WIP limit
Also known as Work in progress limit, WIP cap
Definition
A WIP limit is a maximum amount of unfinished work permitted in a defined workflow state or system. It encourages finishing, unblocking, and pulling only when capacity exists.
Finish before starting more
A WIP limit caps unfinished work so the system does not accept more items than it can move. The limit can apply to the whole workflow or to a stage such as review. When the cap is reached, the next action is to finish, unblock, or improve existing work rather than quietly creating another queue.
A concrete example
An illustrative team sets a review limit of four. When four changes are waiting, a developer who finishes implementation helps review or resolve a blocker instead of opening a fifth change. The limit makes the downstream constraint visible while preserving team judgment about the safest action.
Tune with evidence
Start with a limit the team can observe, then examine age, throughput, blocked time, and quality. A limit that is too high may hide queues; one that is too low may starve a stage. Change it as an experiment and record the reason.
Limitations
WIP limits do not create capacity or remove dependencies. Exceptions may be necessary for incidents or fixed dates, but frequent exceptions mean the policy needs review. Do not use the limit as an individual utilization target.
How this relates to Weave
Weave can help teams inspect the delivery and review patterns that show whether a WIP policy changes waiting or completion. It does not enforce a limit or select its value, so teams should define the scope, exception policy, and review cadence in their workflow.
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