We were thrilled to host the 2022 SAFe® Summit at the Gaylord Rockies Resort & Convention Center in Denver, Colorado. This was our first in-person Summit since 2019. It was a pleasure and a privilege to see old friends and meet new ones face-to-face for the first time.
So, what happened during the Summit? It’s hard to summarize the value of new connections, impromptu lunch table conversations, collaborative working sessions, and the sparks that fly with a unique gathering of international SAFe experts.
But we’ll try!
Several customers joined us live to share their stories about what they learned and the successes they experienced by using SAFe for large-scale transformations. We launched new products to include everyone in the organization on the journey to business agility. And attendees took home fresh insights and best practices to bring SAFe implementations to the next level.
Overall, we had:
- Over 80 speakers
- 34 technical talks
- 29 countries represented
- 10 customer stories
- 9 product labs
- 3 panels
- 1 product launch with 4 new features
- 1 motivational speaker, 1 MC, and 1 surprise musical guest
Keep reading to see what you missed or relive some of your favorite moments.
2022 SAFe Summit Customer Stories
SAFe customer stories are a cornerstone at the SAFe Summit. This year’s Summit was no different. However, this year’s customer stories clearly showed a more advanced level of SAFe application. It’s exciting to see sustained progress and results as customers mature their transformations and expand to new business areas.
Below are just a few examples of real-world use cases and results showcased at the Summit.
Southwest Airlines
At four years (and counting) into their Agile transformation, more than 2,000 Southwest employees collaborate cross-functionally across the organization. This has resulted in a 10x increase in production and a 50-percent decrease in errors.
Oracle
Members of Oracle shared how they replaced a core system in just two years using a new mindset and way of working from SAFe. In doing so, they left behind their “painful waterfall process.”
Lockheed Martin
Lockheed Martin used the hit show Ted Lasso to tell the story of how the company overcame language barriers when introducing SAFe to teams.
2022 Summit Launch | Business Agility Needs Everyone
Our latest product launch took flight on the first day of the 2022 SAFe Summit. We highlighted new features and resources that support everyone in the transformation. We heard from:
- SAFe Content Advisors Bill Sizemore and Hande Kazgan on features that help people in new roles, like SAFe Jumpstart, an online series that helps people new to SAFe quickly get up to speed. SAFe Jumpstart is available to SAFe Enterprise members and Scaled Agile Partners
- Director of Globalization Services, Yuka Kurihara, on new ways to learn and practice SAFe in your native language, including newly translated courses
- SAFe Fellow and Product Management Director Deema Dajani on features that help you engage more of the business in your SAFe transformation, including business agility experience reports from transformation leaders who’ve successfully introduced SAFe to new functional areas
- SAFe Fellow and Principal Consultant Andrew Sales on features that help you measure and improve business agility at your organization, including updated, simplified assessments that make it easier to assess your organization’s progress
See even more features highlighted in the Summit Launch here. Missed the first product launch earlier this year? See an overview of that launch here.
New Takeaways from SAFe Summit 2022
Between inspiring keynote presentations, in-depth learning sessions, and candid customer stories, there were a lot of practical takeaways for 2022 SAFe Summit attendees. To see all the recorded Summit content for yourself, head to the SAFe Community Platform. Not a member? Become one today.
New content highlights
- Our co-founder and Chief Methodologist, Dean Leffingwell, introduced the eight flow accelerators
- Women in Agile gained some early-morning insights and inspiration from guest speaker Nadya Ichinomiya
- Deema Dajani shared a new perspective on Lean Portfolio Management (LPM) by showing us that people determine your LPM success
- Bill Sizemore revealed his premonition that he’d be taking the SAFe Summit stage once he heard 2019 keynote speaker Jade Simmons
Inspiring keynote guests
Our exemplary MC, Mark Jeffries, brought the first day to a close with an engaging, honest look at the six keys to influencing people. Spoiler alert: you just have to use your B.R.A.I.N.S.
Motivational speaker Cassandra Worthy opened day two with lots of energy while she shared the steps to mastering change chemistry. As a bonus, we learned who in the audience is guilty of hitting the gas at yellow lights.
What did these sessions have in common? Both Cassandra and Mark emphasized that there are right and wrong ways to drive change and influence others. Making change stick requires real listening, empathetic understanding, and acute emotional intelligence. Done right, you can honestly seek to influence teams and leadership to better the whole organization.
What attendees said about the 2022 SAFe Summit
We’ve rounded up some reactions from this year’s Summit. Here’s what attendees had to say about the event:
“Great conference! This is the first conference I’ve ever attended where I learned something new in EVERY session I attended. It is clear a lot of thought and work is put into holding the conference — y’all knocked it out of the park!”
“Everyone seems genuinely happy to be here”
“My 1st but not my last! Excellent Job!”
What about the 2023 SAFe Summit?
Already looking forward to next year? Join us in Nashville on August 15 – 18, 2023. Stay tuned for more info!
