The Correlation Between an Effectively Prioritized Backlog and High Product Team Performance
Today we will look at the fifth of six total key findings drawn from the analysis of the latest Global Study of Product Team Performance. Next week we will wrap up the full set of analytic findings gained from the latest survey.
#5 Key Performance Indicator
There is a Strong Correlation Between an Effectively Prioritized Backlog and High Product Team Performance
A substantial 43.5% of survey respondents indicate that their team prioritizes the backlog effectively. When we submitted this question to regression analysis, the correlation was clear:
Product teams that effectively prepare and prioritize their backlog of work are more likely to perform at a high level.
Conversely, 37.9% of respondents indicate that their backlog is a jumble. Our regressive analysis shows that product teams that describe their backlog in this way are negatively correlated with high performance. That is, they are unlikely to perform well.
Grooming the Backlog
The importance of effective backlog grooming cannot be overstated. Not only does an effectively groomed backlog ensure that teams are always applying themselves to work that customers will highly value, but it also serves to motivate developers.
In fact, just by working on the top backlog item developers know they will positively impact customers more than they would by doing anything else. That motivational factor cannot be overstated.
Next Post: The Sixth and Final Key Performance Indicator
In the final summary post of this series based on findings from the Global Study of Product Team Performance, we will pull the study’s takeaways together and give you the complete scope of takeaways you can use to build a stronger, more effective product team.
Recap of the First Five Key Performance Indicators:
- High performing teams have a clear definition of “done”.
- Respondents unable to associate a product development methodology with product profitability are unlikely to be on a high performing team.
- Respondents who believe using Agile/Scrum leads to high product profitability tend to be in organizations that meet or exceed their financial goals.
- Teams that consider development cost as a criterion for requirements prioritization are more likely to under-perform (i.e., negatively correlated).
- There is a strong correlation between an effectively prioritized backlog and high product team performance