Time Quote by Gene Kim
““A critical part of the Second Way is making wait times visible, so you know when your work spends days sitting in someone’s queue—or worse, when work has to go backward, because it doesn’t have all the parts or requires rework.””
About This Quote
Transparency of workflow bottlenecks lets teams see where tasks stall or regress, enabling corrective action.
In simple terms: Show waiting times to fix delays.
Key Takeaway
Visibility drives process improvement.
Themes
workflow
visibility
efficiency
continuous improvement
Mood
pragmatic
urgent
Type
explanatory
technical
When to use this quote
- software development pipelines
- manufacturing assembly lines
- customer support ticket handling
Key Concepts
systems thinking
queue theory
Practical Applications
- implement visual dashboards for work‑in‑progress
Questions to Reflect On
- How does hidden work affect team morale?
- What metrics best reveal hidden delays?
![“Bill Baker, a distinguished engineer at Microsoft, quipped that we used to treat servers like pets: “You name them and when they get sick, you nurse them back to health. [Now] servers are [treated] like cattle. You number them and when they get sick, you shoot them.” quote by Gene Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/e7b/gene-kim-2268_health_bill-baker-a-distinguished-engineer-at-m_187582.jpg)
