Optimized Sprint Capacity Plan outlines a strategy to optimize sprint capacity by balancing high-complexity and high-volume tasks with early QA involvement. The goal is to maintain sustainable velocity, ensure quality, and manage workloads efficiently across development and QA teams.

The video concepts are shared by Gary Tsang, are great tips to improve the velocity of a scrum team.

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Balanced Work Distribution with Shift-Left Testing

Low Point/High Volume Stories

• Assign higher volume of low point based well-documented tasks to citizen developers or less experienced developers.
• Focus on simple, low-risk tasks with quick turnaround to QA with clear requirements.
• Involve QA early by using a parallel testing pipeline:
  • Hand off tasks to QA at 80-90% completion, even mid-sprint.
  • Prevent bottlenecks with continuous handoffs.

High Point/High Complexity Stories

• Assign lower volume of higher complexity, higher point based, high-risk tasks to senior developers.
• Focus on tasks that require deeper analysis and have a higher impact.
• Offload simpler tasks to other team members to prevent senior developer burnout.

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Key Workflow Outcomes

• High-Volume Tasks: Maintain sprint velocity by delivering smaller tasks quickly.
• High-Complexity Tasks: Deliver strategic, high-impact features.
• Shift-Left Testing: Minimize last-minute bottlenecks with early QA involvement for smoother deployments.

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Sprint Metrics to Track Capacity Continuous Improvement

Metric	What it Measures	Why it Matters	What to Track
Velocity Tracking	Total points completed per sprint	Ensure balanced workload by story type	Track complex vs. simple story points
WIP Limits	Stories/tasks in progress at once	Prevent overload, ensure smooth flow	Monitor WIP for developers and QA
Lead Time	Time from creation to completion	Identify blockers, improve efficiency	Compare lead times for story types
Cycle Time	Time from “In Progress” to “Done”	Detect bottlenecks and delays	Track QA handoff and completion times
Defect Rate	Defects found per sprint	Assess code quality and testing gaps	Track defects by story type/phase
Story Distribution	Ratio of complex to simple stories	Keep workloads balanced across teams	Monitor percentage of story types
QA Throughput	Stories tested and approved per sprint	Avoid QA bottlenecks, ensure smooth flow	Track tasks ready for QA mid-sprint
Sprint Predictability	Committed vs. completed stories	Improve planning and execution	Track missed or extended tasks
Blocked Stories	Number and duration of blocked tasks	Identify blockers and dependencies	Track block duration and root causes
Burn-Down/Burn-Up	Sprint progress towards completion	Visualize real-time progress	Identify work left before sprint ends

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Implementation Steps

1. Agile Tools Setup
   • Use Jira or ServiceNow Agile dashboards to monitor metrics.
   • Create workflows reflecting the dual-track approach with WIP limits.
2. Sprint Planning and Retrospective Process
   • Use metrics to balance complex and simple tasks during sprint planning.
   • Identify improvement areas during retrospectives, focusing on QA handoffs and blockers.
3. Predictive Reporting
   • Analyze historical data to forecast the ideal story mix.
   • Monitor trends to optimize QA and development resources.

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Conclusion

This strategy ensures high-complexity and high-volume tasks are delivered efficiently. Early QA involvement prevents testing bottlenecks, and tracking key metrics provides insights to improve velocity and workflow. By continuously monitoring and refining this process, the team can achieve sustainable progress and meet product goals effectively.

Other Optimized Sprint Capacity Plan Resources

• Agile at scale 101
• Agile-case-study
• Agile Dashboards – YouTube
• Agile Development ScrumPrograms
• Agile Development – ServiceNow
• Agile Methodologies Collaborative Articles – 100 Articles on Agile Methodologies (linkedin.com)
• Agile Scrum Master Guide
• Agile Sprint Dashboard
• DevOps Automated Test
• Exploring Agile Development 2.0
• Mastering Agile Product Management: Framework, Practices, and Success Strategies | Marcin Majka
• ServiceNow Agile Enhancements Process
• Useful Jira Reports, graphs metrics for Scrum Teams