Unfortunately for many, the majority of managers attempt to rectify this situation by starting more work items.
They incorrectly reason if things take so long, then they need to start new items as soon as possible so that those items finish on time—regardless of what is currently in progress.

The picture below illustrates Little’s Law. This is a super model to help such managers reconsider what they think to be true.

Little’s Law shows that an increase in arrival rate (work started) means more work allowed into a system (WIP).
This in turn means the Cycle Time increases (the time it takes to complete the work in the system).

Starting more things, in a panic, means everything slows down.

It stands to reason doesn’t it. Same amount of people, more work = more task switching, more dependencies, more hand offs…. More things that cause the work in the system to slow down, stop and wait.

The answer is to allow fewer things in. See the smaller triangle? Less WIP, shorter cycle time.

Stop starting, start finishing work items to increase value, learning and happiness and reduce cycle times, wait time and stress.