ES-04
Missing Time Logs
Estimation
Default severity: high
EstimationMetricsQualityEffort
What it detects
More than the configured percentage of subtasks have no time spent logged — actual effort is invisible.
Detection formula
IF COUNT(subtasks WHERE time_spent = 0 OR NULL) / total_subtasks > config.estimation.missing_timelog_threshold // default: 40% THEN FLAGExamples in practice
- Estimates, time logged, and actual effort no longer align for a meaningful share of items.
- The team commits to sizes that are not supported by historical spend patterns.
- A team shows more than the configured percentage of subtasks have no time spent logged while missing timelog threshold is set to 40%.
Suggested response
Align estimation and logging practices so size, time spent, and scope changes remain comparable.
Coaching playbook
Symptom
More than the configured percentage of subtasks have no time spent logged — actual effort is invisible.
Why it matters
When "Missing Time Logs" 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
Align estimation and logging practices so size, time spent, and scope changes remain comparable.
Facilitation questions
- What system change would stop "Missing Time Logs" 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.