Get Hands-On Experience With Frontline And Customers

In addition to data and structured methods, **immersive, first-hand experiences and direct customer research** gave us some of the most impactful input metrics and ideas at Amazon. These approaches helped ground our innovation efforts in real customer needs and operational realities.

### Key Takeaways:

- **We gained critical insight from frontline experience**: During Amazon’s early years, leadership—including Jeff Bezos—regularly worked in fulfillment centers and answered customer service calls during peak seasons. These visceral experiences helped us better understand operational pain points and identify new input metrics.
- **We institutionalized hands-on learning**: The value was so great that we made it a requirement—every Amazon employee spends time in frontline roles each year. This creates empathy, sharpens customer focus, and surfaces measurable opportunities for improvement.
- **We used customer research to drive innovation**: Surveys, focus groups, and third-party data sources gave us clear, actionable feedback. A simple survey on why customers didn’t shop more often revealed four key barriers—shipping cost, delivery speed, selection, and price—which directly shaped the creation of Amazon Prime and our long-term priorities.
- **We traced key customer complaints back to inputs**: From that early research, we began measuring and improving core inputs like in-stock rate, selection breadth, delivery speed, and pricing—cementing them in our flywheel as long-term business drivers.
- **We leveraged sales and customer interactions in B2B contexts**: Especially in business-to-business scenarios, we worked closely with sales teams and met customers in person to gather input-rich feedback, helping us refine offerings and discover metrics specific to client pain points.

Together, these methods reinforce the importance of **direct, empathetic engagement with customers and operations**—not just to build understanding, but to generate input metrics that we can track, improve, and build entire services around.

To dive deeper into Input Metrics Mastery and learn more from Bill and Colin, follow these links:

- Take the full course at their website: <https://workingbackwards.com/>
- Buy the book: <https://www.amazon.com/Working-Backwards-Insights-Stories-Secrets/dp/1250267595>
- Bill's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-carr/>
- Colin's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinbryar/>

Mine Customer Support Data

We expand beyond metrics mapping and customer experience mapping by introducing **additional, nuanced techniques** to help us continuously refine our input metrics. These customer- and defect-driven approaches give us real-world signals that are often overlooked—but are rich with opportunities for improvement.

### Key Takeaways:

- **We believe customer and shareholder interests are aligned**: At Amazon, we were driven by the conviction that obsessing over customers naturally serves the long-term interests of shareholders. This philosophy shaped our approach to metrics and improvement.
- **We treat every customer interaction as a source of insight**: Whether the "customer" is a buyer on Amazon or an internal team we support, we use their feedback to uncover meaningful input metrics that help us improve service and outcomes.
- **We mine customer support data as a diagnostic tool**: We tracked the top reasons customers contacted support—questions like “Where’s my stuff?” or complaints like “You sent the wrong item”—and used these to create new metrics such as “the switcheroo,” which measured item mix-ups.
- **We made problem frequency visible and actionable**: These contact reasons and metrics were reviewed weekly in our WBR, ensuring we remained focused on resolving the most impactful customer issues.
- **We talked directly to customer-facing teams**: We routinely engaged with customer support representatives to gather firsthand insights about recurring pain points by category—adding human intelligence to our data-driven approach.

These additional techniques may not generate as many metrics as mapping exercises, but they provide powerful context and depth to our understanding of what truly matters to customers.

To dive deeper into Input Metrics Mastery and learn more from Bill and Colin, follow these links:

- Take the full course at their website: <https://workingbackwards.com/>
- Buy the book: <https://www.amazon.com/Working-Backwards-Insights-Stories-Secrets/dp/1250267595>
- Bill's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-carr/>
- Colin's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinbryar/>

Amazon Metrics Map Example

In this lesson, we walk through **two core techniques—Metrics Mapping and Customer Experience Mapping**—that helped us systematically discover and define the input metrics that truly matter. These methods gave us a more granular, customer-focused way to understand and improve our business performance at Amazon.

