Continuous integration is the best way to get feedback often on the state of your project. Running automated builds and tests after each integration improves reliability and predictability. Consequently, using task and feature branches, while useful in some cases, can be a distraction and delay getting information.

In the era of continuous integration and continuous deployment, big applications are creating bloated build pipelines. The problem is when code becomes so entangled that every change impacts large portions of the system, meaning there’s a lot to rebuild. If you reshape the code architecture, you can reduce build times.

To achieve incremental software development and continuous feedback, you need to eliminate the tasks that create bottlenecks, which hinder the flow of development. A chain is no stronger than its weakest link, and identifying these “weak links” is a critical step toward achieving agility and increasing efficiency.