Unclogging Delays to Accelerate Flow in any System

Part 2 - Identifying Bottlenecks

Identifying Bottlenecks?

Once Team Toaster Strudel completes the mapping of the current state value stream, Dorothy has the team review it to identify bottlenecks in the flow of value. She asks where the team sees the biggest areas of delay. Rosko, a tester on the team, points out that the Wait Time between the Test and Deploy states is the largest delay (20 days) followed by Wait Time between the Define and Design states (10 days). The team unanimously agrees and decides to address these two areas first.? Dorthy applauds the team for attacking the Wait Time between steps before looking at how they can shrink the Active Time per step. See Figure 1.?

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Figure 1

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Dorothy realizes that there are multiple ways to identify the root cause(s) of the delay and presents the team with options. These include the 5 Whys technique, Ishikawa diagram, Design Thinking, Theory of Constraints and Pareto Analysis. Each approach can be used by itself or in combination with other approaches to get to the heart of a problem.?

The team decides to keep it simple and use the 5 Whys technique to address the two largest delays in their value stream, the time it takes to deploy their completed work and the time it takes to begin design on work items that have been defined. Dorothy facilitates the root cause analysis of the delay from Test to Deploy.?

The 5 Whys Technique is a problem-solving approach that aims to uncover the root cause of an issue by iteratively asking “why” at least five times?

Let us use this technique to identify the root cause of the delay in deploying software to production:?

1. Why is there a delay in deploying software to production??

Because the deployment process is manual and time-consuming.?

2. Why is the deployment process manual and time-consuming??

Because there are multiple manual steps involved, including configuration, approvals, and coordination.?

3. Why are there multiple manual steps in the deployment process??

Because there is no automated deployment pipeline.?

4. Why is there no automated deployment pipeline??

Because the team has not prioritized building one due to other urgent tasks.?

5. Why haven’t they prioritized building an automated deployment pipeline??

Because there is no clear understanding of the long-term benefits, and the team lacks awareness of the impact on overall efficiency.?

The team determines that the root cause of the delay lies in the absence of a clear understanding of the benefits of automation and its impact. Addressing this awareness gap can lead to more efficient deployment processes.??

Dorothy then directs the team’s attention to the second largest source of delay, the time it takes between the Refine and Design steps in their workflow. Dorothy facilitates the Five Whys technique again to identify the root cause of the delay in receiving defined Stories for design:?

1. Why are there delays in receiving Stories for design??

Because the product backlog is not well-defined or prioritized.?

2. Why is the product backlog not well-defined or prioritized??

Because there is no clear process for backlog refinement.?

3. Why is there no clear process for backlog refinement??

Because the team lacks guidelines or training on how to refine the backlog effectively.?

4. Why does the team lack guidelines or training for backlog refinement??

Because there has been no formal training or documentation provided.?

5. Why hasn’t there been formal training or documentation for backlog refinement??

Because the organization has not recognized the importance of investing in training and process improvement.?

The team determines that the root cause of the delay lies in the lack of organizational recognition and investment in training for backlog refinement.?

Dorothy believes the team has enough to help dramatically improve their Flow Efficiency. They capture the two problem statements as Enabler stories in their backlog and work with the Product Owner to get the Stories prioritized and refined for an upcoming iteration.??

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What’s Next?

In the next installment of this series, we will explore Step 3 of the VSM process, Designing the Future State.?

Additional References?

To learn more about Value Stream Mapping, I highly recommend Value Stream Mapping: How to Visualize Work and Align Leadership for Organizational Transformation by Karen Martin and Mike Osterling. This book is the de facto standard VSM.??

To learn more about effectively facilitating a VSM workshop in your organization, I encourage you to check out SAFe’s Advanced Facilitator: Value Stream Mapping workshop. This micro-credential is a half day, virtual workshop that covers the VSM process soup to nuts. Learn more at Advanced Facilitator: Value Stream Mapping?and please join Frameworx for our scheduled class on July 9th by registering on Eventbrite!?