How to Write Effective SAFe Epics: Format, Criteria & Best Practices

Blog Author

Siddharth

Published

7 Jul, 2025

SAFe epics drive significant change at the portfolio level, shaping the future of your products and solutions. Writing them well makes the difference between clear, actionable strategy and endless debate. Let’s break down exactly how to craft SAFe epics that create clarity and deliver real value.

What is a SAFe Epic?

In the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe), an epic is a large body of work that influences multiple Agile Release Trains (ARTs) or even the entire portfolio. Epics represent the most substantial investments in your portfolio backlog, cutting across teams and timeboxes.

Epics aren’t just big user stories. They are strategic initiatives that require lean business cases, thorough evaluation, and strong alignment with business and customer objectives. You’ll find two types in SAFe:

Business Epics: Drive direct business value or deliver new customer-facing functionality.
Enabler Epics: Support technical, architectural, or compliance work, making business epics possible.

Understanding this distinction is important when you’re looking at roles like Product Owner/Product Manager (POPM) or exploring a SAFe Product Owner Product Manager POPM certification.

Why Writing Epics Matters

Poorly written epics create confusion, wasted effort, and missed opportunities. When crafted well, epics guide investment decisions, focus the work of ARTs, and build alignment between strategy and execution. This is a key focus of advanced SAFe Scrum Master certification training and for those stepping into release train engineer roles.

Format of a SAFe Epic

A well-structured SAFe epic contains more than just a description. Here’s what every epic should include:

1. Epic Name

Make it concise and clear. The name should capture the essence of the opportunity or initiative.

Example:
“Unified Customer Onboarding Experience” or “Implement GDPR Compliance Across Platforms”

2. Epic Description

Provide a short but meaningful summary. State the intent, business outcome, and context for the epic.

3. Business Outcome Hypothesis

What will change if this epic is implemented? Use measurable terms—think of KPIs, revenue growth, customer retention, or risk reduction.

Example:
“This epic will reduce onboarding time from 5 days to 1 day, improving customer conversion rates by 20%.”

4. Leading Indicators

Identify early signs of progress. These are metrics or signals you can measure before the epic is fully implemented.

Example:
“Percentage of customers completing onboarding in less than 24 hours within the first release.”

5. Nonfunctional Requirements (NFRs)

If applicable, outline quality and compliance requirements—such as security, performance, or legal compliance.

6. Estimated Effort (WSJF Inputs)

Document the inputs needed for Weighted Shortest Job First (WSJF) prioritization:

User/Business Value
Time Criticality
Risk Reduction/Opportunity Enablement
Estimated Size (Job Size)

7. Acceptance Criteria

Define clear, testable conditions for epic completion.

8. Portfolio Kanban State

Indicate where the epic is in the Kanban process—funnel, review, analysis, implementation, or done.

Epic Writing Criteria: What Makes a Good Epic?

A solid SAFe epic is:

Strategic: Aligned with portfolio vision and objectives.
Valuable: Drives measurable business or technical outcomes.
Testable: Contains acceptance criteria for validation.
Sized for Portfolio: Too large for a single ART, requires lean business case.
Actionable: Provides clarity for downstream ART and solution trains.
Clear Ownership: Has assigned Epic Owners.

Before you move an epic forward, ask:

Does it solve a real problem or exploit a significant opportunity?
Is it big enough to require portfolio-level consideration?
Do you have enough data for a business case?

Step-by-Step: How to Write a SAFe Epic

Here’s a simple, actionable workflow for epic creation:

1. Start With a Problem or Opportunity Statement

Frame the need. What customer pain point, business opportunity, or technical risk are you addressing?

Example:
“Customers abandon onboarding due to complexity, leading to lost revenue.”

2. Draft the Hypothesis Statement

Use the “If/Then” structure:
“If we do X, then we expect Y outcome for Z group, measured by W.”

Example:
“If we streamline the onboarding process, then new users will complete registration faster, increasing conversion rates by 20%.”

3. Define Leading Indicators

List early metrics that will show you’re on the right track.

