Making Work Visible
Making Work Visible is the practice of visually representing all work within a team or organisation, including mission work, maintenance work, and unplanned work, to provide transparency and insight into where time and resources are being allocated.
Goal
To enhance understanding and communication within the team regarding workload, priorities, and capacity, enabling better decision-making and resource allocation.
Context
In traditional organisations, teams often plan like the only thing they need to do is their mission work. But there are always maintenance tasks that arise, and unplanned work that needs to be done. Making all of this work visible helps teams to understand where their time is really going and to make better decisions about what to work on next.
Types of Work
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Mission Work | The primary work items that contribute to the team's goals and objectives. |
| Maintenance Work | Ongoing tasks required to keep systems running smoothly, such as bug fixes, updates, and technical debt. |
| Unplanned Work | Ad-hoc tasks that arise unexpectedly, such as urgent bug fixes, rework, customer requests and urgent requests from management. |
| Alignment Work | Activities that ensure the team is aligned with the organisation's goals and strategies, such as planning, reporting, and coordination. |
Inputs
| Artifact | Description |
|---|---|
| User Stories | Detailed descriptions of the functionality, performance criteria, and interfaces needed for each component. |
| Tasks | Granular work items that need to be completed. |
| Improvement Opportunities | Suggestions for enhancing processes, tools, or practices to improve team performance and efficiency. |
Outputs
| Artifact | Description | Benefits |
|---|---|---|
| Improvement Opportunities | Suggestions for enhancing processes, tools, or practices to improve team performance and efficiency. | Increased efficiency, reduced waste, and improved quality. |
Anti-patterns
- Infrequent Updates: Failing to update the visual work representation regularly, leading to inaccuracies and miscommunications.
- Incomplete Representation: Not including all types of work, which can give an incomplete picture of the team's workload and priorities.