Burndown, Burnup, and Cumulative Flow
3
Charts
Burndown, Burnup, Cumulative Flow Diagram
↓
Burndown Direction
Tracks work remaining, falls over time
↑
Burnup Direction
Tracks work completed, rises over time
three charts · each answers a different question
Three Agile Charts
Burndown
how much is left?
Line goes down. Ideal is dashed. Actual is solid.
Burnup
how much is done vs total?
Line goes up. Ceiling (scope) jumps when scope grows.
CFD
where is work stuck?
Bands per stage. Widening middle band = bottleneck.
how to read this
- › Burndown shows work remaining over time. Good when scope is locked — bad when scope changes silently (the line just looks slow).
- › Burnupshows work completed with a visible scope ceiling. Scope changes jump the ceiling, so they're obvious.
- › Cumulative Flow Diagramstacks bands for each workflow column. If the middle (In Progress) band fans open, WIP is piling up — that's a bottleneck, not productivity.
Exam Traps
Burnup shows scope changes, burndown does not
If scope grows mid-sprint, burnup charts show a rising ceiling. Burndown charts just look like you are falling behind.
Widening bands on a CFD mean trouble
A widening In Progress band on a cumulative flow diagram means WIP is accumulating and cycle time is rising.
Burndown is team-level, release burndown is project-level
Sprint burndown tracks one sprint. Release burndown tracks the whole release. The exam tests the scale.
Burnup for scope change
Burnup charts make scope creep visible. Burndown charts hide it.
Flat line is a warning
A burndown that is not falling means the team is not completing work. Investigate immediately.
Count the pieces still in the box. Number should shrink every day until zero.
Count the pieces placed in the puzzle. Number should grow toward total pieces. If a new bag of pieces appears, total goes up — scope change is obvious.
A stacked area chart of pieces in each stage: unopened, sorted, placed, done. Widening bands mean pile-ups.
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