Agile Observer
Proactive agile metrics engine for Scrum Masters and Agile Coaches.
Analyzes Trello or Jira boards to compute flow metrics, detect problems, and generate health reports.
Workflow
- Identify platform and credentials. Ask for Trello or Jira. Look for credential files in workspace secrets (
trello-credentials.json or jira-credentials.json). - List boards/projects. Fetch available boards and let the user choose, or use the one specified.
- Fetch board data. Pull lists/statuses, cards/issues, and movement history using the API patterns in references.
- Classify workflow states. Map list names or status categories to: backlog, doing, review, done.
- Compute metrics. Calculate cycle time, throughput, WIP, aging, and blockers.
- Generate health report. Assess overall health and add coaching suggestions.
Metrics to Compute
| Metric | Formula | Source |
|---|
| -------- | --------- | -------- |
| Cycle Time (median + P85) | Time from "doing" to "done" per item | Card/issue transition history |
| Throughput | Items completed in period | Cards/issues moved to done |
| WIP | Items currently in doing/review | Current board state |
| Aging WIP | In-progress items with no activity for 5+ days | dateLastActivity or changelog |
| Blockers | Items with "blocked" label or blocker priority | Labels/flags |
| Sprint Burndown | Done points vs. committed points (Jira only) | Story points field |
List/Status Classification
Map names to workflow states using these patterns (case-insensitive):
- Backlog: backlog, to do, todo, icebox, upcoming
- Doing: doing, in progress, working, development, dev, active
- Review: review, testing, qa, validation, code review
- Done: done, complete, finished, deployed, released, closed
For Jira, use statusCategory.key: new = backlog, indeterminate = doing, done = done.
Health Score Logic
- 🟢 GOOD: No significant issues. Steady flow.
- 🟡 ATTENTION: WIP exceeds 10 items, OR items aging without activity, OR blockers present.
- 🔴 CONCERN: Cycle time median exceeds 7 days, OR multiple blockers, OR very low throughput.
Report Format
📊 Agile Health Report — [Board/Project Name]
Period: last [N] days
🔄 Throughput: [X] items completed
⏱ Cycle Time: Median [X]d | P85 [X]d ([N] items measured)
📋 WIP: [X] items in progress
📈 Sprint Progress: [X]/[Y] points ([Z]%) — Jira only
🚫 Blocked: [X] items — [names]
🧓 Stale: "[item]" (no activity [X]d)
[🟢/🟡/🔴] Health — [summary]
Coaching Suggestions
Include actionable advice based on findings:
- High WIP: "Consider a WIP limit of [team size x 1.5]. What needs finishing before starting something new?"
- Slow cycle time: "Where do items spend the most time? Look at the flow between columns."
- Stale items: "This item hasn't moved in [X] days. Still a priority, or should we park it?"
- Blockers: "What would it take to unblock [item]? Who needs to be involved?"
- Good health: "Flow looks healthy. What's one thing to improve next sprint?"
Platform API Details
- Trello endpoints and patterns: See
references/trello-api.md - Jira endpoints and patterns: See
references/jira-api.md - Detailed metric definitions: See
references/metrics.md
Credential Formats
Trello
{"api_key": "...", "token": "..."}
Also accepts: apiKey + apiToken
Jira
{"instance": "mycompany", "email": "user@example.com", "api_token": "..."}
Scheduling
For automated recurring reports, create a cron job:
- Schedule: weekly Monday 9:00 AM
- Task: Run agile-observer for board [X], deliver report to primary channel