Program Increment (PI) Planning is a structured event that functions as the operational rhythm for the Agile Release Train (ART). Taking place every 8 to 12 weeks, its purpose is to align multiple teams and stakeholders on a unified mission and vision for the next period of work. This collaborative session brings together business stakeholders and agile teams to review the program backlog and define a clear direction for product development.
The Purpose of PI Planning
The primary goal of PI Planning is to create alignment across all teams and stakeholders within an Agile Release Train (ART), ensuring everyone works toward shared objectives. This process fosters communication by bringing teams together for real-time discussions and decision-making. By gathering everyone in one place, whether physically or virtually, the event strengthens relationships between team members.
A benefit of this process is improved predictability in the delivery of value. The planning event allows teams to identify potential risks and dependencies early, enabling them to develop mitigation plans and reduce surprises during execution. This forward-thinking approach to risk management, combined with transparent communication about priorities, leads to faster and more informed decision-making.
Key Roles and Responsibilities
The Release Train Engineer (RTE) acts as the facilitator for the event, guiding the teams through the planning process and ensuring the agenda is followed. They are responsible for communicating the vision, coaching teams, and managing the overall flow of the session to ensure it remains productive.
Product Management is responsible for presenting the program vision and the highest priority features from the backlog. They provide the business context and clarify the strategic goals for the upcoming Program Increment. Business Owners also participate as stakeholders, providing their perspective on the business value of proposed objectives and ensuring that plans align with organizational priorities.
Agile Teams, which include developers, testers, and their Product Owner, are the core participants who perform the planning. They are responsible for breaking down features into smaller stories, estimating the effort required, and defining their specific objectives for the PI. The System Architect or Engineer provides technical guidance, outlining the architectural vision and helping teams identify technical risks and dependencies.
The PI Planning Process
The PI Planning event follows a structured agenda over two days, beginning with leaders establishing the business context and vision. Senior executives and Product Management present the current state of the business, the strategic direction, and the top features from the program backlog. This ensures all teams understand the “why” behind the work.
Team Breakouts
Following the initial presentations, the event moves into team breakout sessions. Each agile team gathers to analyze their assigned features, estimate their capacity for the upcoming iterations, and draft a plan for how they will accomplish the work. Teams break down the features into smaller user stories, identify dependencies on other teams, and formulate their specific PI objectives.
Draft and Final Plan Reviews
After the initial breakout session, teams present their draft plans to the entire Agile Release Train for feedback. This review is a platform for identifying misalignments, dependencies, and potential conflicts between teams. The visibility provided by these presentations allows for real-time problem-solving. Teams then take this feedback into a second breakout session to refine their plans and address the issues raised.
Risk Assessment
A dedicated part of the process involves identifying and addressing potential risks. Teams collectively brainstorm any technical, organizational, or external factors that could impede their ability to meet their objectives. These risks are then categorized using a method known as ROAM (Resolved, Owned, Accepted, Mitigated) to ensure each identified risk has a clear action plan. This step is designed to proactively manage threats to the plan’s success.
Confidence Vote
The PI Planning event culminates in a confidence vote. Using a “fist-of-five” method, every team member votes on their confidence in the team’s ability to meet its PI objectives. If the average confidence level is high, the plan is accepted. If confidence is low, the team reworks its plan until a higher level of confidence is achieved, ensuring collective commitment to the final plan.
Key Outcomes of PI Planning
The PI Planning event produces two main artifacts that guide the Agile Release Train (ART). The first is a set of committed PI Objectives for each team. These are not just a list of features but are written in a SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) format that articulates the business and technical goals the team intends to achieve. Business Owners assign business value to each objective, which helps in prioritizing work.
The second primary outcome is the Program Board. This is a visible chart that maps out the deliverables, milestones, and dependencies for the entire ART. It shows which team is working on which feature and highlights the handoffs and integration points between teams. The Program Board provides a comprehensive view of the plan, making dependencies and timelines transparent to everyone involved.
PI Planning and the SAFe Framework
PI Planning is a central event within the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe). SAFe is a set of principles and practices designed to help large enterprises apply agile and lean methodologies at scale. It provides a structured approach for coordinating multiple agile teams to work together on complex projects.
Within this framework, PI Planning serves as the primary mechanism for aligning all teams within an Agile Release Train to a shared mission. The cadence-based nature of PI Planning provides the rhythm for the entire ART, ensuring that planning and execution are consistently aligned across the organization. The event embodies the SAFe principles of alignment, transparency, and built-in quality.