Main idea

Faced with an existing stockpile, there are two options. The radical one closes everything and starts from zero: it is clean, politically hard, and it assumes strong internal trust and the ability to stand behind the refusals. The gradual one reduces by steps — prioritize one last time, handle a small number of defects per sprint, define a new temporary zero.

The second works on one condition only: it must be declared transitional, and it must have an end. Without a bound — a date, or a step reached — "reduction under way" becomes the permanent name of the state you wanted to leave, complete with its committees, its reprioritizations and its maintenance work.

Why it matters

An open-ended transition is indistinguishable from the problem it treats. It differs only in vocabulary, which gives the organization the feeling of having acted.

Nuances and limits

The bound need not be a date. A step — a new temporary zero reached — does the same work, provided it is defined before the phase and not during it.

Open questions

• What do you do with the defects still present at the deadline, if the targeted zero is not reached?