Dean Leffingwell

Richard Knaster, SAFe Fellow and Principal Consultant at Scaled Agile, Inc., has more than 25 years’ experience in software development in roles ranging from developer to executive and has been involved in Agile for more than a decade. Prior to joining Scaled Agile, Inc., Richard worked at IBM, where his career spanned from product line management (PPM domain) and professional services to chief methodologist, Agile and Lean. Richard is a certified IBM Thought Leader and an Open Group Distinguished IT Specialist. He is also a certified SPC, PSM, Agile Certified Practitioner, PMP, and a contributor to the Disciplined Agile Delivery framework and PMI Portfolio/Program Management standards. He is a contributor to SAFe® 4.5 Reference Guide (Addison-Wesley, 2018).


Dean Leffingwell, creator of SAFe®, is widely recognized as the one of the world’s foremost authorities on Lean-Agile best practices. He is an author, serial entrepreneur, and software systems development methodologist. His two best-selling books, Agile Software Requirements: Lean Requirements Practices for Teams, Programs, and the Enterprise (Addison-Wesley, 2011), and Scaling Software Agility: Best Practices for Large Enterprises (Addison-Wesley, 2007), form much of the basis of modern thinking on Lean-Agile practices and principles.

Dean Leffingwell

Richard Knaster, SAFe Fellow and Principal Consultant at Scaled Agile, Inc., has more than 25 years’ experience in software development in roles ranging from developer to executive and has been involved in Agile for more than a decade. Prior to joining Scaled Agile, Inc., Richard worked at IBM, where his career spanned from product line management (PPM domain) and professional services to chief methodologist, Agile and Lean. Richard is a certified IBM Thought Leader and an Open Group Distinguished IT Specialist. He is also a certified SPC, PSM, Agile Certified Practitioner, PMP, and a contributor to the Disciplined Agile Delivery framework and PMI Portfolio/Program Management standards. He is a contributor to SAFe® 4.5 Reference Guide (Addison-Wesley, 2018).


Dean Leffingwell, creator of SAFe®, is widely recognized as the one of the world’s foremost authorities on Lean-Agile best practices. He is an author, serial entrepreneur, and software systems development methodologist. His two best-selling books, Agile Software Requirements: Lean Requirements Practices for Teams, Programs, and the Enterprise (Addison-Wesley, 2011), and Scaling Software Agility: Best Practices for Large Enterprises (Addison-Wesley, 2007), form much of the basis of modern thinking on Lean-Agile practices and principles.

Don Widrig

Dean Leffingwell, software business development consultant and former Rational Software executive, is a recognized authority on software requirements. He was cofounder and chief executive officer of Requisite, Inc., where he developed RequisitePro, the highly successful requirements management software tool, and Requirements College, the basis of Rational's popular requirements management professional development course series.

Don Widrig is an independent technical writer and consultant. He developed and delivered Rational Software's RequisitePro Tool Training Course until his "retirement" to the mountains of Colorado in 1997. When he is not busy watching the elk in his yard, Don writes a regular column for his local newspaper and does pro bono work helping the townspeople deal with their computers. He was formerly the vice president of research and development at RELA, Inc., a producer of safety-critical, real-time systems.



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