Appearance
Lead Time for Changes
Definition: Lead Time for Changes measures the total time it takes to get a commit from version control into production. It represents the customer's perspective on delivery speed—how long it takes for their requested change to become available to them.
Why It Matters
Lead Time for Changes is a key DORA metric that reflects the responsiveness and efficiency of your entire value stream.
Measures Time-to-Value: This is the ultimate measure of how quickly you can deliver value to customers. A shorter lead time means the business is more agile and can respond to market needs faster.
Reflects the Entire System: Unlike
Cycle Time, which starts at the first commit, Lead Time includes the "fuzzy front end" of the process—the time spent on ideation, design, and planning before coding begins.Drives Process Improvement: A long Lead Time forces a holistic review of the entire value stream, from product management and design to engineering and operations, to find and eliminate delays.
How to Measure It
Lead Time for Changes is calculated as the total time elapsed between two key events:
Lead Time for Changes = Time(Production Release) - Time(Commit)
For practical purposes, this is often measured for a specific project or feature, starting from the moment a ticket is created or work is officially requested.
Interpretation & Benchmarks
Goal: The primary goal is to achieve a short and predictable Lead Time.
System-Wide View: Improving Lead Time requires looking beyond just the engineering team to optimize product planning, requirements gathering, and design processes.
Industry Benchmarks (DORA):
Elite: Less than one day.
High: Between one day and one week.
Medium: Between one month and six months.
Low: More than six months.