Operational Practices: Streamlining Workflows for Continuous Improvement

Explains how audience-based deployment and testing in production enable faster feedback, safer rollouts, and higher software quality by targeting real …

NKD Agility helped SLB unify 800+ engineering teams by consolidating DevOps systems, standardizing processes, and improving visibility, collaboration, …

Continuous delivery is achievable for any software, regardless of complexity. Success depends on investment in automation, quality, and process …

Excessive handoffs in software development create delays, reduce quality, and harm team morale. Learn how eliminating handoffs boosts agility, flow, …

Measuring individual cycle time in Kanban misleads teams, hides real bottlenecks, and harms flow. Focus on system-wide metrics like PCE, WIP, and …

Continuous Improvement is the ongoing practice of relentless reflection and adaptation, driven by empirical evidence, aimed at consistently enhancing …

Comprehensive guide to using OKRs for shared focus, measurable outcomes, and strategic learning, including roles, events, best practices, and common …

Discover why “done” means live in production—not just code complete. Learn to deliver real value, close feedback loops, and drive outcomes that …

Adding more staging environments does not reduce deployment risk; true safety comes from automated testing, continuous integration, and quality …

Explore proven strategies from Azure DevOps for building resilient, reliable software systems—covering transparency, automation, telemetry, incident …

Applying software engineering principles to ensure scalable and reliable systems.

Scrum teams must deliver working software to real users every Sprint; true progress is measured by delivery to production, not just by completing …

Explores how effective capacity planning shifts focus from individual hours to system-level flow, using Lean and Agile principles to improve …

Visualising workflows to identify inefficiencies and optimise value delivery.

Explains how fragmented automation and tool silos harm software delivery, and advocates for unified engineering systems and platform engineering to …

NKD Agility helped SLB unify build and release processes across 90 teams in 13 countries, boosting team ownership, efficiency, and engineering …

Explains how the Definition of Done evolves in Scrum, aligning team practices with organisational standards to ensure consistent quality, compliance, …

Velocity measures how quickly teams turn ideas into value, using build, test, deploy, and feedback times—not just story points—to track real delivery …

Using data, metrics, and feedback to drive continuous improvement in teams and processes.

Measuring the time from work initiation to customer delivery, helping teams monitor workflow efficiency and improve value delivery.

Explains why promoting code through multiple branches slows delivery, increases risk, and suggests GitHub Flow or Release Flow as simpler, safer …

Balancing risk and speed when getting software into production.

Optimising the throughput of work across the value stream to improve speed and reduce bottlenecks.

Explains how Scrum teams can strategically allow unfinished work to flow across Sprint boundaries, enhancing throughput, responsiveness, and …

Optimise Agile execution with Agile Planning Tools. Enhance backlog management, forecasting, and collaboration across teams.

Explains how technical leaders can break down organisational silos and enforce better branching, team structures, and architecture to improve software …

The Scrum Master is an accountability in Scrum, responsible for enabling the effectiveness of the Scrum Team and fostering continuous improvement …

Value in software is only realised through delivery. Frequent releases validate assumptions, reduce risk, and enable rapid feedback, adaptation, and …

Explains the difference between subjective goals and the objective Definition of Done in Scrum, highlighting how clear, measurable criteria ensure …

Stop relying on memory for quality. Discover why automated pipelines beat manual checks, and how embedding quality gates ensures trust, speed, and …

One Engineering System (1ES) is a strategic standardised, integrated framework designed to streamline software development by unifying tools, …

Automating builds, tests, and deployments with Azure Pipelines.

Explains why a “Blocked” column in Azure DevOps hinders workflow, and suggests using tags and tracking to manage blocked work more effectively and …

Transform your organisation with the Agile Product Operating Model, blending agile practices and product management to deliver consistent, …

NKD Agility helped the Ghana Police Service drive organisational change using Scrum, enabling continuous improvement, transparency, and local …

Manage Agile projects effectively with Azure Boards. Track work, optimise planning, and improve team collaboration.

Minimising waste while maximising learning in product creation.

Applying Lean principles to reduce waste and improve efficiency in workflows.

Explains how short-lived topic branches in source control improve software quality, enable modularity, speed up integration, and support agile, …

Getting Started with the Definition of Done (DoD). Every team should define what is required, what criteria must be met, for a product increment to be …

Unlock a smarter Definition of Done—start small, evolve standards, and build team momentum without overwhelm. Discover how progress drives excellence.

Is your team’s “done” really done? Discover how a clear, objective definition of done boosts quality, agility, and trust in product delivery.

Stop firefighting late-stage bugs—discover how shifting left saves time, money, and reputation by building quality in from the start. Learn the …

Unlock legacy system agility—discover how DevOps transforms slow, brittle tech into fast, scalable, and change-ready platforms without starting from …

Explains how the Scrum Master is accountable for enabling effective product delivery, fostering team success, and ensuring each sprint produces a …

Stop flying blind after release—learn why telemetry is vital to your Definition of Done and how real feedback drives better software, value, and team …

Tracking the time taken to complete a unit of work from start to finish.

Continuous Delivery is the practice of frequently delivering small increments of valuable product directly to real users, enabling rapid feedback, …

Explains the difference between waiting and blocked tasks, why clear distinction matters in workflows, and how to track and address sources of delay …

Improve clarity and readiness with Backlog Refinement. Ensure work is well-defined, prioritised, and ready for execution.

Explains how Kaizen’s continuous improvement principles enhance Scrum and Agile teams, with practical tips for retrospectives, workflow optimisation, …

Learn how Kanban boosts transparency in software engineering, helping teams visualise workflows, identify bottlenecks, and drive continuous …

Kanban focuses on improving workflow by removing bottlenecks and constraints, reducing work in progress, and increasing process efficiency—not by …

Comprehensive reference outlining Kanban principles, practices, and metrics for optimising workflow, value delivery, and continuous improvement in …

Explains how Scrum Teams can use Kanban practices to optimise workflow, track flow metrics, and enhance transparency, efficiency, and continuous …

Limiting work in progress in Kanban helps teams focus, spot bottlenecks, maintain quality, and deliver value efficiently by ensuring a sustainable, …

Explains how Kanban visualises workflows, tracks metrics, and supports continuous improvement, helping teams identify bottlenecks and enhance …

Learn how Kanban’s pull-based system boosts workflow efficiency by visualising tasks, setting WIP limits, managing bottlenecks, and enabling …

Ensure software quality and reliability with Automated Testing. Detect issues early, reduce manual effort, and accelerate delivery.

Measuring individual cycle time overlooks team performance and system bottlenecks. Focus on lead time, throughput, and process efficiency to improve …