posted 24th January 2023
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Introduction:
As organizations strive to increase business agility, the cost of delay and classes of service have become increasingly important concepts. These two ideas are closely intertwined, as they both involve prioritising work to achieve the most value in the shortest amount of time. Let's take a closer look at cost of delay and classes of service so that you can understand how they fit into an agile environment.
What is Cost of Delay?
Cost of delay is the estimated monetary impact associated with delaying a feature or product due to various factors. In other words, it's a calculation that helps prioritise work by estimating how much money will be lost if something isn't done soon. This allows teams to weigh the potential benefits against the potential costs in order to make smarter decisions about what needs to be worked on first in order to realise value sooner.
What are Classes of Service?
Classes of Service (CoS) are a way for organisations to categorise their work based on priority level. Each class can have different requirements in terms of turnaround time, cost, customer experience, etc., allowing teams to prioritise certain tasks over others based on both customer and business needs, as well as objectives. This allows organizations to focus their efforts on high-priority items while still giving lower-priority items the correct levels of attention when suitable. For example, an organisation might prioritize features related to customer experience as "critical" while relegating bug fixes or small tweaks as "minor".
How Do They Work Together?
The goal behind using both cost of delay and classes of service together is ensuring that teams are working on the highest value items first, while still being able to address other tasks when possible. By estimating cost of delay for each item and then assigning it a Class of Service level accordingly, teams can ensure that they are always focusing their efforts on the most valuable items first without completely abandoning less important tasks. This ensures that all relevant tasks get done in a timely manner without sacrificing quality or customer experience.
Summary:
Utilising Cost of Delay and Classes of Service provide organisations with an effective way to prioritise their work based on value and importance. By understanding the monetary impact associated with delays and assigning each item a priority level based on business objectives, teams can ensure that they are focusing their efforts where they will yield the most benefit in the shortest amount of time. Understanding these concepts is key for any organization striving for agility and efficiency in today's competitive landscape.
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