Definition:
Common problem in any organization is always missing deadlines. To be more specific, the releases always occur at a later date than planned. Delays can be a real problem, conflicting with your goals. Let’s say our goal was to focus on customers and maximize our revenue, but the delays causes to lose our customers, and messes up with cash flow. To find out the root cause of the delayed releases or long release cycles, we use cause-effective diagrams.
Long release cycles are highlighted with thicker arrows, and the recurring problems are always highlighted in loops. Initially it may take some time, but spotting these problems will greatly increase the probability of solving the problems effectively and permanently.
Some of the reasons why delayed releases happen:
- Lack of release automation
- Lower priority features not removed from the iteration
- Adding more people to the iteration even though they have nothing to do with the problem
Further Reading:
Book : Lean from the Trenches: Managing large scale projects with Kanban by Henrick Kniberg