Kick off your sprint metrics!
If you’ve ever worked in an agile environment, I’m sure you’ve heard that you should measure things, right? But if it’s your first time, it may be really hard to decide where to start. On the one hand, the amount of metric frameworks and possible ways to set it up can be overwhelming. On the other, people you work with could be afraid of the numbers and their meaning. With that in mind, which metrics should you use first?
Unfortunately, there is no simple answer.
What I can share is the set of metrics we usually start with and an overview of the impact of showing these metrics to the team and stakeholders during Sprint Reviews.
4 main areas
We try to have at least one metric in each of the following four areas:
- Value
- Productivity
- Wellbeing
- Quality
The reason we want to have metrics from these areas is that it could be insightful to see the product and the team from different angles. Why these four exactly? Well, it’s worth a longer discussion, so that’s for another time. Feel free to brainstorm that later.
How to get started? Begin with metrics that are simple and easy to gather. Don’t overthink it. Let’s just get used to the idea of having some numbers at the end of the Sprint and discussing them. In fact, the important thing is to have conversations around the metrics, so treat them just as catalysts of potential change.
Value
- Sprint goal — have we achieved it?
- What feedback have we gathered during the Sprint and especially now, during the Sprint Review?
Productivity
- How many story points/issues have we delivered?
- How predictable were we?
Wellbeing
- On a scale of 1–5 what is our average across these four factors: happiness, satisfaction, health, cooperation?
Quality
- How many bugs have we discovered? How many have been fixed?
Often what can be even more important than the metric itself, is the trend line. Take note of it as well, it could potentially create some interesting conversations.
The beauty or the beast?
It’s sometimes a challenge to start a real discussion around metrics when I first show them during a Sprint Review with a new team. Do you have a similar experience? Have you ever thought why this is so hard? Yeah, numbers can be scary at first. People can be afraid of criticism or comparison, as numbers can be perceived as scores and not just information. But don’t lose hope :) Remember to present them and treat as data, without any judgement; it’s what they are, after all. When you observe that the metrics are used in a wrong way, steer the conversation back to a neutral discussion of the data .
It’s the impact that matters. So what kind of discussions have been triggered thanks to the metrics? Let me give you some examples:
- Observation from metrics: Our predictability was very low for a few sprints.
- Are our Sprint Plannings running well?
- Do we need more structured, regular refinements?
2. Observation from metrics: Goals were not achieved but wellness was high.
- Are we focused enough on the value that we could deliver? Do we really understand our customers and their needs?
3. Observation from metrics: Goals were achieved but wellness was low.
- Feedback shared between team members — what’s the reason behind our stress level?
- Are we overcommitting?
- Should we have more realistic plans and manage the expectations in a better way?
4. Observation from metrics: No feedback gathered during the sprint review — empty box on the metrics board.
- Are the Sprint Reviews understandable for our stakeholders? Are we sure it’s not too technical? Do we ask the right questions/is it the best format?
The beauty of metrics is that the questions asked around them lead us to improvements not only to the process but to the product as well. Metrics won’t give you a solution, but can create a foundation for change. It could also help with answering the question: how do we know that things are improving?
