Overview

Lead time for changes is one of the four key DevOps Research and Assessment (DORA) metrics used to measure the performance and efficiency of a software development team. It represents the time taken from code commit to deployment in production. We measure deployment when a PR is merged into the main (deploy branch) branch.

Note: If you need to modify the main branch for a specific repository, contact our support team and we will do it for you.

Tracking this metric helps organizations improve their development process and deliver value to users more efficiently.

Importance of Lead Time for Changes

By monitoring lead time for changes, teams can:

• Identify bottlenecks in the development pipeline.
• Improve collaboration between developers and reviewers.
• Increase deployment frequency and reduce time to market.
• Enhance software quality by reducing rushed changes.

Benchmarking Lead Time for Changes

Lead time for changes serves as a benchmark for software delivery performance. The classification is as follows:

• Elite: Less than 1 day. Changes take less than one day to reach production.
• High: 1-7 days. Changes take 1 to 7 days to reach production.
• Medium: 1-4 weeks. Changes take 1 week to 1 month to reach production.
• Low: More than 1 month. Changes take more than one month to reach production.

Factors Affecting Lead Time for Changes

• Code Complexity: Larger or more complex changes take longer to develop and review.
• Review Process: Slow or inefficient reviews increase the waiting time.
• Testing and CI/CD Pipelines: Automated testing and continuous integration/delivery (CI/CD) can speed up deployment.
• Approval Processes: Lengthy approval workflows can add delays.

Understanding Lead Time Column Chart Status Calculation

Overview

The Lead Time chart provides a detailed breakdown of the different stages a pull request (PR) goes through in the development workflow. Understanding these stages allows teams to optimize their processes and reduce bottlenecks in the software development lifecycle.

Lead Time Stages

The calculation of each stage is as follows:

1. Coding Time

Definition: The time taken from the first commit until PR creation.

• Starts: First commit (or PR creation date if there are no commits).
• Ends: PR creation date.
• Special Condition: If there are commits after the PR is created, the end time is the last commit before the first comment.

2. Waiting for Review

Definition: The time between PR creation and the moment it gets attention for review.

• Starts: PR creation date.
• Ends: First comment or first commit after PR creation.
• Special Condition: If there are no comments or additional commits after PR creation, this time is considered 0.

3. In Review

Definition: The time spent actively reviewing the PR until it gets an approval.

• Starts: First comment (or first post-PR commit if no comments exist).
• Ends: First approval.
• Special Condition: If no explicit approval is given, this time is counted until the PR is merged.

4. Ready to Deploy

Definition: The time from when the PR is approved until it is merged into the main branch.

• Starts: First approval (or last comment if no approval exists).
• Ends: Merge into the main branch.
• This stage represents the time the PR waits to be deployed.

Importance of Tracking These Stages

By monitoring these time segments, teams can:

• Identify inefficiencies in the review and approval process.
• Reduce delays in PR reviews and approvals.
• Improve overall deployment speed and development efficiency.

Best Practices

• Encourage timely code reviews to minimize Waiting for Review and In Review time.
• Automate merging processes when approvals are received to reduce Ready to Deploy time.
• Analyze bottlenecks in the workflow and implement strategies for improvement.

By following these guidelines, development teams can optimize their lead time and accelerate software delivery.