Meaning
A metric that measures the amount of work (usually in story points) a team successfully delivers per sprint.
Three examples from work
Sprint planning
PMOur average velocity over the past three sprints is thirty-five story points.
LeadLet's cap our sprint commitment at thirty-five to avoid overcommitting.
Capacity review
Scrum MasterTwo senior developers are on vacation, so our velocity will be lower.
POUnderstood, I will adjust the release forecast accordingly.
Executive sync
DirectorHas the new automated testing framework increased development velocity?
LeadYes, our velocity increased by fifteen percent due to fewer regression bugs.
Velocity is a planning calibration tool, not a cross-team competition metric. Use phrases like 'historical velocity' and 'team velocity'.