Ah yes, the burndown chart.
The most popular agile metric, and probably also the most misunderstood. It is a foundational metric, and most start their agile metrics journey by using burndown charts. I understand why; it is easy to create, share and analyze. But it is also easy to misinterpret.
Let's uncover the burndown chart, as an agile metric together.
What is a burndown chart?
Before providing the definition of burndown charts, I would like to invite you to a relatable scenario, which will help you remember what burndown charts are way better than any definition. But don't worry, you can find the definition after the example.
Let's say that you’re moving to a new home in one week. We all know that the hard part is packing the boxes, but in this case that's already done. You have 10 packed boxes, ready to be moved to your new home. Since they’re quite heavy and you're a bit lazy, you decide to spread the task over the week. On some days, you might not move any boxes, while on others, you manage to move 2 or more.
Every box you move represents a chunk of work completed toward your goal: relocating to a new home. As you move boxes, the amount of work left to do decreases. If you keep at it, you’ll find that as the week progresses, there are fewer and fewer boxes to move. In other words, you are "burning" away the work that you need to complete.
If we visualized your week of moving boxes on a chart, it would show a downward trend as you approach your relocation date. Remember that the remaining work would be reduced by each box moved, creating a steady decline of work that is remaining. This visual representation of burning away of work expressed as a downward trend, is conveniently named burndown charts.
The takeaway for remembering what burndown charts are, is to remember the moving boxes scenario. A burndown chart is a graph that visually tracks the reduction of work over time. It will show you a clear downward trend as tasks are completed, much like moving boxes one by one until you have relocated to your new home. Burndown charts will also show your lazy days, when you haven't moved any boxes - and your productive days moving many boxes.
Let's try to create a simple, yet memorable definition.
Simple definition of a burndown chart
A burndown chart is a graph that tracks work over time, showing a downward trend as tasks are completed and progress is made.
