DORA Lead Time

What is Lead Time?

The Lead Time calculation measures the total time taken from the moment a ticket is created to the point when it is released to production. Below are various use cases that demonstrate how Lead Time is calculated across different scenarios.

To learn more, go to DORA Reports

Calculation Example 1: One Pull Request associated with a Single Jira Ticket

In this example, we consider a use case where a single pull request (PR) is associated with a single Jira ticket. The Lead Time calculation includes several stages as shown below.

The table provides details on the different stages, their descriptions, formulas, and an example calculation.

The Lead Time calculation in this case consists of the following stages:

Stage	Description	Formula	Example
Ticket In Progress Time	The time taken for a ticket to move from the Created state to the In Progress state.	In Progress Time - Ticket Created Time	10:00 AM - 9:50 AM = 10 minutes
First Commit Time	The time taken to make the first commit after the ticket is in progress.	First Commit Time - First In Progress Time	10:05 AM - 10:00 AM = 5 minutes
First Pull Request Creation Time	The time taken to create the first pull request (PR) after the first commit.	First PR Creation Time - First Commit Time	10:10 AM - 10:05 AM = 5 minutes
First Pull Request Approval Time	The time taken for the first approval after the first pull request is created.	First PR Approval Time - PR Creation Time	10:11 AM - 10:10 AM = 1 minute
Last Pull Request Merge Time	The time taken to merge the pull request after it is approved.	Last PR Merged Time - First PR Approval Time	10:15 AM - 10:11 AM = 4 minutes
First Continuous Integration Time	The time taken for the first continuous integration (CI) process to complete after the last pull request is merged.	First CI Time - Last PR Merged Time	10:16 AM - 10:15 AM = 1 minute
First Continuous Deployment Time	The time taken for the first continuous deployment (CD) process to complete after the CI process is finished.	First CD Time - First CI Time	10:17 AM - 10:16 AM = 1 minute
First Issue Management Done Time	The time taken to mark the issue as Done in the Issue Management System (e.g., Jira) after the CD process is completed.	First JIRA Done Time - First CD Time	10:20 AM - 10:17 AM = 3 minutes
First Release Time	The time taken to mark the issue as Released after it is marked as Done	Release Time - First JIRA Done Time	11:00 AM - 10:20 AM = 40 minutes

Total Lead Time

Total Lead Time is the sum of all the above stages:

Total Lead Time = 10 min + 5 min + 5 min + 1 min + 4 min + 1 min + 1 min + 3 min + 40 min
             = 70 minutes

Therefore, the Total Lead Time is 70 minutes.

Calculation Example 2 - Two Sequential PRs associated with a Single Jira Ticket

In the case where two pull requests (PRs) are associated with a single Jira ticket in a sequential manner, the Lead Time calculation can be broken down into the following stages.

The following table outlines the different stages, their descriptions, formulas, and example calculations.

Stage	Description	Formula	Example
Ticket In-progress Time	The time taken for a ticket to move from the 'Created' state to the 'In-Progress' state.	In-Progress Time - Ticket Created Time	10:00 AM - 9:50 AM = 10 minutes
First Commit Time	The time taken to make the first commit after the ticket is in progress.	First Commit Time - First In-Progress Time	10:05 AM - 10:00 AM = 5 minutes
First Pull Request Creation Time	The time taken to create the first pull request (PR) after the first commit.	First PR Creation Time - First Commit Time	10:10 AM - 10:05 AM = 5 minutes
First Pull Request Approval Time	The time taken to approve the first pull request after it is created.	First PR Approval Time - PR Creation Time	10:11 AM - 10:10 AM = 1 minute
Last Pull Request Merge Time	The time taken to merge the last (second) pull request after it is approved.	Last PR Merged Time - First PR Approval Time	10:45 AM - 10:11 AM = 34 minutes
First Continuous Integration Time	The time taken for the first continuous integration (CI) process to complete after the last pull request is merged.	First CI Time - Last PR Merged Time	10:16 AM - 10:45 AM = 0 minute
First Continuous Deployment Time	The time taken for the first continuous deployment (CD) process to complete after the CI process is finished.	First CD Time - First CI Time	10:17 AM - 10:16 AM = 1 minute
First Issue Management Done Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Done' in the issue management system (e.g., Jira) after the CD process is completed.	First JIRA Done Time - First CD Time	10:20 AM - 10:17 AM = 3 minutes
First Release Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Released' after it is marked as 'Done'.	Release Time - First JIRA Done Time	11:00 AM - 10:20 AM = 40 minutes

Total Lead Time

Total Lead Time is the sum of all the above stages:

Total Lead Time = 10 min + 5 min + 5 min + 1 min + 34 min + 0 min + 1 min + 3 min + 40 min
             = 99 minutes

Therefore, the Total Lead Time is 99 minutes.

