Business, finance and operations

Burndown chart

  • Business, finance and operations

Definition

A chart of the work remaining in a sprint or project over time, usually with an ideal line from the starting total down to zero for comparison.

Example

ILLUSTRATION. A Raket Parts B.V. data team plans 40 story points for a ten-day sprint. The ideal line falls by 4 points a day. On day 5, 26 points remain instead of 20, so the team is behind and discusses scope early rather than on the last day.

Raket Parts B.V. is a fictional company created for Insyt.

For your role

Choose your role to see what this term means in your work.

Why it matters

It shows early whether a sprint or project will finish on time.

Where it is used

Sprint reviews and agile team boards. Used by delivery managers, scrum masters, product owners and project managers.