Monitor Performance of Your Agile Scrum Teams with Velocity Chart

Velocity is a key performance indicator for any agile scrum team to measure how much work has been delivered for each sprint. It helps Product Owners to have a clear view on future sprints and on the workload of the team.

It also facilitates very accurate forecasting of how many stories a Team can do in a Sprint. For forecasting purposes the average of the last three Sprint’s Velocity should be used.

Without Velocity, Release Planning is impossible. By knowing Velocity, a Product Owner can figure out how many Sprints will it take for the Team to achieve a desired level of functionality that can then be shipped. Depending on the length of the Sprint, the Product owner can fix a date for the release.

To calculate the velocity of your agile team, simply add up the estimates of the features, user stories, requirements or backlog items successfully delivered in an iteration and compare it with the committed estimation.

In short, you can measure the productivity of your agile team using the velocity report.

What is Velocity Chart?

The Velocity Chart measures the amount of work delivered in each sprint. By knowing the velocity, you can determine how much work a team can get done in future sprints.

How to view Velocity chart in Orangescrum?

• Click on Reports from the main menu
• On the Reports page, click on Velocity Chart

• The Velocity Chart will be shown for your recent completed sprints

Note: Velocity Chart can only show if you have “scrum” projects.

Velocity Chart Details:

Before we proceed to Velocity chart details, we must know the velocity metrics.

1. Estimation statistic: The y-axis displays the statistic used for estimating stories/tasks. Estimates can also be based on story points, estimated time, and task count.

1. Sprints: The x-axis displays sprints completed by the team. This data is used to calculate velocity.
2. Commitment: The gray color bar in the velocity chart for each sprint shows the total estimate time, story points or task count of all tasks in the sprint when it begins. Any stories, tasks or estimated time added to a sprint after it started will be included in the commitment total.
3. Completed: The green color bar in each sprint shows the total completed estimates, stories or tasks when the sprint ends.

(Pic: OrangeScrum Velocity Chart)

Calculating velocity

Velocity can be calculated by taking the average of the total completed estimates over the last several sprints. In the above example, the velocity is (4+2+2+2+1+4+1+1+2+3)/10=2.2. So the strength of the team can work on 2.2 tasks on the future sprints.

In OrangeScrum, the subtask story points, estimated time is added to the Velocity Chart calculation.

Over to you

Velocity is a very simple way to plan your upcoming sprints, measuring the team’s productivity and drives you to complete your sprint in the commitment period.

We at OrangeScrum are excited to know how useful Velocity Chart proves in measuring the performance of your agile scrum team.

Are you excited to start your first sprint? Login to OrangeScrum now, or sign up here.