### Key Takeaways:

- **We used Metrics Mapping to break down strategic goals**: Starting with broad objectives like lowering cost structure, we recursively drilled down to discover the specific drivers (e.g., shipping cost, pick cost, forecast accuracy) and converted them into measurable input metrics.
- **We cast a wide net during brainstorming**: In the early stages of metrics mapping, we didn’t worry about whether we could measure something yet or whether it was immediately useful. Our priority was to be comprehensive.
- **We built Customer Experience Maps to capture every user touchpoint**: From site entry to search, checkout, and delivery, we identified every customer interaction and defined metrics for speed, quality, and cost—measured both from the customer's and Amazon’s point of view.
- **We stayed grounded in the customer’s perspective**: Instead of focusing on internal outcomes like revenue per page view, we measured how intuitive, fast, and helpful each experience was for the customer, ensuring our metrics aligned with long-term value creation.
- **We operationalized customer obsession**: These techniques gave us a structured, measurable way to uphold our customer-obsessed culture. Other companies have found these frameworks to be transformative in how they assess and improve their own customer experience and operations.

To dive deeper into Input Metrics Mastery and learn more from Bill and Colin, follow these links:

- Take the full course at their website: <https://workingbackwards.com/>
- Buy the book: <https://www.amazon.com/Working-Backwards-Insights-Stories-Secrets/dp/1250267595>
- Bill's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-carr/>
- Colin's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinbryar/>

Control

In this final phase, we ensure that the gains achieved through improvements don’t erode over time. Control is about sustaining operational excellence, detecting deviations early, and building mechanisms—both human and automated—that keep the system performing at its best.

### Key Takeaways:

- **We implement control mechanisms to preserve gains**: Once we achieve desired service levels, we don’t assume they’ll stay that way. We actively maintain them through tools like regular audits, alarms, and ongoing data validation.
- **The Weekly Business Review (WBR) reinforces control**: Our WBR report includes 200–300 metrics. We review only the outliers, but by tracking all key indicators weekly, we maintain vigilance and are able to quickly detect when something goes off-course.
- **We rely on automation for precision and scalability**: From real-time alarms to machine-driven decision-making, we automate wherever possible. These systems are monitored to ensure they perform within tolerance thresholds.

To dive deeper into Input Metrics Mastery and learn more from Bill and Colin, follow these links:

- Take the full course at their website: <https://workingbackwards.com/>
- Buy the book: <https://www.amazon.com/Working-Backwards-Insights-Stories-Secrets/dp/1250267595>
- Bill's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-carr/>
- Colin's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinbryar/>

Building A Metrics Map

In this lesson, we explore **practical techniques** for identifying the input metrics that matter most. Through methods like **metrics mapping** and **customer experience mapping**, we gain a clearer, more quantitative view of what drives our business forward—especially from the customer’s perspective.

### Key Takeaways:

- **We prioritize input metrics and customer interactions**: Too often, businesses rely heavily on output metrics. We recommend looking deeper into input metrics—particularly those tied to customer behavior and experience.
- **Metrics Mapping helps us discover drivers of key metrics**: We start with a business goal or known metric, then recursively ask what drives it and how we can measure those drivers. This technique reveals a broad and useful set of input metrics.
- **The process is recursive and comprehensive**: We drill down from each metric or goal until we can’t go any further, building an extensive network of quantifiable drivers. Repeating metrics across branches is fine—what matters is completeness.
- **The end goal is a flat, exhaustive list of metrics**: While the mapping exercise may begin as a hierarchy, we ultimately compile all the discovered metrics into a single, non-hierarchical list for practical use and monitoring.
- **Finding input metrics is an ongoing process**: This isn’t a one-time task. We continuously revisit and expand our metric set as our business, goals, and customer needs evolve.

To dive deeper into Input Metrics Mastery and learn more from Bill and Colin, follow these links:

- Take the full course at their website: <https://workingbackwards.com/>
- Buy the book: <https://www.amazon.com/Working-Backwards-Insights-Stories-Secrets/dp/1250267595>
- Bill's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-carr/>
- Colin's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinbryar/>

Improve

In the Improve phase, we focus on **deploying resources and initiatives** that shift our input metrics in the right direction, knowing that this in turn drives our desired output results. Improvement at Amazon has always been a cycle of innovation, experimentation, and rigorous measurement.

### Key Takeaways:

- **We prioritize inputs to drive results**: We align our teams, projects, and resources around improving leading indicators—our input metrics—which ultimately influence lagging outputs like sales and customer retention.
- **Click to Deliver Time became a key input metric**: We tracked every step of the fulfillment process and launched targeted initiatives to speed up delivery, knowing it directly impacted customer satisfaction and engagement.
- **We scaled operations through iterative improvements**: Over two decades, we grew our global delivery infrastructure—fulfillment centers, delivery stations, air cargo, and driver networks—through thousands of iterative changes, many of which were experiments that included both successes and failures.
- **We formalized improvement with the Working Backwards PR/FAQ process**: This mechanism ensures we innovate from customer needs, forcing teams to start with a press release and FAQ to define how a proposed improvement solves real problems.
- **Improvement and analysis form a feedback loop**: Every improvement is followed by measurement and analysis. This iterative cycle lets us reinforce what works and eliminate what doesn’t, ensuring continuous refinement of our systems.

