Microsoft shift from 2-year cycles to 3-week Sprints caused team anxiety

TL;DR; When Microsoft switched from two-year release cycles to three-week Sprints, teams initially felt anxious because increased transparency exposed inefficiencies and technical debt. However, teams that embraced this openness improved dramatically, moving from delivering 24 features a year to shipping multiple times daily. Development managers should consider whether their teams are ready to use transparency as a tool for continuous improvement.

Published on 23 April 2025

Written by Martin Hinshelwood

1 minute read

https://nkdagility.com/resources/AW5GP1Vnnp5

When Microsoft moved from a two-year delivery cycle to 3-week Sprints, something unexpected happened—teams became terrified.

Not of the work itself, but of the transparency.

Suddenly, it was impossible to hide inefficiencies. Bad code was exposed. Delivery bottlenecks became visible. And that fear? It was real.

But here’s the thing—transparency isn’t the enemy; it’s the only way to improve. The teams that embraced the new way of working went from delivering 24 features per year to shipping multiple times per day.

Fear of failure keeps teams stuck in technical debt. The best teams face it head-on.

Is your organisation ready to embrace transparency?

Also published on: LinkedIn

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