Martin Hinshelwood in EST: Book Expert Support for Engineering Excellence

Now in EST. Ready to Raise the Bar?

For the next six months, I’m operating in Eastern Standard Time (EST). That means real-time access for organisations in the US and Mexico looking to raise the bar in engineering excellence and technical leadership.

If your teams are stuck gaming metrics, stuck behind theatre, or just stuck — this is your chance to bring in real help that cuts through the noise and gets to the core of how delivery systems work.

As usual newsletter subscribers will receive exclusive insights and resources and the current focus is on breaking the estimation trap that’s holding back so many teams. These are preview posts that are not yet published on the main site.

Preview Highlight Post: The Estimation Trap (Publishes in 46 days)

If you’re still tracking estimate vs actual to manage delivery, you’re not managing delivery. You’re performing theatre.

The Estimation Trap breaks this down:

“When performance is judged by how closely estimates match actuals, teams shift into survival mode. You don’t get more predictability. You get fear, silence, and a culture optimised for hiding reality.”

That fear poisons delivery. Here’s what I’m seeing in real teams:

• Engineers pad estimates to hit targets.
• Risky work gets buried or ignored.
• Delivery optics become more important than user outcomes.
• “Green” dashboards mask red-hot fires.

And it’s not just dysfunction. It’s organisational self-sabotage. The teams know it. Leadership suspects it. But no one says it out loud.

I do.

Other upcomming posts in preview this month include:

• Agile as a Delivery Discipline, Not Mindset (4 days)
• Getting Started with Objectives & Key Results (11 days)
• One Project vs Multiple in Azure DevOps (18 days)
• Coding Was Never the Software Bottleneck (25 days)
• Why Limiting WIP Beats Better Estimation (32 days)
• Flow of Value vs Flow of Work (39 days)

We are seeking feedback and comments on all of these posts, so please feel free to leave your thoughts on the posts.

What We’re Fixing Right Now

In the last month alone, I’ve worked with teams to:

• Kill off fake velocity metrics and build actionable flow dashboards.
• Dismantle harmful estimation rituals that only serve PowerPoint.
• Design delivery systems built on evidence, not compliance.
• Align engineering effort with measurable product value, not stakeholder guesswork.

The result?
Faster feedback, fewer surprises, and less theatre.

Book a Real Conversation - No Fluff, No Pitch

If you’re ready to stop pretending and start improving, let’s talk.
We’ll take 30 minutes, inspect your current system of delivery, and explore what’s holding your teams back.

👉 Book a free 30-minute call

There’s no sales script. Just candour, technical expertise, and pragmatic options.

See you soon.
Martin Hinshelwood
Principal Consultant, naked Agility
Focused on engineering excellence and delivery leadership