To dive deeper into Input Metrics Mastery and learn more from Bill and Colin, follow these links:

- Take the full course at their website: <https://workingbackwards.com/>
- Buy the book: <https://www.amazon.com/Working-Backwards-Insights-Stories-Secrets/dp/1250267595>
- Bill's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-carr/>
- Colin's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinbryar/>

Analyze

In this phase, we dive into understanding how our **inputs drive outputs**, using structured analysis to detect patterns, pinpoint issues, and reduce variability. Building a culture of disciplined, data-driven evaluation was essential to improving business performance at Amazon.

### Key Takeaways:

- **We focus on understanding input-output relationships**: The Analyze phase helps us distinguish true patterns (signal) from random fluctuations (noise) and enables us to control variability in performance.
- **We use structured mechanisms for analysis**: DMAIC demands that we move beyond ad hoc methods by creating formal processes and tools for analyzing metrics across the company.
- **We built a culture of rigorous data review**: Regular, structured reviews became part of our operating rhythm, reinforcing analytical thinking throughout our teams.
- **We institutionalized the Weekly Business Review (WBR)**: One of our most powerful tools, the WBR was developed to enable comprehensive and recurring analysis, and it remains a central part of how we stay aligned and data-informed across all business units.

To dive deeper into Input Metrics Mastery and learn more from Bill and Colin, follow these links:

- Take the full course at their website: <https://workingbackwards.com/>
- Buy the book: <https://www.amazon.com/Working-Backwards-Insights-Stories-Secrets/dp/1250267595>
- Bill's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-carr/>
- Colin's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinbryar/>

Measure

In the **Measure** phase of the DMAIC process, we focused on building a consistent, reliable foundation for capturing and interpreting data. This phase was critical in enabling accurate decision-making and accountability across our rapidly growing organization.

### Key Takeaways:

- **We standardized measurements across the company**: To avoid confusion and misalignment, we worked for years to unify definitions, formulas, and data structures across multiple data warehouses and teams.
- **We eliminated self-serving metrics**: Jeff Bezos directed our CFO, Warren Jensen, to form an independent analytics team that would report the unbiased truth, rather than letting individual teams present metrics that suited their own narratives.
- **We invested in strong data infrastructure**: Reliable measurement required robust systems for data capture, storage, access, and reporting—along with clear accountability for maintaining these systems.
- **We built a culture of impartial data analysis**: By establishing dedicated analysts and leaders to oversee data integrity, we ensured that our business decisions were driven by objective, consistent information—not wishful thinking.

To dive deeper into Input Metrics Mastery and learn more from Bill and Colin, follow these links:

- Take the full course at their website: <https://workingbackwards.com/>
- Buy the book: <https://www.amazon.com/Working-Backwards-Insights-Stories-Secrets/dp/1250267595>
- Bill's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-carr/>
- Colin's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinbryar/>

Define

In this section, we explain how we at Amazon adopted the **DMAIC process**—a structured Six Sigma methodology—to bring clarity and control to our increasingly complex operations. This approach helped us stay focused on what drives business performance, even as we scaled globally and diversified our offerings.

### Key Takeaways:

- **We turned to Six Sigma to manage complexity**: As Amazon grew from a book retailer into a multi-product, international company, we needed a structured way to measure, monitor, and improve our processes. Six Sigma’s DMAIC framework offered exactly that.
- **DMAIC became our operational foundation**: The five steps—**Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control**—allowed us to break down complex systems into manageable parts, identify input metrics, and drive improvements with precision.
- **We embraced Donald Wheeler’s philosophy**: Following his principle that understanding variation is key to improvement, we focused on how changing inputs affects outputs, aligning our culture around continuous improvement.
- **We built clarity into invisible systems**: Since much of Amazon’s operations (software, fulfillment, logistics) were either virtual or distant, we created standard definitions and measurements to make the system’s performance tangible and actionable.
- **We aligned every part of our system to inputs**: From product selection and pricing to software reliability and delivery speed, we learned that managing the inputs across all departments ultimately shaped our outputs like revenue and customer satisfaction.

