, NTT DATA hosted a partner showcase session called “The Future of Product Delivery," presented by Glenn Watson and Jason Aitchison. They explored emerging trends in value stream (and flow) management, focusing on revolutionizing business value. The talk highlighted the practical applications of AI and process Digital Twins to create a holistic product lifecycle approach, optimizing flow and decision-making.

NTT DATA and VSOptima jointly hosted an engaging workshop focused on Value Stream Optimization using Generative AI and Digital Twins. Participants had the opportunity to delve into creating a Digital Twin for an end-to-end product development process, identifying inefficiencies, exploring improvement strategies, evaluating potential changes, and making data-driven decisions to enhance performance. We appreciate the collaboration with VSOptima and Pavel Azaletskiy in making this workshop successful!

Key insights from our attendee survey

We conducted a brief survey of summit attendees regarding their main challenges in adopting value stream management and shifting to a product-centric approach. Here are the results.

Key challenges when implementing Value Stream Management

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Biggest challenges when transitioning from a project-based approach to a product-centric approach?

Attendees shared that their main challenge in implementing Value Stream Management is understanding the entire value stream and overcoming resistance to change, emphasizing the need for effective change management. The shift to a product-centric approach is also impeded by existing mindsets favoring project delivery over continuous value creation. This calls for leadership committed to fostering a culture of customer-centricity and ongoing improvement.

Networking and connecting

A highlight of the event was the happy hour on Tuesday evening at the Cadillac Ranch, jointly sponsored by Planview. Attendees had the chance to unwind and network with a live band, great company, and even a mechanical bull. This event was a perfect opportunity to engage with industry peers and create meaningful connections.

The 2024 SAFe Summit not only highlighted the current state of the industry, but also set the stage for future advancements. NTT DATA's presence and impactful presentations underscored their dedication to excellence and innovation in the agile space. We look forward to seeing the ongoing influence of NTT DATA's thought leadership and innovative solutions in the months and years to come!