My Sprint Velocity Was Perfect - My Data Portfolio Never Shrank
I dedicated nearly fifteen years to data teams, starting as an engineer, then an analyst, progressing to a product role and senior executive position, and eventually becoming the go-to person when other data leaders faced board skepticism. Throughout my career across various companies, a recurring pattern persisted, and it took me years to recognize and articulate it clearly.
The sprint board always appeared impressive. Tickets were completed on time, the velocity chart showed consistent upward progress, and each retro was marked as "good sprint, ship it." Meanwhile, the data portfolio, comprising dashboards, pipelines, models, and reports that the team managed, continually expanded. It never diminished, not once over the years, at any company I have worked for or advised.
That's not a coincidence. It's the direct, predictable result of measuring the wrong thing.
Closing a ticket is a motion. It is not a decision.
In many data teams' cultures, "done"...
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