⏱️ Time in Status Key Metrics for Financial Institutions

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In the world of banks and financial companies, being precise, productive, and reliable is super important. Effectively handling intricate workflows, guaranteeing prompt task fulfillment, and upholding team visibility are indispensable for triumph. 

Today's article delves into riveting use cases in the financial sector. We'll scrutinize the impact of various metrics on specific use cases and pinpoint their manifestations. Additionally, we will create reports in Jira to aid in case resolution (we will use Time in Status reports as an example). So get ready for an exhilarating exploration! 🚀

                             

First off, let's review the primary time measurements used in the banking industry and their corresponding explanations.

Key Metrics Used in Financial Sector 📊

1. Cycle Time: Measures the total duration from the beginning to the end of a process. This metric assists IT departments in identifying bottlenecks and optimizing operations.
2.  Lead Time: The duration it takes for a task to transition from 'To Do' to 'Done'. Lead Time is essential for gauging the effectiveness of the entire process and ensuring on-time completion.
3. Throughput: The quantity of tasks finished within a specific time period. This metric offers insights into the productivity and capacity of the IT department.
4. Work in Progress (WIP): Monitors the number of tasks currently in progress. Effectively managing WIP is crucial for preventing team overload and maintaining focus on high-priority tasks.
5. Time Spent in Each Status: Detailed breakdown of the duration tasks spend in each status (e.g., In Progress, Review, Done). This aids in identifying stages where delays occur.
6. Average Time in Status: Calculates the average duration tasks spend in each status, helping to identify stages that frequently cause delays.
7. Jira Status Change Date : Records the date when a task enters a new status, providing a timeline for tracking task progression through various workflow stages.

Use Case 1: Improving Incident Management 🛠️

Scenario: The IT department of a bank handles numerous incidents daily. Ensuring quick resolution is critical to maintaining system stability and customer satisfaction.

Metrics: Cycle Time, Lead Time, and Time Spent in Each Status.

Solution: Provide detailed reports on the time spent in each status during incident resolution. By analyzing these metrics, the IT department can:

• Identify bottlenecks: By examining Time Spent in Each Status, the department can pinpoint where delays occur, such as in the review or approval stages.
• Reduce Cycle Time: Analyzing Cycle Time helps in understanding the overall time taken to resolve incidents and implementing strategies to shorten this period.
• Optimize resource allocation: Lead Time analysis aids in balancing the workload, ensuring incidents are addressed promptly.

For example, if incidents are spending too much time in the ' On Review' status, the department might streamline the review process or allocate additional resources to expedite this stage.

Use Case 2: Optimizing Change Management 🔄

Scenario: Implementing changes in financial systems requires careful planning and execution to minimize disruptions. Change management refers to the structured approach and set of processes that IT departments use to transition from one state to another. In financial institutions, this often involves updating or implementing new systems, software, or processes to improve operations or comply with regulations.

Metrics: Lead Time, Cycle Time, and Time Spent in Each Status.

Solution: The IT department’s Lead can:

• Track progress: Monitor change requests from initiation to deployment using Cycle Time and Lead Time metrics.
• Improve process efficiency: Identify stages that cause delays by examining Time Spent in Each Status and implement improvements.
• Ensure timely implementation: By continuously monitoring these metrics, the department can ensure changes are rolled out within the expected timeframe.

For instance, if the 'In Progress' stage consistently takes longer than planned, the department can investigate the root cause and make necessary adjustments, such as improving coordination or providing additional training.

Use Case 3: Improving Development Processes 💻

Scenario: The IT department is responsible for developing and maintaining software applications critical to financial operations. Ensuring these applications are reliable, secure, and up-to-date is vital for the banks. The role of the project manager is crucial in overseeing these processes, coordinating between teams, and ensuring that projects stay on track and meet deadlines.

Metrics: Throughput, Work in Progress (WIP), and Time Spent in Each Status.

Solution: The project manager of IT department can:

• Monitor productivity: Track the number of completed tasks using Throughput metrics, providing insights into team productivity.
• Manage workload: Use WIP metrics to balance the number of tasks in progress, ensuring no team member is overloaded.
• Identify inefficiencies: Analyze Time Spent in Each Status to pinpoint stages where delays occur and implement targeted improvements.

Here, I will illustrate how to estimate the total time spent in different statuses by version, either in a tabular report or a chart view.

Use Case 4: How to know that your release planning is not accurate? 🗓️

Scenario: In the banking industry, IT departments must meticulously plan and execute software releases to avoid disruptions and ensure the smooth operation of critical financial systems. Effective release planning requires a detailed understanding of how tasks progress through various workflow stages, the ability to anticipate potential delays, and a clear timeline for each task. The project manager must ensure that all tasks are moving through the workflow stages as planned and that release schedules are realistic and achievable.

Metrics: Status Entrance Date, Average Time in Status.

Solution: Time in Status provides comprehensive reports that help the IT department:

• Plan releases accurately:  By understanding how long tasks typically spend in each status through the Average Time Report, the project manager can make informed decisions about release schedules and ensure that all tasks are ready for deployment.
• Monitor workflow adherence: If tasks are stuck in a particular stage for longer than expected, the project manager can investigate it with reports and address the root cause, whether it's a need for additional resources, process improvements, or better coordination among team members.The Average Time Report provides additional context by highlighting how long tasks generally stay in each status, helping identify outliers and potential bottlenecks.

For example, if a critical task is expected to move from 'In Progress' to 'Review' within three days but consistently takes longer, the project manager can use the Status Entrance Date Report to identify patterns and implement solutions to speed up this transition. Additionally, by reviewing the Average Time Report, the project manager can understand if this delay is a common occurrence and adjust planning and resource allocation accordingly.

For easy task tracking, I suggest using dashboards. Dashboards allow you to display two gadgets at once and keep track of even the smallest development delays.

Takeaway

                           

By leveraging key metrics and applying the use cases outlined above, financial institutions can enhance operational efficiency, ensure compliance, improve customer satisfaction, and manage projects more effectively.

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[Rishabh Jhawar]

Informative, thanks for sharing.

[Valeriia_Havrylenko_SaaSJet]

@Rishabh Jhawar Thank you for your comment! I'm glad you found the article interesting 🚀