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FCC SAFe Operating Model

Scope: FCC Agent Team Extension's canonical SAFe (Scaled Agile Framework) instance. Basis: SAFe 6.0, adapted through the ice_ext three-layer absorption pattern (see safe-fcc-vocabulary.md). Adopted: v1.4.1 (2026-04-22). Authority: FCC owns its own SAFe instance. The Research Center (RC) operates a separate, larger SAFe instance across 20+ projects; FCC's model is aligned to RC's PI cadence but is narrower in scope — it governs this repo and the 10 constellation verticals only.

Why SAFe here

FCC v1.4.0 closed the "ecosystem pivot" pillar by publishing the 10 constellation-codename verticals as independent public repos. That bumped the coordination surface from "one repo + sister projects" to "one authority repo + 10 public verticals + JV/L2 partners." At that scale, a shared vocabulary for scope, cadence, and cross-project dependency tracking matters more than another ad-hoc release train.

SAFe 6.0 gives us three things we needed:

  1. A shared vocabulary — Portfolio Epic, Program Epic, Capability, Feature, Enabler Story — that every contributor can point at on a common diagram.
  2. A portfolio tier that reconciles long-running themes (patent delegation, real seed data, GraphRAG, i18n, multi-user collab) with the per-PI delivery cadence.
  3. PI (Program Increment) cadence that synchronizes with RC's quarterly rhythm so dependencies across the authority repo, the constellations, and the JV partners don't drift.

What SAFe doesn't dictate here: implementation style, quality gates, or architectural direction. Those remain FCC's to own. We absorb vocabulary + cadence from SAFe; everything else stays FCC-canonical.

The three FCC ARTs

FCC organizes delivery around three Agile Release Trains (ARTs). Each runs on a 10-week PI with 2-week iterations inside; each owns a slice of the portfolio:

ART Focus Owner personas Detail
Framework ART Core src/fcc/ framework + plugins + tests PE, RC, BC, DE, FA framework-art.md
Ecosystem ART 10 constellation verticals, JV integration, plugin ecosystem EC, JVC, VDS, SFBI ecosystem-art.md
Docs ART 24-chapter Guidebook, 3-book series, 19+ demos, MkDocs site DE, TLDR, EC, STE docs-art.md

The four value streams

Value streams cut across ARTs and are documented in value-streams.md:

  1. Framework — ship a better R.I.S.C.E.A.R. + FCC workflow every PI.
  2. Ecosystem — keep the 10 constellations + JV partners aligned + healthy.
  3. Documentation — keep every audience (decision-makers, architects, developers, auditors, educators) able to read themselves into the framework.
  4. Delegation — grow the ecosystem's ability to accept downstream contributions (plugins, vocabulary providers, vertical packs, patents).

Portfolio epics

Nine portfolio epics carry the v1.4.x → v1.5.0 roadmap. See portfolio/epics.md for the full table. Six are v1.5.0 pillars (real seed data, GraphRAG, i18n, multi-user collab, advanced federation, perf optimization); three are strategic (patent delegation, event-split, POLARIS/LYRA integration).

PI cadence

PI Dates Focus
PI-2026-Q3 (current) 2026-07-01 → 2026-09-30 v1.4.1 ice_ext absorption + SAFe instance bootstrap
PI-2026-Q4 2026-10-01 → 2026-12-31 v1.4.2 real seed data foundation + GraphRAG prep
PI-2027-Q1 2027-01-01 → 2027-03-31 v1.5.0 pillar convergence
PI-2027-Q2 2027-04-01 → 2027-06-30 v1.5.0 hardening + public release

Full calendar with objectives and RC-aligned milestones is in pi-calendar.md.

The SAFe↔FCC vocabulary reconciliation

Rather than renaming SAFe terms into FCC dialect (or vice versa), FCC adopts a canonical reconciliation table at safe-fcc-vocabulary.md. The table is the single source of truth for how Portfolio Epic ↔ Layer 1 Emergent Design, Program Epic ↔ Layer 2 Intentional Architecture, and Solution Intent/Enabler ↔ Layer 3 Protocol Architecture map into the FCC three-layer convention. This pattern was absorbed from the ice_ext project in v1.4.1.

The SAFe-FCC Bridge Interpreter (SFBI) persona owns that table and publishes drift reports when any ecosystem artifact uses vocabulary inconsistently. The SAFe Metrics Crafter (SMC) persona computes flow metrics and PI scorecards for all three ARTs. The Three-Layer Doc Reconciler (TLDR) persona enforces the ROADMAP/SAR/AGENTS three-layer convention across every ecosystem project. The Vocabulary Drift Sentinel (VDS) persona monitors SHA-256 parity for the 13+ VocabularyProviderPlugins.

Operating discipline

  • The canonical reconciliation table is the single source of truth for vocabulary.
  • Metrics inform, metrics don't gate — release gating stays with Release Manager.
  • Three-layer convention is enforced across ROADMAP.md, STRATEGIC_ARCHITECTURE_REVIEW.md, and AGENTS.md in every project.
  • PI cadence aligns with RC (quarterly); iterations are 2 weeks.
  • Each ART publishes a PI scorecard; make safe-report aggregates them.

Sibling files

References

  • SAFe 6.0 framework. Scaled Agile, Inc. https://scaledagileframework.com/
  • ice_ext ROADMAP.md (ice_ext repo, ROADMAP.md) — origin of the three-layer reconciliation pattern absorbed in v1.4.1.
  • FCC STRATEGIC_ARCHITECTURE_REVIEW.md — Layer 2 intentional architecture canonical authority.
  • FCC AGENTS.md — Layer 3 protocol architecture canonical authority.
  • Research Center docs/safe/README.md — RC's sibling SAFe instance (20-project scope).