/
Calculation

Calculation

Metric

The main condition for calculating the Cycle and Lead Time is that the issue should have the “Done” (you can customize which statuses to count as “Done” - read more here) status at least once during the selected Time frame.

Cycle Time

The Cycle Time metric measures the duration from when work starts (issue moved to the “In Progress” status category) to when it’s completed (issue moved to the “Done” status category).

image-20240912-142637.png
  • You can customize which statuses to count as “In progress” - read more here.

  • You can customize which statuses to count as “Done” - read more here.

Lead Time

The Lead Time metric tracks the time from when an issue is created to when it’s finished (the issue is moved to the “Done” status category).

image-20240912-142805.png
  • You can customize which statuses to count as “Done” - read more here.

Absent metric

If there was no transition from “In Progress” to “Done” status within the specified period, the issue will be present in the Issue list, but the Cycle/Lead Time will not be calculated for such an issue.
It allows to align the issues scope between the Histogram Cycle Time and Time in Status Cycle Time Charts as the issue will have the “In Progress” statistic but have not the Cycle or Lead Time metric.

Imagine, that the issue was reopened during the same Time frame. The issue was moved through the "In Progress" and "Done" statuses (default or custom) and at the end of the selected Time frame it is remains not "Done".

In this case, the Cycle/Lead Time metric calculates part of the workflow till the status “Done”. Set the Timer control to specify when to pause the calculation:

Exception: the “Metric” selection is unavailable for the Time in Status Cycle Time Chart because this chart focuses solely on the time tasks spent in each status rather than tracking the overall cycle or lead time. The goal is to analyze where tasks are held up within the workflow, not to measure the total duration from start to finish.
The option is available for the Cycle Time Histogram and Cycle Time Trend Charts.

In Progress statuses

The In Progress Statuses option allows you to customize which statuses are considered "In Progress" for all your charts, whether it's Cycle Time Histogram, Time in Status Cycle Time, or Cycle Time Trend Charts.

This flexibility lets you redefine what "In Progress" means for your workflow by including statuses that are typically categorized as "To Do" or "Done".

By default, all statuses of the “In Progress” status category are predefined.

Exception: when the “Lead Time” metric is selected, the “In Progress” field disappears for the Cycle Time Histogram and Cycle Time Trend Charts because for the Lead Time the progress between the date of creation and completion is not important.

Done statuses

The Done Statuses option allows you to customize which statuses are considered "Done". This flexibility lets you redefine what "Done" means for your workflow by including statuses that are typically categorized as "In Progress" or even "To Do".

By default, charts take all statuses from the “Done” status category.

Imagine your team includes Developers Team and QA Team with the following statuses of the workflow.

For the Developers Team, work starts from “In Progress”, passes the “In Code Review” status, and can be considered “Completed” when the issue moves to “Ready for QA” status. The setting of the fields will look like this:

For the QA Team, work starts from the “Ready for Test” status, passes the “In Testing” status, and can be considered “Completed” when the issue moves to the “Done” status. The setting of the fields will look like this:

Timer control

The Start timer on and Pause timer on options allow you to precisely define when the clock starts and stops on your issues, which is particularly useful when issues move through the same statuses multiple times. By customizing these settings, you can focus on the specific part of the issue’s lifecycle that matters most to your analysis.

Available options:

  • First transition to status: starts or pauses the timer the first time the issue transitions to a selected status. This option is a default for the “Start timer on” field, meaning the timer starts when an issue first enters an “In Progress” status.

  • Last transition to status: starts or pauses the timer the last time the issue transitions to a selected status. This option is the default for the ”Pause timer on” field, meaning the timer stops when an issue last enters a “Done” status.

  • First transition from status: starts or pauses the timer the first time the issue transitions from a selected status.

  • Last transition from status: starts or pauses the timer the last time the issue transitions from a selected status.

The Timer is available only for one status. If the “In Progress” or the “Done” status category includes a few statuses and you did not clarify which one status you want to track exactly, all “Timer” options are blocked.

 

There are a few scenarios to help identify what this setting is about.

  • Managing reopened issues:
    Imagine an issue that gets reopened several times during a sprint. By using the “Start timer on: First transition to status” and the “Pause timer on: Last transition to status”, you ensure that the timer only tracks the time from the first moment the issue starts progressing to the final moment it is marked as Done, giving you an accurate measure of the total active work time.

  • Tracking revisions in Ready for Test:
    Consider an issue that bounces back and forth between "In Progress" and "Ready for Test" multiple times. Setting “Start timer on: Last transition from status” and “Pause timer on: First transition to status” allows you to focus on the cycle time in the final round of work before it was last sent for testing, ensuring you capture the most critical work phase.