4. Estimate the Value

Score the epic using WSJF criteria.

5. Write Acceptance Criteria

These make your epic “done” measurable.

Example:

“Onboarding process must support mobile and desktop.”
“System must be GDPR compliant.”
“80% of users complete onboarding without support intervention.”

6. Review and Refine

Collaborate with business owners, architects, and portfolio stakeholders for feedback. Challenge assumptions and make sure the business case holds up.

Best Practices for Writing SAFe Epics

Follow these proven guidelines for strong epics:

1. Be Specific, Not Vague

Avoid buzzwords or generic statements. Focus on real customer or business value.

2. Keep it Outcome-Driven

Don’t describe the solution—describe the problem and expected outcome. Let teams innovate on how to achieve it.

3. Quantify Value and Impact

Attach numbers wherever possible. “Reduce support tickets by 30%,” not just “Improve support.”

4. Limit the Scope

Epics should be big, but not endless. If it can’t be implemented within a Program Increment (PI), break it down.

5. Engage the Right Roles

Epic Owners, architects, business owners, and other stakeholders should co-create epics. This builds buy-in and ensures technical feasibility.

6. Use the Portfolio Kanban

Visualize epic flow from idea to implementation. The Kanban helps limit WIP and enables better prioritization. Learn more about Kanban and Lean Portfolio Management from the Leading SAFe Agilist certification training.

7. Validate with Real Data

Where possible, validate your hypothesis with MVPs or prototypes before making the full investment.

8. Revisit and Refine

Epics are not static. Update them as you learn more—especially after MVPs and early releases.

SAFe Epic Template Example

Here’s how it all comes together:

Epic Name:
“Unified Billing Experience Across Products”

Epic Description:
Customers currently manage bills in separate portals, creating confusion. This epic aims to integrate billing across all products into a single platform.

Business Outcome Hypothesis:
If we unify billing, customers will spend less time on account management, reducing support calls by 30% and increasing cross-sell opportunities.

Leading Indicators:

Number of support tickets related to billing.
Time spent per customer on billing tasks.

Acceptance Criteria:

One-stop portal for all billing.
Supports both desktop and mobile.
GDPR and PCI-DSS compliant.

WSJF Inputs:

Business Value: 8
Time Criticality: 7
Risk Reduction: 5
Job Size: 13

Portfolio Kanban State:
Analysis

Common Pitfalls When Writing SAFe Epics

Overly Broad Scope: Don’t try to solve too many problems at once.
Lack of Measurable Outcomes: Vague goals can’t be validated.
Solution-First Thinking: Focus on the problem and value, not the technology.
Skipping Acceptance Criteria: Makes it hard to know when you’re done.
Neglecting Stakeholder Input: Reduces alignment and buy-in.

Who Should Write and Own SAFe Epics?

Epic writing is a collaborative effort. While anyone can suggest an epic, Portfolio Managers, Epic Owners, Solution Architects, and Release Train Engineers (see more on SAFe Release Train Engineer certification training) typically shape and sponsor these investments.

Epic Owners are responsible for driving the epic through the portfolio Kanban, collaborating with ARTs, and validating business outcomes.

Tools and References for SAFe Epic Writing

SAFe Epic template and examples
Learn about WSJF and Lean Portfolio Management here.
Explore SAFe Scrum Master certification to understand how epics connect to PI Planning and team backlogs: SAFe Scrum Master certification.

Conclusion

Effective SAFe epics turn ambitious ideas into actionable portfolio investments. Focus on business value, measurable outcomes, and clarity. Use the right structure, validate your hypotheses, and iterate with feedback. The result: initiatives that drive real change and enable your Agile enterprise to achieve its goals.

Want to master SAFe epic creation and portfolio management?
Check out Leading SAFe Agilist certification training or SAFe Product Owner Product Manager POPM certification at AgileSeekers. For hands-on skills in facilitating these epics across teams, see SAFe Scrum Master certification and Advanced Scrum Master certification.

For deeper dives and advanced topics, refer to Scaled Agile’s official guidance on epics.