4. Efficiency in Agile Teams

Now that we've discussed systemic thinking and effectiveness in agile, it's time to dive into efficiency. While systemic thinking helps us understand the broader context and effectiveness ensures we’re focusing on the right objectives, efficiency is about doing things in the best possible way—delivering quality work quickly and practically.

What is Efficiency?

At its core, efficiency is about creating value with the least waste. It involves working smarter by reducing bottlenecks, cutting down on unnecessary tasks, and delivering value in small, manageable chunks. Efficiency emphasizes improving processes, visibility, and optimizing workflows.

Key Aspects of Efficiency

1. Manage Work in Progress (WIP):
   One of the first indicators of inefficiency is when teams have too much work in progress. When there's excessive work stuck at different stages, it slows down delivery and prevents valuable feedback from customers. Tip: Observe the amount of work sitting idle in your workflow. If too many items are waiting for attention, it’s a sign that you need to limit work in progress and focus on finishing tasks.

2. Prioritize Finishing Over Starting:
   Many teams fall into the trap of starting multiple tasks but finishing very few. Stop starting new work and start finishing existing work. This ensures focus on tasks that matter and leads to faster delivery of value. Prioritization is key here; without it, teams dilute their effort and fail to produce meaningful results.

3. Address the Bottleneck:
   Every team has bottlenecks in their process, and these bottlenecks determine the overall delivery capacity. The bottleneck "laughs at you" because it controls how fast the work can move. If the bottleneck is in the fourth stage of your workflow, pushing more work into stages one, two, and three won’t help—those stages will just pile up work waiting for stage four to clear. Identifying and addressing bottlenecks can significantly improve throughput.

4. Visualize the Work:
   One of the simplest and most powerful tools for efficiency is visualizing the work using a Kanban board or a similar system. By mapping out the entire workflow, teams can see where tasks are piling up, whether it's in the idea stage, development, validation, or final approval. Visualization helps teams quickly identify problem areas and take corrective action.

5. Manage Dependencies:
   In organizations with multiple teams working on the same product, managing dependencies is crucial. Even if individual teams are efficient, unresolved dependencies can cause major delays in delivering the final product to customers. Optimize dependencies between teams to ensure smooth collaboration and faster delivery.

Reducing Complexity for Efficiency

Efficiency is also about working in small, manageable batches. One of the best ways to ensure rapid learning and faster feedback is by breaking down complex tasks into smaller ones. To do this, I recommend a matrix that combines two axes: uncertainty and complexity.

• Low complexity, low uncertainty tasks are ideal, as they can be completed quickly with minimal risk.
• As complexity or uncertainty increases, tasks become riskier and slower to deliver. In these cases, it’s essential to break them down into smaller, more manageable pieces.

This matrix helps teams prioritize tasks that are easier to deliver and offer more immediate feedback, while also signaling when a larger task should be split into smaller ones for better efficiency.

Writing Clear Work Items

Efficiency isn't just about breaking down tasks; it’s also about clarity in communication. A common mistake in agile teams is creating vague work items, often with just a title and no clear description. To be efficient, ensure every work item clearly answers:

• What is the problem this task is solving?
• How does it contribute to the overall strategy?
• What are the acceptance criteria for this task to be considered done?
• Why is this task being done now?

Including this level of detail reduces misunderstandings, prevents rework, and helps teams execute tasks efficiently.

Example: Improving a Testing Workflow

In an EdTech company I worked with, the challenge was to improve the flow of testing for software engineers. The key was to focus on creating a simplified solution to streamline their testing process. We started by clearly defining what was in scope (improving test automation) and what was out of scope (enhancing the payment system, for example). By being explicit about what the team would—and wouldn’t—do, we avoided scope creep and stayed focused on the immediate problem.

Using this model of clear task definition, with a focus on specific acceptance criteria and non-functional requirements like accessibility and performance, we were able to significantly reduce rework and improve overall workflow efficiency.

Conclusion

Efficiency in agile teams is about more than just moving fast—it’s about moving smart. By limiting work in progress, addressing bottlenecks, visualizing the work, managing dependencies, and working in small batches, teams can increase their overall productivity. Clear communication in work items further ensures that the team can execute tasks with minimal friction and rework.

Ultimately, efficiency helps teams deliver value to customers faster while maintaining quality. It’s not just about doing more but doing what’s necessary and doing it well. By focusing on these principles, your team can continuously improve how they work, creating a more streamlined and effective process over time.