To dive deeper into Input Metrics Mastery and learn more from Bill and Colin, follow these links:

- Take the full course at their website: <https://workingbackwards.com/>
- Buy the book: <https://www.amazon.com/Working-Backwards-Insights-Stories-Secrets/dp/1250267595>
- Bill's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-carr/>
- Colin's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinbryar/>

Intro To Input Metrics

In this lesson, we explore what input metrics are, why they matter, and how shifting our focus from outputs to controllable inputs transformed the way we operated at Amazon. We learned—sometimes the hard way—that sustainable success comes not from chasing end results, but from rigorously managing the elements we directly control.

### Key Takeaways:

- **We learned to distinguish between input and output metrics**: Outputs like revenue or share price are lagging indicators and largely outside our direct control. In contrast, input metrics—customer-facing and operational—are controllable levers that drive those outputs.
- **We saw the importance of focusing on controllable inputs**: By investing resources in areas like software, marketing, operations, or process improvements, we influenced outcomes in a predictable and sustainable way. Examples include inventory record accuracy and marketing spend.
- **We realized the limitations of reactive output chasing**: Trying to salvage quarterly financials with last-minute promotions often distracted us from what truly mattered—improving the customer experience.
- **We began managing our business as a system of processes**: We stopped reacting to fire drills and started proactively measuring and optimizing the activities (inputs) that lead to better long-term results.
- **We gained a competitive edge through disciplined input tracking**: While most teams naturally measure outputs, few rigorously track inputs. By doing so, we developed a significant operational advantage that helped Amazon scale sustainably.

To dive deeper into Input Metrics Mastery and learn more from Bill and Colin, follow these links:

- Take the full course at their website: <https://workingbackwards.com/>
- Buy the book: <https://www.amazon.com/Working-Backwards-Insights-Stories-Secrets/dp/1250267595>
- Bill's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-carr/>
- Colin's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinbryar/>

Introduction To The Course

Welcome to our course on Input Metrics, grounded in our experience at Amazon. Our goal is to help you understand and apply the principles that drive consistent business success. This course is designed to transform how we manage performance—shifting from relying solely on output goals to mastering the inputs that lead to great outcomes.

### Key Takeaways:

- **Course Goals**: We’ll learn how to deeply understand input metrics, identify the right ones for our business, measure and analyze them, conduct effective Weekly Business Reviews (WBRs), and implement the WBR reporting tool to visualize data clearly.
- **Real-World Application**: We share Amazon-proven strategies and offer downloadable templates, documents, and tools to support real-world execution of these practices.
- **Amazon’s Shift in Strategy**: We recount Amazon’s turning point in 2000—moving from output-focused goals to a system of input-driven process control, which delivered lasting results.
- **Input vs. Output Mindset**: Instead of telling teams to just hit output targets, we equip them to understand and improve the specific inputs that lead to success—driving better outcomes like increased sales and customer satisfaction.
- **Why It Matters**: Studying input metrics gives us greater control over operations and helps us empathize with customer pain points—fueling continuous improvement and innovation.

To dive deeper into Input Metrics Mastery and learn more from Bill and Colin, follow these links:

- Take the full course at their website: <https://workingbackwards.com/>
- Buy the book: <https://www.amazon.com/Working-Backwards-Insights-Stories-Secrets/dp/1250267595>
- Bill's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-carr/>
- Colin's LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinbryar/>

Master the Art of Receiving Quality Feedback (from an ex-Meta Staff Researcher)

In this time of uncertainty in the workplace and job market, what’s one skill you can develop that would **yield disproportionate rewards**?

It’s hard to pinpoint *the one* skill, but I believe the **ability to ask for, receive, and iterate on feedback** is incredibly important. Adaptability is what helps us not just survive, but thrive—and adaptability begins with how well we take in and work with feedback.

When you learn to process feedback effectively, **you develop a kind of likability and professional superpower** that organizations and leaders find hard to ignore.

We hear feedback all the time, so what exactly are we trying to get better at? Most of the feedback we receive is vague and hard to act on. Think about examples like “improve your communication” or “increase your coding speed”—where do you even start? The **key is in asking for feedback** proactively, clarifying and chunking it down into something actionable, working on it, and then circling back to check if you’ve understood and implemented it well.

