Metrics for evaluating the effectiveness of the IT team at ROOT CODE
Article date
09 05 2025
Article Author
Andrey Subbotin
Reading Time
5 minutes
Let's start with a question
How do you know that your IT team is working effectively?
Based on your feelings? Based on the number of unread notifications in your messenger?
Or based on the number of bugs that haven't made it to production?
At ROOT CODE, we love numbers and appreciate when they help rather than become "noise." Let's discuss which metrics really work in projects, and how they help us and our clients to trust the result that means track the dynamics, identify bottlenecks and make management decisions based on data, not subjective impressions.
Based on your feelings? Based on the number of unread notifications in your messenger?
Or based on the number of bugs that haven't made it to production?
At ROOT CODE, we love numbers and appreciate when they help rather than become "noise." Let's discuss which metrics really work in projects, and how they help us and our clients to trust the result that means track the dynamics, identify bottlenecks and make management decisions based on data, not subjective impressions.
Why do we need metrics at all?
Here's an honest list:
- Transparency of processes - the client and management do not evaluate what seems, but see concrete numbers and the real picture of project execution.
- Efficiency management — it is clear who is loaded at 120%, and who has been waiting for tasks for three days, assess the load, and balance resources.
- Motivation of the team — metrics turn into feedback, not into a "whip", they become a tool for combining assistance and professional development.
- Risk reduction — timely data analysis helps to prevent budget overruns and deadlines, and you don't have to wait for a disaster on Friday evening.
Metrics that we use:
- 1. Productivity
Velocity — the speed at which tasks are completed. If it's constantly fluctuating like the Bitcoin exchange rate, then there's something to talk about in the retro.
Cycle time — how long it takes for a task to be completed, from its inception to its completion.
Deadline chart — shows the progress of tasks relative to the plan, and it's an integral part of any process. - 2. Quality
Defect density — number of errors per thousand lines of code or per module.
Bug fix rate — indicates the speed at which errors are fixed and resolved. It's important to understand that fixing an error within an hour is different from fixing it within a release.
Code review coverage — the share of code that has passed the review.
Test coverage — the favourite argument of analysts and testers: “how many percent of the code was covered — and what it gave.” - 3. Engagement and satisfaction
Team happiness index — yes, we really ask the team “Are you coping? Are you cheerful and cheerful? How is the situation? How to help?” (and get unexpected answers, and sometimes even in verse).
Turnover — the retention rate of specialists, and without it, it is impossible.
Training and development — how many hours the team allocates for improvement. - 4. Business metrics
ROI of projects — when the customer understands that the investment pays off.
SLA — about the level of service with customers, whether we keep our promises on the time of response.
Customer satisfaction — ratings based on the results of releases and implementations, sometimes it's just a "thank you" for a demo, and this is also a metric. - 5. Team interaction
Dependencies between teams — if the processes of one team block all the others, this is not a superpower, but a risk.
Communication time — the share of meetings and approvals in working time.
Speed of requirements approval — an important indicator for analysts and architects.
How it works at us
In ROOT CODE, we have built metrics directly into the processes, rather than keeping them in Excel.
- Yandex.Tracker — for tasks and sprint speed, the “dashboard” of projects: you can see the team’s load and progress without any guesswork.
- GitLab CI/CD and SonarQube — automatic code quality checks (otherwise, you won’t get around to it).
- Metabase and Grafana — beautiful dashboards, trends, and deviations that are viewed not only by analysts but also by top managers.
- BI (Data.Lens) — for us, this is not just a showpiece, but a way to organise data and navigate it quickly. Numbers are collected in one place, and they can already be discussed on the case, and not argue, “who has the correct report”.
- Retrospectives, “tea rooms” - not only numbers are important, we discuss and what does not fit in tasks: mood, convenience of processes, hobbies, share memes and even play games.
Balance between numbers and people:
It is important to remember: numbers ≠ an end in itself.
Numbers should be a development tool, not control for the sake of control. In ROOT CODE, the focus is on metrics that help:
Numbers should be a development tool, not control for the sake of control. In ROOT CODE, the focus is on metrics that help:
- identify areas for improvement,
- maintain team spirit,
- demonstrate value to customers.
Summary
Metrics are not just a "report for management," but a way to make your team stronger, your project more successful, and your company more agile, efficient, and customer-centric.
If your deadline feels like your heart rate after a morning coffee, don't be alarmed. It's a sign that you need to look deeper. And if the ROI is growing and the team is smiling at the retro, then you are on the right track.
We love when numbers work for people, and we are ready to help you make sure that your employees are not afraid of metrics and deadlines, and that their work becomes more efficient as a result.
If your deadline feels like your heart rate after a morning coffee, don't be alarmed. It's a sign that you need to look deeper. And if the ROI is growing and the team is smiling at the retro, then you are on the right track.
We love when numbers work for people, and we are ready to help you make sure that your employees are not afraid of metrics and deadlines, and that their work becomes more efficient as a result.