Capacity Planning
Plan and manage team capacity for effective sprint execution
Capacity Planning
Capacity planning helps teams understand how much work they can realistically commit to in a sprint. Elixion provides tools to track and plan capacity effectively.
Understanding Capacity
What is Capacity?
Capacity is the amount of work a team can complete during a sprint, measured in:
- Hours - Actual time available
- Story Points - Relative effort
- Person-Days - Days of availability
Capacity vs. Velocity
| Concept | Definition | Use | |---------|------------|-----| | Capacity | Available time to work | Planning | | Velocity | Historical points completed | Forecasting |
Example:
- Team capacity: 200 hours
- Average velocity: 35 points
- Use velocity to set sprint commitment
Setting Team Capacity
Access Capacity Planning
- Go to Sprints
- Select sprint
- Click Capacity tab
Individual Capacity
Set each team member's availability:
Sprint 15 Capacity
──────────────────────────────────────
Member Days Hours Notes
──────────────────────────────────────
Alice 10 60 Full time
Bob 8 48 PTO Mon-Tue
Carol 10 60 Full time
Dave 5 30 50% allocated
Eve 10 60 Full time
──────────────────────────────────────
Total: 43 258
Adjustments
Account for:
Planned Absence:
- Vacation/PTO
- Holidays
- Training
- Conferences
Partial Allocation:
- Multiple projects
- Support rotation
- On-call duties
- Meetings
Other Factors:
- New team members (reduced velocity)
- Learning curve for new tech
- Sprint ceremonies time
Capacity Calculator
Basic Calculation
Team Capacity = Σ (Member Days × Hours per Day)
Example:
- 5 members × 10 days × 6 hours = 300 hours
- Subtract planned absence: -24 hours
- Meeting overhead (15%): -41 hours
= Available Capacity: 235 hours
Hours per Day
Typical allocation:
8-hour workday
- 1 hour: Meetings (standup, ad-hoc)
- 0.5 hour: Email/communication
- 0.5 hour: Code review
- 6 hours: Focused work
Sprint Overhead
Account for ceremonies:
2-week sprint:
- Planning: 2 hours
- Standups: 10 × 0.25 = 2.5 hours
- Review: 1 hour
- Retro: 1.5 hours
= 7 hours per person
Capacity Views
Team Calendar
Visual availability calendar:
Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri
Week 1: ████ ████ ████ ████ ████
Alice ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓
Bob ░░░░ ░░░░ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ (PTO)
Carol ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓
Dave ▓▓░░ ▓▓░░ ▓▓░░ ▓▓░░ ▓▓░░ (50%)
▓ = Available ░ = Unavailable
Capacity Chart
Compare commitment to capacity:
Capacity
─────────
Sprint Points: │████████░░│ 30/40
─────────
By Member:
Alice │██████░░░░│ 12/20
Bob │████░░░░░░│ 8/16
Carol │████████░░│ 16/20
Workload Distribution
See how work is distributed:
Assignment Distribution
────────────────────────
Alice ●●●●●●●○○○ 70%
Bob ●●●●●○○○○○ 50%
Carol ●●●●●●●●○○ 80%
Dave ●●●○○○○○○○ 30%
Eve ●●●●●●○○○○ 60%
────────────────────────
Team Average: 58%
Planning to Capacity
Setting Commitment
Based on capacity and velocity:
Historical Velocity: 35 points
Team Capacity: Normal (no changes)
Recommended Commitment: 33-37 points
Adjustments this sprint:
- Bob out 2 days: -4 points
- New team member: -3 points
= Adjusted Recommendation: 28-32 points
Capacity vs. Commitment
Sprint 15 Overview
──────────────────
Capacity: 40 points (based on history)
Committed: 32 points
Buffer: 8 points (20%)
Status: ✅ Healthy commitment
Warning Indicators
| Status | Meaning | Action | |--------|---------|--------| | ✅ Under capacity (< 85%) | Safe buffer | Consider adding work | | 🟡 At capacity (85-100%) | Risk of spillover | Monitor closely | | 🔴 Over capacity (> 100%) | Likely spillover | Reduce scope |
Advanced Planning
Skill-Based Capacity
Track capacity by skill:
Skill Capacity
──────────────
Frontend: 80 hours (Alice, Carol)
Backend: 100 hours (Bob, Dave, Eve)
DevOps: 40 hours (Dave, Eve)
Testing: 40 hours (All members)
Work Type Allocation
Plan by work type:
Sprint Allocation
─────────────────
New Features: 60% (18 points)
Bug Fixes: 20% (6 points)
Tech Debt: 15% (5 points)
Support: 5% (2 points)
─────────────────
Total: 100% (31 points)
Risk Buffer
Reserve capacity for unknowns:
Base Capacity: 40 points
Risk Buffer: -6 points (15%)
Available: 34 points
Buffer Uses:
- Unexpected bugs
- Scope clarification
- Technical challenges
Tracking Utilization
Daily Tracking
Monitor actual vs. planned:
Day 5 of 10
─────────────
Planned Progress: 50%
Actual Progress: 45%
Status: ⚠️ Slightly behind
Individual Utilization
Track per team member:
Member Assigned Completed Utilization
──────────────────────────────────────────
Alice 12 pts 6 pts 50%
Bob 8 pts 5 pts 63%
Carol 16 pts 7 pts 44%
──────────────────────────────────────────
Capacity Reports
Generate reports:
- Go to Analytics > Capacity
- Select date range
- View:
- Utilization trends
- Capacity vs. completion
- Team balance
- Recommendations
Best Practices
Planning Accurately
✓ Do:
- Use historical data
- Account for all absences
- Include meeting overhead
- Leave buffer (15-20%)
✗ Don't:
- Assume 100% capacity
- Ignore vacation/holidays
- Plan based on perfect conditions
- Overcommit consistently
Maintaining Balance
✓ Do:
- Distribute work evenly
- Match skills to tasks
- Consider individual capacity
- Monitor workload regularly
✗ Don't:
- Overload high performers
- Ignore skill gaps
- Wait until burnout
- Compare individuals
Improving Over Time
✓ Do:
- Track actual vs. planned
- Adjust calculations
- Learn from patterns
- Experiment with approaches
✗ Don't:
- Use same estimates forever
- Ignore velocity trends
- Blame capacity issues
- Skip retrospective discussion
Integration with Planning
Sprint Planning Flow
1. Set capacity → Know available time
2. Review velocity → Understand past performance
3. Calculate commitment → Realistic target
4. Select items → Fill to target
5. Verify balance → Check distribution
6. Start sprint → Begin work
Continuous Improvement
Track capacity accuracy:
Sprint Planned Actual Accuracy
─────────────────────────────────
Sprint 12 35 32 91%
Sprint 13 32 30 94%
Sprint 14 30 31 103%
Sprint 15 31 ?
─────────────────────────────────
Average: 96%
Next: Kanban Board - Visual task management