Software factory queue time

Waiting is part of the path

Queue time begins when work is ready for a stage and ends when that stage starts or completes, depending on the question. A pull request may wait for its first reviewer, an approved change may wait for a release window, or a build may wait for an available worker. These intervals should not be collapsed into one generic delay when the response belongs to a specific owner.

Active work can be short while elapsed time is long. That is why reducing implementation effort alone may not improve delivery. A queue can form when demand exceeds a stage's effective capacity, when ownership is unclear, or when a policy requires a specialist to handle every item.

Measure the distribution

Use median and tail values, age of currently waiting work, arrival rate, service rate, and completed throughput. Segment by repository, service, work type, change size, and reviewer or deployment path when those fields are reliable. A temporary outage may create a spike without establishing a structural constraint.

How Weave can help

Weave can show the changes and review events behind queue trends. Teams can inspect whether a queue follows large changes, a narrow ownership pattern, or a quality issue. Add build, platform, deployment, and incident telemetry when the factory boundary extends beyond pull requests.