Velocity has been widly used in teams adopting agility. To the point of becoming a standard to compare, measure and motivate teams. This was a big error. Through an aviation theme, both agilists are presenting the deviance of velocity's usage and recommand new ways and metrics to follow a team health.

1. High-flying agility,
watch for the right
indicators
Guy LaRochelle & Eric Wursteisen
December 2018
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YA

2. YA001 Crew presentation 0:01 BOARDING
YA002 Setting up the context 0:06 ON TIME
YA003 Let’s discuss velocity 0:15 ON TIME
YA004 Other agile metrics 0:40 ON TIME
YA005 THE Dashboard 0:50 ON TIME
Departures
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YOUR AGILEWAYS

3. Welcome on board !

4. Guy LaRochelle
Agile Coach
guy@siglr.com
1991
2004
2009
2012
2013
2016
Eric Wursteisen
Agile Coach
eric.wursteisen@cgi.com
2002
2006
2008
2012
2012
2016

5. Departures
YA001 Crew presentation 0:01 DEPARTED
YA002 Setting up the context 0:06 BOARDING
YA003 Let’s discuss velocity 0:15 ON TIME
YA004 Other agile metrics 0:40 ON TIME
YA005 THE Dashboard 0:50 ON TIME
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YOUR AGILEWAYS

6. Why talking about Velocity ?
Seattle Scrum Company
Michael James
“The application of “velocity” to software
development was invented by eXtreme
Programming (XP) pioneers, some of whom now
consider it to have been a bad idea.”

7. Virpi Oinonen
(@voinonen)
Why talking about Velocity ?

8. Agility vs complex systems
Noop.nl - Jurgen Appelo - http://noop.nl/2008/08/simple-vs-complicated-vs-complex-vs-chaotic.html
Jurgen Appelo (2008) :
“Simple and complicated systems are all
fully predictable. [...]
Complex systems are not constructed, they
are grown.”
VUCA

9. Agility vs complex systems

10. Where is the Velocity
For these systems ?
Agility vs complex systems

11. Indicators - Balance and Routine
1 23
4
56
Image source: Astronomy Online

12. From a simple system to a complex system
Escape Velocity
Doc Norton
“Velocity is a simple measure of a very complex
system.
To measure creative work by throughput alone is
to not measure it at all; quality and impact are
essential.”
Virpi Oinonen (@voinonen)

13. Departures
YA001 Crew presentation 0:01 DEPARTED
YA002 Setting up the context 0:06 DEPARTED
YA003 Let’s discuss velocity 0:15 BOARDING
YA004 Other agile metrics 0:40 DELAYED
YA005 THE Dashboard 0:50 ON TIME
YOUR AGILEWAYS
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14. Today’s Velocity usage
Ding-Dong…
“Your Captain speaking,
we are flying at 900 km/h”
Only present the Velocity

15. Force a same Velocity to different systems
Copyright ERIC WURSTEISEN
Today’s Velocity usage

16. Compare Velocity between teams
Copyright ERIC WURSTEISEN
Today’s Velocity usage

17. Asking more and a higher Velocity disregarding the team and its context
https://youtu.be/ZmEVwyMRYIY?t=55
Today’s Velocity usage

19. What about 2 (identicial) teams having the same Velocity ?
Today’s Velocity usage

20. Velocity does not appear either in the Scrum Guide or the Agile Manifesto.
“Working software is the primary measure of progress”
Today’s Velocity usage

21. VersionOne 12th Annual Report on Agility
+20pts
-25pts
-24pts
+20pts
+ 9pts
-16pts
-12pts
- 7pts
Today’s Velocity usage

22. Departures
YA001 Crew presentation 0:01 DEPARTED
YA002 Setting up the context 0:06 DEPARTED
YA003 Let’s discuss velocity 0:15 DEPARTED
YA004 Other agile metrics 0:40 BOARDING
YA005 THE Dashboard 0:50 ON TIME
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YOUR AGILEWAYS
YOUR AGILEWAYS

24. TEAM
FLIGHT
PARAMETERS
BUSINESS
VALUE
CFD
LEAD &
CYCLE
TIME
SCATTERED
PLOTS
BUDGETS

25. Other metrics for agile teams
Fun, team dynamics
← Stress Level Meter
Team Mood Barometer →
Agile Tool Box, Visualization Examples
Jeremy Janlen (crisp.se)

27. TEAM
FLIGHT
PARAMETERS
BUSINESS
VALUE
CFD
LEAD &
CYCLE
TIME
SCATTERED
PLOTS
BUDGETS

28. What to look for ?
★ % on time Projects
★ Average “Lead Time”
★ Customer Satisfaction
○ Net Promoter Score
○ Fit 4 Purpose
Business - Portfolio Management
Every 3 months
FL Strategic
Flights Levels of Kanban - Klaus Leopold
Other metrics for agile teams

29. ★ Throughput
★ Live Bugs (after a delivery)
★ Investment Consumption
Ratio
FL Tactic
Collaboration - Planification
Monthly
Flights Levels of Kanban - Klaus Leopold
What to look for ?
Other metrics for agile teams

