Guide to Calculating Lead Time and Cycle Time in Jira

📝 Context: Team with many simultaneous work items to address and no solution to track team performance and working efficiency.

Before we start, let’s learn what Cycle and Lead time is.
Cycle time is the time from the beginning to the end of a certain action. It is the time during which the work item is marked as "In progress". 

Lead time covers a more extended period: from receiving a request for an action (not when work begins) to the moment this action is completed, including the time in the queue.

💡 Solution: Time Between Statuses helps to calculate Cycle and Lead time effectively.

How to configure it?

Add a new Time Metrics

There are two ways to do this:

1 - The first method involves using the Configuration button. This approach is particularly useful for modifying existing Status groups.

To add a new status group, click Configuration — this button can be found in two places:

1️⃣ In the top-right corner of the report screen:
Click the three-dots menu (⋯) and choose Configuration from the dropdown list.

2️⃣ In the left sidebar, directly under the Time Metrics Tracker section of the app — the Configuration item is displayed in the navigation menu.

Click + Time metric

2 - The second way is to create Time Metrics on the grid.

Click the Time Metrics button in the upper-right corner of the table to configure the necessary conditions for calculating a specific time metric.

• Time metric name — set a clear title for your metric (e.g., Cycle Time).

• Project — choose the Jira project where the metric will be applied.

• Work schedule — define when time should count (you can set up your own working hours).

Select the From status and To status to set where the timer starts and stops.
You can also add a specific transition if time should count only after a certain action.

Optionally, choose statuses in Exclude statuses — time won’t be counted while issues stay there.

You can set up Warning and Critical limits for Cycle and Lead time, optionally. If too much time is spent on a specific work item, the system will send an email notification to the specified admin.

After the necessary settings, you will be able to view Cycle and Lead time on the time between statuses report. 

Additionally, you can customize your Cycle and Lead Time reports by adjusting the app interface fields. Such as: 

• Type of Project;

• Date range;

• Time Format;

• Multi Calendar (to configure non-working hours and different calendars).

If you need help or want to ask questions, please contact SaaSJet Support or email us at support@saasjet.atlassian.net

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