Standard : Team health indicators are reviewed alongside delivery metrics
Purpose and Strategic Importance
This standard ensures that team health indicators—such as morale, workload, and burnout risk—are reviewed alongside delivery metrics. It promotes balanced decision-making that values both wellbeing and outcomes, helping teams sustain performance over time.
Aligned to our "Balance Sustainability with Speed" and "Measure & Validate Value" policies, this standard creates space for reflection, support, and continuous adaptation. Without it, teams risk burning out in pursuit of delivery goals, leading to talent attrition, declining quality, and short-lived wins.
Strategic Impact
- Better balance between speed and sustainability
- Increased engagement, retention, and resilience
- Faster identification of risks and delivery bottlenecks
- Healthier feedback loops between teams and leadership
- Sustained performance and stronger delivery reliability
Risks of Not Having This Standard
- Burnout and morale decline leading to attrition
- Performance short-termism and reactive fire-fighting
- Decisions based only on outputs, ignoring human impact
- Hidden risks or blockers due to suppressed team signals
- Inability to scale or sustain delivery under pressure
CMMI Maturity Model
Level 1 – Initial
| Category |
Description |
| People & Culture |
Wellbeing is not openly discussed.
Focus is on outputs, not sustainability. |
| Process & Governance |
No mechanisms exist to assess or respond to team health. |
| Technology & Tools |
No data collected or used to track health. |
| Measurement & Metrics |
Delivery performance is measured, but team health is not. |
Level 2 – Managed
| Category |
Description |
| People & Culture |
Some teams informally surface morale and workload concerns. |
| Process & Governance |
Retrospectives may explore health, but without consistency or follow-through. |
| Technology & Tools |
Survey tools may be used irregularly to gather team sentiment. |
| Measurement & Metrics |
Health data is anecdotal or disconnected from delivery insights. |
Level 3 – Defined
| Category |
Description |
| People & Culture |
Teams are encouraged to discuss burnout risk and psychological wellbeing. |
| Process & Governance |
Health indicators (e.g. engagement, burnout risk) are reviewed during planning cycles. |
| Technology & Tools |
Integrated tools collect and visualise health and delivery data. |
| Measurement & Metrics |
Health insights are reviewed alongside velocity and flow indicators. |
Level 4 – Quantitatively Managed
| Category |
Description |
| People & Culture |
Psychological safety and sustainability are embedded in team norms. |
| Process & Governance |
Health trends inform delivery planning, resource allocation, and leadership coaching. |
| Technology & Tools |
Dashboards visualise correlations between wellbeing and delivery trends. |
| Measurement & Metrics |
Delivery success is balanced against burnout indicators and engagement scores. |
Level 5 – Optimising
| Category |
Description |
| People & Culture |
Teams co-own health and performance outcomes.
Leadership supports adaptive rhythms and boundaries. |
| Process & Governance |
Strategic decisions factor in team capacity and resilience as key inputs. |
| Technology & Tools |
Tools surface early indicators to support proactive support and intervention. |
| Measurement & Metrics |
Metrics guide long-term investments in team health, culture, and delivery excellence. |
Key Measures
- % of teams reviewing health and delivery together in planning or retros
- Burnout risk scores correlated with delivery flow or throughput
- Participation rates in wellbeing checks or engagement surveys
- Interventions or support actions triggered by health signals
- Trends in team morale, workload balance, and retention