How do I identify workflow bottlenecks with Bottleneck Tracking?

How do I identify workflow bottlenecks with Bottleneck Tracking?

Visualize work accumulation across pipelines to spot workflow problems and process improvements

Bottleneck Tracking helps you visualize how work flows through your team's pipelines over time, showing where issues accumulate and create workflow bottlenecks. This report tracks work in progress and workflow stability, helping you identify process improvement opportunities regardless of your development methodology.

Finding your Bottleneck Tracking report

Navigate to the Reports section in Zenhub and select "Bottleneck Tracking" from the available reporting options. The report loads automatically with data from your current workspace, showing how issues flow across all your Work Tracker pipelines.

Use the date range selector to choose your analysis period. Available options include Past 14 days, 30 days, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, 24 months, or a custom date range that aligns with your team's development cycles.

The report includes filtering options:

• Repos: Select specific repositories to analyze workflow patterns for particular projects
• Labels: Focus on specific types of work or use exclusions to filter out certain categories
  
  

Reading the workflow visualization

Bottleneck Tracking displays your workflow data as a stacked area chart where each colored band represents a different pipeline from your Work Tracker:

Pipeline bands: Each color represents a different pipeline stage in your workflow. The height of each colored area shows how many issues are in that pipeline at any given time.

Cumulative tracking: The chart is "cumulative" because it tracks the flow of issues through your workflow. Once an issue enters the chart, it moves through different pipeline bands but never disappears, providing a complete picture of work progression.

Time progression: The horizontal axis shows time, while the vertical axis shows the total number of issues. You can see how work accumulates and flows through each pipeline stage over your selected time period.

Pipeline checkboxes: Above the chart, you can check or uncheck specific pipelines to show or hide them from the visualization. The "Closed" pipeline is unchecked by default to focus on work in progress.

Understanding and addressing workflow bottlenecks

Use the visualization patterns and pipeline data table to spot bottlenecks and take action to improve your workflow.

Healthy workflow indicators: When pipeline bands maintain relatively consistent heights over time, this indicates steady work flow through your development process. Issues move predictably from one stage to the next without significant accumulation.

Identifying bottleneck patterns: Growing pipeline bands indicate work is accumulating faster than it's being completed. When pipelines like "In Progress" or "Code Review" show steadily increasing heights, this typically means you need to address capacity or process issues in that stage. Sudden changes in band patterns often indicate process changes, capacity issues, or external factors affecting your workflow.

Taking action on bottlenecks: When you identify consistent accumulation in specific pipelines, consider adjusting team capacity, adding resources to that stage, or modifying processes to increase throughput. For example, if code review consistently shows accumulation, you might implement pair programming, automated review tools, or streamlined review processes.

Using the pipeline data table: Below the chart, the detailed table shows exact issue counts for each pipeline at different time points. Use this data to quantify bottleneck severity, compare pipeline counts across dates to track whether problems are growing or shrinking, and analyze the relative distribution of work across your workflow stages.

Retrospectives and process improvement: Use bottleneck patterns as starting points for team discussions about why work accumulates in certain stages. Compare patterns before and after workflow changes to measure improvement effectiveness, and apply insights when designing new workflows to avoid known accumulation problems.

Customizing your bottleneck analysis

Configure the report settings to focus your analysis on specific workflow aspects:

Pipeline selection: Check or uncheck specific pipelines to focus on particular parts of your workflow. For example, uncheck early-stage pipelines like "New Issues" to focus on active development work, or uncheck "Closed" to concentrate on work in progress.

Repository filtering: When working across multiple repositories, use the Repos filter to analyze workflow patterns for specific projects. This helps identify whether bottlenecks are project-specific or affect your entire workflow.

Label-based analysis: Use Labels filtering to focus on specific work types, such as bugs versus features, to understand whether bottlenecks affect all work equally or impact certain categories more than others.

Time period adjustment: Adjust the date range to match your analysis needs. Shorter periods help identify recent bottlenecks, while longer periods reveal systemic workflow patterns and seasonal trends.

FAQ

Q: What's the difference between Bottleneck Tracking and Lead/Cycle Time reports?
A: Bottleneck Tracking shows work accumulation across all pipeline stages over time to identify where work gets stuck, while Lead/Cycle Time reports measure how long individual issues take to complete. Use Bottleneck Tracking to find workflow problems and Lead/Cycle Time to measure completion speed.

Q: Why do some pipelines show consistent growth while others remain flat?
A: Growing pipelines indicate work is entering that stage faster than it exits, creating bottlenecks. Flat pipelines suggest balanced flow or potentially unused workflow stages. Investigate growing pipelines for capacity or process issues.

Q: Should I be concerned if my "Closed" pipeline keeps growing?
A: No, the "Closed" pipeline should grow consistently as it represents completed work. This growth indicates healthy delivery. Focus attention on growing work-in-progress pipelines that might indicate bottlenecks.

Q: How do I know if a bottleneck is serious enough to address?
A: Look for pipelines that consistently grow over time rather than remaining stable, significantly larger pipeline bands compared to others, and patterns that correlate with delivery delays or team frustration. Persistent growth patterns typically warrant investigation.

Q: Can I use Bottleneck Tracking if my team changes workflows frequently?
A: Yes, but interpret results carefully around workflow change periods. The visualization will show disruptions during transitions, which is normal. Focus on patterns that persist after workflow changes stabilize.

Q: How often should I review Bottleneck Tracking data?
A: Review bottleneck patterns during monthly retrospectives or when you notice delivery delays. Weekly reviews during active process improvement initiatives help track the impact of workflow changes.