Blog

Epics, the Portfolio Level work artefact, flow through the Portfolio processes but the flow can be very slow. This post explores whether the speed of flow, or lack of it, through the Portfolio poses a problem.

Epics, the Portfolio Level work artefact, flow through the Portfolio processes but the flow can be very slow. This post explores how the challenges that can be faced when trying to slice a large Epic into smaller Epics.

This post is an exploration of whether you should be estimating Expense or Effort. Both are required from different processes within the Scaled Agile Framework and there is a route to convert between the two, but which should be the principal estimate and which the derivation?

Portfolios are responsible for managing the funding. This post visualises the flow of money within a Lean Portfolio and what that money is pruchasing.

Portfolios are responsible for managing the funding. This post explores what happens when The Team gets funded and becomes a Value Steam.

Portfolios are responsible for managing the funding. This post explores what happens when The Work gets funded and becomes a project.

Portfolios are responsible for managing the funding. This post explores Participatory Budgeting, the suggested process within SAFe for determining the investment profile, the budgets, for the Development Value Streams within the Portfolio.

Epics have a lifecycle, they don’t magically appear fully formed. There is work to be done to progressively elaborate a business case and if the Epic is approved then there is further work to progress the Epic through implementation. This post looks at some of the alternate scenarios that might be seen in the Epic lifecycle, covering Bad Ideas, Small Ideas, Lean-Startup and Exploring Options.

Epics have a lifecycle, they don’t magically appear fully formed. There is work to be done to progressively elaborate a business case and if the Epic is approved then there is further work to progress the Epic through implementation. In this post we’ll explore the Portfolio Kanban that visualises the lifecycle of an Epic and look at some of the decisions that influence the Epic’s progress through its lifecycle.  

Portfolios need to build roadmaps to facilitate forecasting activities and to assess time-criticality during prioritisation. This post looks at why Portfolios need to build roadmaps and explores some of the challenges that Portfolio Level Roadmapping faces.