CT-03
Sustained Average Above SLA Threshold
Cycle Time
Default severity: medium
ProcessMetricsOutputRisk
What it detects
Team average cycle time exceeds the configured SLA threshold for the configured number of consecutive months without a downward trend.
Detection formula
IF avg_cycle_time > config.sla.cycle_time_threshold\[issue_type\] // configured per issue type AND months_above >= config.ct.sustained_breach_months // default: 3 THEN FLAGExamples in practice
- Story cycle time averages 14 days for four consecutive months while the configured SLA cap is 10 days.
- A feature team never trends back below its SLA threshold across three monthly windows.
- Leadership sees repeated SLA breach warnings without a corrective downward trend.
Suggested response
Review cycle-time drivers on the cited work items; tighten WIP or handoffs where delays repeat.
Coaching playbook
Symptom
Team average cycle time exceeds the configured SLA threshold for the configured number of consecutive months without a downward trend.
Why it matters
When "Sustained Average Above SLA Threshold" keeps appearing, the team is signalling a repeatable process gap. Left unexamined, the pattern hides where work really stalls and makes improvement metrics harder to trust.
What you can achieve
Review cycle-time drivers on the cited work items; tighten WIP or handoffs where delays repeat.
Facilitation questions
- What system change would stop "Sustained Average Above SLA Threshold" from firing again?
- What do the cited issues have in common — same root cause or same workaround?
- Who owns the two-week experiment and how will we verify on the next import?
Run this rule against your own tracker data with Flow Analyzer.