Future of Developer Productivity: Microsoft’s EngThrive Framework in Practice | BRK210
Tim Bozarth walks through a practical approach to measuring and improving developer productivity using Microsoft’s EngThrive framework, with an emphasis on making improvements that hold up even as AI changes how teams write code.
Overview
This Build 2026 session introduces Microsoft’s EngThrive model for developer productivity, organized around three dimensions:
- Speed: how quickly teams deliver value
- Ease: how frictionless it is for engineers to get work done (reducing toil and bottlenecks)
- Quality: how reliably teams ship and operate software
The session focuses on applying the framework in practice, including how to define consistent metrics, build dashboards, and identify actions that improve developer flow and reduce wasted effort.
What the session covers
Redefining productivity around outcomes
- Differentiating activity metrics (what people do) from outcome metrics (what value is delivered)
- Framing productivity as creating more value faster, rather than maximizing visible activity
Establishing consistent, company-wide metrics
- Guidance on standardizing measurement so teams can compare trends over time
- Using shared definitions to avoid “metric drift” across organizations
Applying EngThrive dimensions (Speed, Ease, Quality)
- How to use the three dimensions as a checklist to find bottlenecks in the development process
- Turning measurement into concrete actions teams can take, not just reporting
Case study: reducing developer toil
- A case study is referenced where a team reduced developer toil by 25%
- The session ties improvements to measurable changes (not just anecdotal wins)
Focus time and flow
- Discussion of developer focus time and its importance for sustained delivery
- Mentions Viva Insights in the context of understanding and improving focus time
Getting started with quick wins
- Encouragement to start early with quick wins and “low hanging fruit” improvements
- Emphasis on practical steps that work for teams of different sizes
Session resources
- Next steps and Build resources: https://aka.ms/build26-next-steps
Session metadata
- Event: Microsoft Build 2026
- Session code: BRK210
- Level: Intermediate
- Track: Developer tools & frameworks