TI-06
Time Remaining Exceeds Original Estimate
Time Tracking Integrity
Default severity: medium
EstimationProcessMetricsEffort
What it detects
An issue has a time remaining value greater than its original estimate — this is logically impossible if the remaining field is properly maintained (remaining = estimate - spent). Indicates manual entry errors, estimate reduction without corresponding remaining adjustment, or data quality corruption.
Detection formula
IF issue.time_remaining > issue.original_estimate AND issue.original_estimate > 0 THEN FLAG remaining_exceeds_estimate IF (issue.time_remaining - issue.original_estimate) > config.ti.remaining_overshoot_hours // default: 4h THEN CRITICAL — significant data integrity problem Report: issue, original_estimate, time_remaining, time_spent, logical_remaining = original_estimate - time_spentExamples in practice
- A team shows an issue has a time remaining value greater than its original estimate while remaining overshoot hours is set to 4h.
- Example signal: An issue has a time remaining value greater than its original estimate — this is logically impossible if the remaining field is properly maintained (remaining = estimate - spent).
Suggested response
Fix time-tracking states so remaining, spent, and status align with reality.
Coaching playbook
Symptom
An issue has a time remaining value greater than its original estimate — this is logically impossible if the remaining field is properly maintained (remaining = estimate - spent). Indicates manual entry errors, estimate reduction without corresponding remaining adjustment, or data quality corruption.
Why it matters
When "Time Remaining Exceeds Original Estimate" 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
Fix time-tracking states so remaining, spent, and status align with reality.
Facilitation questions
- What system change would stop "Time Remaining Exceeds Original Estimate" 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.