Microsoft’s switch to 3-week Sprints increased team anxiety due to greater transparency, exposing inefficiencies but enabling faster, more frequent software delivery.
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?
If you've made it this far, it's worth connecting with our principal consultant and coach, Martin Hinshelwood, for a 30-minute 'ask me anything' call.
We partner with businesses across diverse industries, including finance, insurance, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, technology, engineering, transportation, hospitality, entertainment, legal, government, and military sectors.
Akaditi
Capita Secure Information Solutions Ltd
Illumina
Epic Games
Slicedbread
MacDonald Humfrey (Automation) Ltd.
Flowmaster (a Mentor Graphics Company)
Philips
Trayport
Milliman
Deliotte
New Signature
Healthgrades
Lean SA
Kongsberg Maritime
Genus Breeding Ltd
Bistech
Microsoft
New Hampshire Supreme Court
Washington Department of Transport
Royal Air Force
Nottingham County Council
Department of Work and Pensions (UK)
Washington Department of Enterprise Services
Bistech
Kongsberg Maritime
Ericson
Emerson Process Management
Workday
Epic Games