Calculation Example 3 - Two Overlapping PRs associated with a Single Jira Ticket

In the case where two pull requests (PRs) are associated with a single Jira ticket in an overlapping manner, the lead time calculation can be broken down into the various stages.

The following table outlines the different stages, their descriptions, formulas, and example calculations.

Stage	Description	Formula	Example
Ticket In-progress Time	The time taken for a ticket to move from the 'Created' state to the 'In-Progress' state.	In-Progress Time - Ticket Created Time	10:00 AM - 9:50 AM = 10 minutes
First Commit Time	The time taken to make the first commit after the ticket is in progress.	First Commit Time - First In-Progress Time	10:05 AM - 10:00 AM = 5 minutes
First Pull Request Creation Time	The time taken to create the first pull request (PR) after the first commit.	First PR Creation Time - First Commit Time	10:08 AM - 10:05 AM = 3 minutes
First Pull Request Approval Time	The time taken to approve the first pull request after it is created.	First PR Approval Time - PR Creation Time	10:11 AM - 10:08 AM = 3 minutes
Last Pull Request Merge Time	The time taken to merge the last (second) pull request after it is approved.	Last PR Merged Time - First PR Approval Time	10:15 AM - 10:11 AM = 4 minutes
First Continuous Integration Time	The time taken for the first continuous integration (CI) process to complete after the last pull request is merged.	First CI Time - Last PR Merged Time	10:16 AM - 10:15 AM = 1 minute
First Continuous Deployment Time	The time taken for the first continuous deployment (CD) process to complete after the CI process is finished.	First CD Time - First CI Time	10:17 AM - 10:16 AM = 1 minute
First Issue Management Done Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Done' in the issue management system (e.g., Jira) after the CD process is completed.	First JIRA Done Time - First CD Time	10:20 AM - 10:17 AM = 3 minutes
First Release Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Released' after it is marked as 'Done'.	Release Time - First JIRA Done Time	11:00 AM - 10:20 AM = 40 minutes

Total Lead Time

Total Lead Time is the sum of all the above stages:

Total Lead Time = 10 min + 5 min + 3 min + 3 min + 4 min + 1 min + 1 min + 3 min + 40 min
             = 70 minutes

Therefore, the Total Lead Time is 70 minutes.

Calculation Example 4 - Two Overlapping PRs associated with a Single Jira Ticket with Jira Re-Entry

In this case, two pull requests (PRs) are associated with a single Jira ticket in an overlapping manner, and there is a re-entry into the Jira ticket after the initial completion.

The following table outlines the different stages, their descriptions, formulas, and example calculations.

Stage	Description	Formula	Example
Ticket In-progress Time	The time taken for a ticket to move from the 'Created' state to the 'In-Progress' state.	In-Progress Time - Ticket Created Time	10:00 AM - 9:50 AM = 10 minutes
First Commit Time	The time taken to make the first commit after the ticket is in progress.	First Commit Time - First In-Progress Time	10:05 AM - 10:00 AM = 5 minutes
First Pull Request Creation Time	The time taken to create the first pull request (PR) after the first commit.	First PR Creation Time - First Commit Time	10:08 AM - 10:05 AM = 3 minutes
First Pull Request Approval Time	The time taken to approve the first pull request after it is created.	First PR Approval Time - PR Creation Time	10:11 AM - 10:08 AM = 3 minutes
Last Pull Request Merge Time	The time taken to merge the last (second) pull request after it is approved.	Last PR Merged Time - First PR Approval Time	10:50 AM - 10:11 AM = 39 minutes
First Continuous Integration Time	The time taken for the first continuous integration (CI) process to complete after the last pull request is merged.	First CI Time - Last PR Merged Time	10:16 AM - 10:50 AM = 0 minute
First Continuous Deployment Time	The time taken for the first continuous deployment (CD) process to complete after the CI process is finished.	First CD Time - First CI Time	10:17 AM - 10:16 AM = 1 minute
First Issue Management Done Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Done' in the issue management system (e.g., Jira) after the CD process is completed.	First JIRA Done Time - First CD Time	10:20 AM - 10:17 AM = 3 minutes
First Release Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Released' after it is marked as 'Done'.	Release Time - First JIRA Done Time	11:00 AM - 10:20 AM = 40 minutes

Total Lead Time

Total Lead Time is the sum of all the above stages:

Total Lead Time = 10 min + 5 min + 3 min + 3 min + 39 min + 0 min + 1 min + 3 min + 40 min
             = 104 minutes

Therefore, the Total Lead Time is 104 minutes.