  • Focus on the final push:
    Suppose you’re interested in how long it takes to complete the final phase of work on an issue. In that case, you might set “Start timer on: Last transition from” one “Done” status (for example, "Ready for Release") and “Pause timer on: Last transition to” another final “Done” status (for example, "Released"). This setup tracks only the last, decisive push to move the issue from being ready to actually being released, giving you a clear view of the final effort required to get the issue over the finish line.

     

Calculation method

Calendar: this option calculates the total calendar units (days, weeks, months) an issue remains in the "In Progress" status, including weekends and holidays. For example, if an issue enters "In Progress" on Wednesday and leaves it on the following Thursday, the Cycle Time will be 8 calendar days.

The calculation takes into account time zone settings, holidays and weekends based on your Work schedule.
The default duration of the “one day” for the Calendar option is 24 hours.

Duration: this option only calculates the actual working time when the issue was in "In Progress," excluding weekends, holidays, breaks, and non-working hours which you can setup in the Work schedule. In the same example, from Wednesday to the following Thursday, the Cycle Time would be 6 working days, as Saturday and Sunday are weekends (by default) and are excluded.

Set the Work Schedule during the Calculation method selection ensures that time-based metrics accurately reflect either calendar days or actual working hours, including breaks and holidays. It helps avoid misleading results.

 

The default Work schedule is the next:

  • Workdays: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday

  • Weekends: Saturday, Sunday.

  • Work hours: 09:00 AM - 06:00 PM

  • Breaks: 01:00 PM - 02:00 PM

By default, the work week has 5 days, and the work day has 8 hours.-

Case

Dates in period

Calendar

Duration

- “In Progress”; - “Done”; - Weekend

Case

Dates in period

Calendar

Duration

- “In Progress”; - “Done”; - Weekend

Case 1:

Issue starts: Friday, 06 September, 03:00 PM.

Issue completed: Tuesday, 10 September, 11:00 AM.

*during the same month

06 September

03:00 PM-00:00 AM= 9 hours

03:00 PM-06:00 PM= 3 hours

 

07 September

0 hours

0

08 September

0 hours

0

09 September

24 hours

8 hours

10 September

00:00 AM-11:00 AM= 11 hours

09:00 AM-11:00 AM= 2 hours

Total

44 hours/2 days/1 week/0 months

13 hours/1 day/0 weeks/0 months

Case 2:

Issue starts: Tuesday, 30 July, 10:00 AM.

Issue completed: Monday, 05 August, 04:00 PM.

*issue included in two months

30 July

10:00 AM-00:00 AM= 14 hours

(10:00 AM - 01:00 PM) +
(02:00 PM - 06:00 PM) = 5 hours

 

31 July

24 hours

8 hours

01 August

24 hours

8 hours

02 Augustr

24 hours

8 hours

03 August

0 hours

0 hours

04 August

0 hours

0 hours

05 August

00:00 AM-04:00 PM

(09:00 AM - 01:00 PM) +
(02:00 PM - 04:00 PM) = 6 hours

Total

102 hours/4 days/1 week/1 month

35 hours/4 days/0 weeks/0 months

Case 3:

Issue starts: Sunday, 08 September, 05:00 PM.

Issue completed: Tuesday, 10 September, 01:00 PM.

*during the same month

08 September

0 hours

0 hours

09 September

24 hours

8 hours

10 September

00:00 AM-01:00 PM = 13 hours

09:00 AM-01:00 PM = 4 hours

Total

37 hours/1 day/1 week/0 months

12 hours/1 day/0 weeks/0 months

Case 4:

Issue starts: Sunday, 28 July, 10:00 AM.

Issue completed: Friday, 02 August,

06:00 PM.

“24 hours per day” is enabled

*issue included in two months

28 July

0 hours

0 hours

 

29 July

24 hours

24 hours

30 July

24 hours

24 hours

31 July

24 hours

24 hours

01 August

24 hours

24 hours

02 August

00:00 AM-06:00 PM = 18 hours

00:00 AM-06:00 PM = 18 hours

Total

114 hours/4 days/1 week/1 months

114 hours/4 days/0 weeks/0 months

Related content

Issue filter
Issue filter
More like this
Cycle Time Histogram Chart
Cycle Time Histogram Chart
More like this
Issue list
More like this
How to manage
How to manage
Read with this
Cycle Time Charts 1.3.x release notes (Nov 13, 2024)
Cycle Time Charts 1.3.x release notes (Nov 13, 2024)
More like this
How to start
How to start
Read with this