The Power of Big Room Planning: Driving Value Delivery in Large Programs

In the fast-paced world of agile development, large programs often struggle with coordination, dependency management, and cross-team collaboration. Without a structured approach, misalignment between teams can lead to delays, inefficiencies, and missed business objectives. This is where Big Room Planning—often referred to as Planning Interval (PI) Planning in the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe)—becomes a game-changer.

Big Room Planning is an agile ceremony that brings together multiple teams, stakeholders, and leadership in one collaborative space to align on priorities, dependencies, and commitments for a set period (typically a quarter). This approach enhances transparency, accelerates decision-making, and ensures teams are focused on delivering maximum value.

What Is Big Room Planning?

Big Room Planning is a structured, face-to-face (or virtual) event where teams working within a large program come together to:

• Define program objectives and key deliverables.

• Identify cross-team dependencies.

• Align on priorities and commitments for the next increment.

• Address risks, constraints, and roadblocks early.

• Foster collaboration and shared ownership of the plan.

A typical Big Room Planning session lasts two days and follows a structured agenda that includes business context presentations, team breakouts, dependency mapping, and final plan reviews.

How Big Room Planning Enhances Value Delivery

1. Improved Alignment Across Teams

Large programs involve multiple teams working toward a shared goal. Without a structured planning event, these teams may operate in silos, leading to misaligned priorities and duplicated efforts. Big Room Planning ensures that all teams have a shared understanding of the vision, goals, and expected outcomes.

2. Proactive Dependency Management

Dependencies between teams are one of the biggest challenges in large-scale agile development. By identifying and mapping dependencies during the planning session, teams can proactively address potential bottlenecks before they impact delivery. This reduces delays and improves predictability.

3. Faster Decision-Making

Traditional project planning often relies on asynchronous coordination, which can lead to long decision-making cycles. In contrast, Big Room Planning brings together all key decision-makers—product managers, architects, business leaders, and development teams—enabling real-time problem-solving and quick resolution of issues.

4. Greater Transparency and Visibility

When teams collaborate in a shared planning event, they gain full visibility into the priorities, constraints, and challenges faced by other teams. This transparency fosters trust, accountability, and better coordination, leading to a more efficient delivery process.

5. Stronger Stakeholder Engagement

Executives, product owners, and other key stakeholders play an active role in Big Room Planning. Their direct involvement ensures that teams are working on high-priority initiatives that align with business objectives, helping to maximise the return on investment (ROI).

6. Increased Team Motivation and Ownership

Agile teams thrive when they have autonomy and clarity in their work. By participating in the planning process, teams feel more empowered and engaged, knowing that their voices are heard and their contributions are valued. This sense of ownership drives higher-quality outcomes.

Why Large Programs Should Leverage Big Room Planning

For large programs managing multiple agile teams, Big Room Planning is not just an optional practice—it is essential for success. Here’s why:

• Complexity Requires Coordination: Large-scale initiatives involve multiple moving parts. Without structured coordination, projects can quickly become chaotic. Big Room Planning provides a clear roadmap that aligns all teams.

• Agility Demands Adaptability: The ability to quickly adjust to market changes is critical. This planning event enables organisations to pivot as needed while keeping teams aligned.

• Predictability Improves Delivery: When teams have a well-defined plan with clear dependencies and commitments, they can deliver work more predictably, leading to higher customer satisfaction and business value.

Conclusion

Big Room Planning is a powerful, agile ceremony that enhances collaboration, improves dependency management, and drives value delivery in large programs. By bringing all teams together in a structured planning event, organisations can align priorities, accelerate decision-making, and create a clear execution strategy. For any organisation looking to scale agile successfully, embracing Big Room Planning is a strategic move that can lead to better outcomes, faster delivery, and stronger team engagement.

If your organisation is struggling with cross-team alignment and delivery challenges, it’s time to leverage the power of Big Room Planning and unlock the full potential of your agile teams.