Calculation Example 5 - Two PRs associated with a Single Jira Ticket and Jira Ticket was re-opened after Release

In this case, two pull requests (PRs) are associated with a single Jira ticket, and the Jira ticket is reopened after the initial release.

The following table outlines the different stages, their descriptions, formulas, and example calculations.

Stage	Description	Formula	Example
Ticket In-progress Time	The time taken for a ticket to move from the 'Created' state to the 'In-Progress' state.	In-Progress Time - Ticket Created Time	10:00 AM - 9:50 AM = 10 minutes
First Commit Time	The time taken to make the first commit after the ticket is in progress.	First Commit Time - First In-Progress Time	10:05 AM - 10:00 AM = 5 minutes
First Pull Request Creation Time	The time taken to create the first pull request (PR) after the first commit.	First PR Creation Time - First Commit Time	10:08 AM - 10:05 AM = 3 minutes
First Pull Request Approval Time	The time taken to approve the first pull request after it is created.	First PR Approval Time - PR Creation Time	10:11 AM - 10:08 AM = 3 minutes
Last Pull Request Merge Time	The time taken to merge the last (second) pull request after it is approved.	Last PR Merged Time - First PR Approval Time	11:50 AM - 10:11 AM = 99 minutes
First Continuous Integration Time	The time taken for the first continuous integration (CI) process to complete after the last pull request is merged.	First CI Time - Last PR Merged Time	10:16 AM - 11:50 AM = 0 minute
First Continuous Deployment Time	The time taken for the first continuous deployment (CD) process to complete after the CI process is finished.	First CD Time - First CI Time	10:17 AM - 10:16 AM = 1 minute
First Issue Management Done Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Done' in the issue management system (e.g., Jira) after the CD process is completed.	First JIRA Done Time - First CD Time	10:20 AM - 10:17 AM = 3 minutes
First Release Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Released' after it is marked as 'Done'.	Release Time - First JIRA Done Time	11:00 AM - 10:20 AM = 40 minutes

Total Lead Time

Total Lead Time is the sum of all the above stages:

Total Lead Time = 10 min + 5 min + 3 min + 3 min + 99 min + 0 min + 1 min + 3 min + 40 min
             = 164 minutes

Therefore, the Total Lead Time is 164 minutes.

Calculation Example 6 - No Associated PR or Commit (No Ticket ID Mentioned in PRs)

In this case, there are no pull requests (PRs) or commits associated with the Jira ticket, as the ticket ID was not mentioned in the PRs.

The following table outlines the different stages, their descriptions, formulas, and example calculations.

Stage	Description	Formula	Example
Ticket In-progress Time	The time taken for a ticket to move from the 'Created' state to the 'In-Progress' state.	In-Progress Time - Ticket Created Time	10:00 AM - 9:50 AM = 10 minutes
First Commit Time	The time taken to make the first commit after the ticket is in progress.	First Commit Time - First In-Progress Time	0 - 0 = 0 minutes
First Pull Request Creation Time	The time taken to create the first pull request (PR) after the first commit.	First PR Creation Time - First Commit Time	0 - 0 = 0 minutes
First Pull Request Approval Time	The time taken to approve the first pull request after it is created.	First PR Approval Time - PR Creation Time	0 - 0 = 0 minutes
Last Pull Request Merge Time	The time taken to merge the last pull request after it is approved.	Last PR Merged Time - First PR Approval Time	0 - 0 = 0 minutes
First Continuous Integration Time	The time taken for the first continuous integration (CI) process to complete after the last pull request is merged.	First CI Time - Last PR Merged Time	0 - 0 = 0 minutes
First Continuous Deployment Time	The time taken for the first continuous deployment (CD) process to complete after the CI process is finished.	First CD Time - First CI Time	0 - 0 = 0 minutes
First Issue Management Done Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Done' in the issue management system (e.g., Jira) after the CD process is completed.	First JIRA Done Time - First CD Time	10:20 AM - 0 = 20 minutes
First Release Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Released' after it is marked as 'Done'.	Release Time - First JIRA Done Time	11:00 AM - 10:20 AM = 40 minutes

Total Lead Time

In this case, since there are no pull requests (PRs) or commits associated with the Jira ticket, several stages in the lead time calculation have zero values. The lead time calculation in this case gets computed based on the time taken for the ticket to move through the "In Progress," "Done," and "Released" states in the issue management system (e.g., Jira).

For the given example, the Total Lead Time is calculated as the sum of all the above stages:

Total Lead Time = 10 min + 0 min + 0 min + 0 min + 0 min + 0 min + 0 min + 20 min + 40 min
             = 70 minutes

Therefore, the Total Lead Time is 70 minutes.