In this talk, we’ll learn how to do exactly that—a process I call “**exhausting the feedback process**,” a phrase I often use in my coaching practice. We’ll also explore how to handle feedback that’s just plain off the mark (spoiler: it’s rarely useful to say that outright to the person giving it).

Yogi on LinkedIn: <https://www.linkedin.com/in/yogi1/>

Putting It All In Perspective

This bonus session wraps up the *Essence of Management* course by reflecting on the symbolism behind the **Management Deltas** logo and what it teaches us about effective leadership. The logo—featuring a lowercase delta—serves as a metaphor for the kind of impact we aim to create as managers.

- **We focus on small changes**—daily and weekly deltas—that compound over time into meaningful, lasting transformation for our team, our impact, and our careers.
- **We recognize the multidimensional nature of management**, much like the mathematical partial derivative (∂), where influence happens across many axes—people, processes, priorities, and culture.
- **We look for deltas in every direction**, and one of our responsibilities is to map these dimensions so we can lead more intentionally and with greater clarity.
- **We embrace the idea that leadership is not one-size-fits-all**—it's a creative, ongoing practice of identifying leverage points and applying thoughtful, sustainable change.

This session reminds us that our job isn’t to be perfect—it’s to continuously look for small, deliberate ways to move our teams and organizations forward.

If you want to learn more from Gilad, he shares free leadership advice daily on [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/giladnaor/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta) and weekly on the[ δeltas newsletter](https://posts.managementdeltas.com/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta)

Taking Things Further

In Part 4 of the course, we focus on how to **embed "thinking in deltas" as a daily leadership habit**. This final module emphasizes how to continuously spot and create positive, sustainable change as a manager—not just react to problems.

- **We build the habit by journaling our daily deltas**, capturing the tangible changes we influence, however small.
- **We use the journal to reframe how we think**, making it easier over time to spot opportunities for impact in individuals, teams, and systems.
- **We improve our mental well-being as managers** by recognizing our contributions and wins in a role where feedback loops are long and ambiguous.
- **We measure our success not just by outputs, but by meaningful changes we've catalyzed**—deltas we can point to as outcomes of our leadership.

Creating a daily "delta journal" isn’t just about reflection—it’s how we grow our impact and resilience as leaders.

If you want to learn more from Gilad, he shares free leadership advice daily on [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/giladnaor/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta) and weekly on the[ δeltas newsletter](https://posts.managementdeltas.com/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta)

Gilad’s Take: Burnt Out and Behind

In Part 3 of the course, we explored how to apply the core lesson from Part 2—creating positive and sustainable change in organizational performance—through four practical exercises. Each scenario challenged us to identify the **"deltas"** we can introduce as managers to increase impact at the individual, team, or systems level.

- **We learned to recognize that not all growth is credited to us**, and we must focus on the growth that happens *because* of our involvement—not despite it.
- **We explored supporting high performers** by making their growth more efficient (faster) and effective (more aligned with goals), rather than just letting it happen passively.
- **We tackled underperformance** by identifying root causes, offering tailored support, and protecting teammates from negative ripple effects.
- **We addressed silent group dynamics** by recognizing the power of culture and investing in small, consistent changes to build psychological safety and lasting team habits.
- **We emphasized ruthless prioritization** as a powerful delta: helping teams focus on what truly matters, not just work harder—transforming effort into sustainable outcomes.

Now, we’re ready to take this impact to the next level in Part 4.

If you want to learn more from Gilad, he shares free leadership advice daily on [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/giladnaor/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta) and weekly on the[ δeltas newsletter](https://posts.managementdeltas.com/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta)

Burnt Out and Behind

In this final exercise, we confront a situation where a team is putting in extra hours but still failing to meet deadlines. This signals systemic issues that go beyond individual effort—and calls for thoughtful intervention.

- We recognize that **unsustainable effort without results is a red flag**—it shows that working harder isn't the solution.
- We can introduce deltas by **investigating root causes**: Are goals unrealistic? Are priorities misaligned? Is there a process breakdown?
- It’s our responsibility to **shift focus from intensity to effectiveness**—fixing the system so performance improves without burnout.
- We look at **team norms, project planning habits, and cross-functional dependencies** to identify leverage points for change.
- Our role is to help the team **recover sustainably**, improving delivery while preserving morale and long-term capacity.

