Too often, we hear engineering teams proudly claim, “We push code commits every day.”

It sounds impressive, continuous work, constant output, relentless progress. But here’s the reality: Code commits do not measure productivity or business impact.

Measuring success by code commits is like evaluating a construction project by how many nails were used. It tells you something is happening, but it doesn’t tell you if it’s generating value. What truly matters is how excited your end-users are about the software you shipped.

Why Code Commits Are a False Proxy for Productivity

In software development, we often confuse development activity with impact. Just because developers are writing and committing code frequently doesn’t mean they’re delivering meaningful improvements.

In fact, optimizing for commit volume can lead to:

• Feature bloat – Shipping new features for the sake of shipping, rather than solving actual user problems.
• Low-quality releases – Rushing changes without properly testing or validating their impact.
• Lost focus – Prioritizing internal development metrics over real customer needs.

This kind of thinking leads to products that are built efficiently but not effectively — a fast-moving train going in the wrong direction.

What Should We Measure Instead?

To develop great digital products, engineering teams need to shift their focus from “How often are we committing code?” to “How much value are we delivering per sprint?”

Key Metrics That Matter More Than Code Commits

1. Customer Delight & Adoption – Are customers using and loving what you built? Are they finding real value in it?
2. User Engagement & Retention – Are users sticking around, or are they churning because the product isn’t meeting their needs?
3. Speed to Value – How quickly can users see the benefit of a new feature or update?
4. Quality & Stability – Are new releases introducing more bugs and frustration than value?
5. Business Impact – Is your product improving revenue, efficiency, or other critical KPIs?

Shifting to Outcome-Based Development

Engineering teams need to stop measuring effort and start measuring impact. That means:

• Building software with purpose – Every release should be driven by real user problems, not arbitrary internal goals.
• Focusing on outcomes and impact – Measuring how product changes affect user experience, retention, and growth.
• Prioritizing quality over speed – Shipping fast is good, but shipping something valuable is better.

The Real Question: Are We Making an Impact?

The next time someone brags about daily commits, ask them:

“How many customers found value in what we delivered?”. Because at the end of the day, that’s the only metric that truly matters.

Want to Build Software That Delights Users?

At ISHIR, we help businesses focus on customer-driven development, aligning engineering teams with real user needs, so that every release drives measurable impact.

If you’re looking to build software that actually moves the needle, let’s talk.