Calculation Example 7 - Same Job for CI and CD

In this case, a single job is responsible for both the continuous integration (CI) and continuous deployment (CD) processes.

The following table outlines the different stages, their descriptions, formulas, and example calculations.

Stage	Description	Formula	Example
Ticket In-progress Time	The time taken for a ticket to move from the 'Created' state to the 'In-Progress' state.	In-Progress Time - Ticket Created Time	10:00 AM - 9:50 AM = 10 minutes
First Commit Time	The time taken to make the first commit after the ticket is in progress.	First Commit Time - First In-Progress Time	10:05 AM - 10:00 AM = 5 minutes
First Pull Request Creation Time	The time taken to create the first pull request (PR) after the first commit.	First PR Creation Time - First Commit Time	10:10 AM - 10:05 AM = 5 minutes
First Pull Request Approval Time	The time taken to approve the first pull request after it is created.	First PR Approval Time - PR Creation Time	10:11 AM - 10:10 AM = 1 minute
Last Pull Request Merge Time	The time taken to merge the last pull request after it is approved.	Last PR Merged Time - First PR Approval Time	10:15 AM - 10:11 AM = 4 minutes
First CI and CD Completion Time	The time taken for the single job to complete both the continuous integration (CI) and continuous deployment (CD) processes after the last pull request is merged.	First CI and CD Time - Last PR Merged Time	10:20 AM - 10:15 AM = 5 minutes
First Issue Management Done Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Done' in the issue management system (e.g., Jira) after the CI and CD processes are completed.	First JIRA Done Time - First CI and CD Time	10:20 AM - 10:20 AM = 0 minutes
First Release Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Released' after it is marked as 'Done'.	Release Time - First JIRA Done Time	11:00 AM - 10:20 AM = 40 minutes

Total Lead Time

Total Lead Time is the sum of all the above stages:

Total Lead Time = 10 min + 5 min + 5 min + 1 min + 4 min + 5 min + 0 min + 40 min
             = 70 minutes

Therefore, the Total Lead Time is 70 minutes.

In this case, a single job handles both the CI and CD processes, so the "First CI and CD Completion Time" stage represents the time taken for this single job to complete both processes. The "First Issue Management Done Time" is zero because the issue is marked as 'Done' immediately after the CI and CD processes are completed by this single job.

Calculation Example 8 - Different Jobs for CI and CD

In this case, there are separate jobs for the continuous integration (CI) and continuous deployment (CD) processes.

The following table outlines the different stages, their descriptions, formulas, and example calculations.

Stage	Description	Formula	Example
Ticket In-progress Time	The time taken for a ticket to move from the 'Created' state to the 'In-Progress' state.	In-Progress Time - Ticket Created Time	10:00 AM - 9:50 AM = 10 minutes
First Commit Time	The time taken to make the first commit after the ticket is in progress.	First Commit Time - First In-Progress Time	10:05 AM - 10:00 AM = 5 minutes
First Pull Request Creation Time	The time taken to create the first pull request (PR) after the first commit.	First PR Creation Time - First Commit Time	10:10 AM - 10:05 AM = 5 minutes
First Pull Request Approval Time	The time taken to approve the first pull request after it is created.	First PR Approval Time - PR Creation Time	10:11 AM - 10:10 AM = 1 minute
Last Pull Request Merge Time	The time taken to merge the last pull request after it is approved.	Last PR Merged Time - First PR Approval Time	10:15 AM - 10:11 AM = 4 minutes
First Continuous Integration Time	The time taken for the continuous integration (CI) process to complete after the last pull request is merged.	First CI Time - Last PR Merged Time	10:18 AM - 10:15 AM = 3 minutes
First Continuous Deployment Time	The time taken for the continuous deployment (CD) process to complete after the CI process is finished.	First CD Time - First CI Time	10:20 AM - 10:18 AM = 2 minutes
First Issue Management Done Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Done' in the issue management system (e.g., Jira) after the CD process is completed.	First JIRA Done Time - First CD Time	10:30 AM - 10:20 AM = 10 minutes
First Release Time	The time taken to mark the issue as 'Released' after it is marked as 'Done'.	Release Time - First JIRA Done Time	11:00 AM - 10:30 AM = 30 minutes

Total Lead Time

Total Lead Time is the sum of all the above stages:

Total Lead Time = 10 min + 5 min + 5 min + 1 min + 4 min + 3 min + 2 min + 10 min + 30 min
             = 70 minutes

Therefore, the Total Lead Time is 70 minutes.

In this case, the "First Continuous Integration Time" and "First Continuous Deployment Time" stages represent the separate times taken for the CI and CD processes, respectively, as they are handled by different jobs.