If you want to learn more from Gilad, he shares free leadership advice daily on [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/giladnaor/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta) and weekly on the[ δeltas newsletter](https://posts.managementdeltas.com/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta)

Gilad’s Take: System Design Meeting Non-Participation

In this reflection on team participation during design reviews, we explored how group dynamics can have a powerful influence beyond the individuals themselves. The challenge highlights the importance of managing team culture and fostering an environment where all voices are heard.

- We acknowledge that **group behaviors can persist even as individual team members change**—a reminder that team culture is distinct and durable.
- Our role is to **introduce small, consistent deltas** that collectively improve psychological safety and encourage open participation.
- We focus on **building psychological safety** by recognizing barriers to contribution and intentionally working to lower them.
- Though these efforts may seem small or slow, **they compound into deep, sustainable cultural change** that supports long-term performance.
- Strong team cultures—like ones where everyone contributes—require persistent effort, but the payoff is a **resilient and high-performing team**.

If you want to learn more from Gilad, he shares free leadership advice daily on [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/giladnaor/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta) and weekly on the[ δeltas newsletter](https://posts.managementdeltas.com/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta)

System Design Meeting Non-Participation

In this exercise, we examine a common team dynamic issue: several team members remain silent during design review meetings. This scenario challenges us to improve team engagement and collaboration—core to a manager’s ability to create sustainable performance change.

- We can **create psychological safety** so team members feel comfortable speaking up. This might involve setting new norms, encouraging questions, or addressing interpersonal dynamics that suppress contribution.
- We may need to **facilitate structured participation**, such as assigning roles, using round-robin feedback formats, or pre-assigning topics so everyone has time to prepare and contribute.
- We should **investigate root causes**—whether it's confidence, lack of clarity, or a dominant voice in the room—and address them through coaching or team norms.
- This is a chance to **foster inclusion and amplify diverse perspectives**, making the team more effective and innovative in its design process.
- By creating a culture of engagement, we **raise the overall output quality** and ownership across the team—an impactful and sustainable delta.

If you want to learn more from Gilad, he shares free leadership advice daily on [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/giladnaor/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta) and weekly on the[ δeltas newsletter](https://posts.managementdeltas.com/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta)

Gilad’s Take: Missed Estimates

In this exercise, we explore how to manage an individual contributor who is consistently underperforming—missing estimates or failing in execution. This presents a valuable opportunity for us to create both individual and team-wide impact.

- We help the individual grow by **improving their estimation and execution skills**—through coaching, targeted training, mentorship, and root cause analysis.
- We aim to **understand the specific failure points** by collecting data and maintaining an open yet high-bar conversation with the individual.
- We don't just focus on the individual; we **expand our lens to the team**, recognizing that underperformance affects teammates who rely on timely outputs.
- To support the broader organization, we look for ways to **minimize the blast radius**, reducing the negative impact on the surrounding team while working toward resolution.
- This is about **maximizing delta**: helping one person improve while also protecting and enabling the rest of the group to thrive.

If you want to learn more from Gilad, he shares free leadership advice daily on [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/giladnaor/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta) and weekly on the[ δeltas newsletter](https://posts.managementdeltas.com/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta)

Missed Estimates

In this segment, we’re challenged with a new scenario: an individual contributor consistently misses their own estimates. This is our opportunity to apply the essence of management—creating positive, sustainable change in organizational performance.

- We frame the issue not just as a problem to fix, but as an opportunity to **create a delta** in this person’s effectiveness and the team’s overall reliability.
- Our goal is to **understand the root cause**—is it due to optimism bias, poor time management, lack of clarity, or systemic issues in the planning process?
- We can introduce **structured changes**: better estimation techniques, mentoring, regular retrospectives, or adjusting sprint planning to account for variability.
- We aim for improvements that are **sustainable**—equipping the individual with tools or frameworks they can continue to use independently.
- As always, our success isn’t in reacting to the problem but in **proactively shaping a better outcome** that would not have happened without our involvement.

If you want to learn more from Gilad, he shares free leadership advice daily on [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/giladnaor/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta) and weekly on the[ δeltas newsletter](https://posts.managementdeltas.com/?utm_source=taro&utm_medium=course&utm_campaign=cta)

Tech Career Growth Videos

Our instructional videos provide software engineers with insights needed for career growth. Masterclasses go incredibly in-depth on a specific tech topic while case studies are real examples from established engineering leaders.