30. ★ Delivery Rate (DR)
○ DR = WIP / CT moyen
★ Work In Progress (WIP)
○ Daily average
★ Team’s Cycle Time (CT)
○ 85th percentile
★ Flow Efficiency
○ Effective Time/Cycle Time
FL Operational
IT - Operation
Each cycle/sprint
Flights Levels of Kanban - Klaus Leopold
What to look for ?
Other metrics for agile teams

31. TEAM
FLIGHT
PARAMETERS
BUSINESS
VALUE
CFD
LEAD &
CYCLE
TIME
SCATTERED
PLOTS
BUDGETS

32. YQB 7h30
YUL 8h30
YTZ 10h15
C-V 10h20
$
YQB 7h30
YYZ 9h00
C-V 10h00
$$$
A
B
A
B
What to look for ?
Other metrics for agile teams

33. TEAM
FLIGHT
PARAMETERS
BUSINESS
VALUE
CFD
LEAD &
CYCLE
TIME
SCATTERED
PLOTS
BUDGETS

34. Cycle Time is the period between the moment the
work start on the request, and the moment this
item is ready to be delivered.
Lead Time
Start of Work End of WorkRequest Reception
Cycle Time
Start of Work End of WorkRequest Reception
Lead Time Lead Time is the period between the request’s
reception and the moment it is delivered.
Cycle Time =
End of Work Date - Start of Work Date +1
Lead Time (Current) =
Delivery Date - Reception Date +1
+1 is in case your unit is in days. You can’t have a cycle time of 0.
Cycle Time
Other metrics for agile teams

35. TEAM
FLIGHT
PARAMETERS
BUSINESS
VALUE
CFD
LEAD &
CYCLE
TIME
SCATTERED
PLOTS
BUDGETS

36. Scope
Change
LEAD TIME
CYCLE TIME
WIP
Little Law can be applied easily with a CFD.
It will help determine your Delivery Rate :
DR = WIP / CTmoyen
Cumulative Flow Diagrams
Other metrics for agile teams

37. TEAM
FLIGHT
PARAMETERS
BUSINESS
VALUE
CFD
LEAD &
CYCLE
TIME
SCATTERED
PLOTS
BUDGETS

38. Actionable Agile
Metrics For
Predictability
Daniel Vacanti
Scattered Plots and Percentiles
Other metrics for agile teams

39. TEAM
FLIGHT
PARAMETERS
BUSINESS
VALUE
CFD
LEAD &
CYCLE
TIME
SCATTERED
PLOTS
BUDGETS

40. ( )
Meet and discuss with your Finances
Guys and Gals
(Capex vs Opex)
#NoProjects : A Culture of
Continuous Value - Evan Leybourn
& Shane Hastie
Efficiency = * 100
(Profit Margin)
Productivity =
(Total Profit)
Total Amount of
Delivered Product
Cost of Used Resources
Business Outputs
Key Inputs
Measure your Delivered Value
And Budgets in all of this ?
Other metrics for agile teams

41. ( )
Les autres métriques pour équipes agiles
Et le budget dans tout ca ?
Rencontrez vos gens des Finances
(Capex vs Opex)
#NoProjects : A Culture of
Continuous Value - Evan Leybourn
& Shane Hastie
Efficience = * 100
(Marge de Profits)
Productivité =
(Profits totaux)
Montant Total
du Produit livré
Coût des ressources
consommées
Extrants Affaires
Intrants Clefs
Mesurez votre valeur
livrée

42. You are a web agency. You have 2 teams at your disposal.
You just sold 2 websites for 25 000$ each.
Team 1 :
5 Juniors team members
4 weeks to produce 1 website
Total cost of 15 000$
#NoProjects : A Culture of
Continuous Value - Evan Leybourn &
Shane Hastie
Team 2 :
3 Seniors team members
4 weeks to produce 2 websites
Total cost of 20 000$
Budgets - SIMPLIFIED Example
Other metrics for agile teams

43. # TADP CUR Efficiency Output Inputs Productivity
Profit /
Person
Predictability
(Projets / year)
1 25 k$ 15 k$ 166% 1 Projet 5 p. 0,2 2 000$
(10k*0.2)
13
(52/4)
2 25 k$ 20 k$ 125% 2 Projets 3 p. 0,67 3 350$
(5k*0.67)
26
#NoProjects : A Culture of
Continuous Value - Evan Leybourn &
Shane Hastie
Both teams are expecting annual profits of 130 000$
Other metrics for agile teams
Budgets - SIMPLIFIED Example

44. Departures
YA001 Crew presentation 0:01 DEPARTED
YA002 Setting up the context 0:06 DEPARTED
YA003 Let’s discuss velocity 0:15 DEPARTED
YA004 Other agile metrics 0:40 DEPARTED
YA005 THE Dashboard 0:50 CANCELLED
YOUR AGILEWAYS
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YOUR AGILEWAYS
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YOUR AGILEWAYS

45. Idealist Dashboard ?
A Dashboard with all and any
indicators possibles ?
By Christian Kath - Christian Kath, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=833972
Do yourselves a favor,
do a Dashboard
Concorde Cockpit (1960)

46. A350 Cockpit (2013)
A dashboard which is
EVOLUTIONARY AND
ADAPTIVE !
Idealist Dashboard ?
Do yourselves a favor,
do a Dashboard

48. Thanks for your attention, you can go !