Say it like this
- We ship on a two-week cadence.
- Let's move the sync to a monthly cadence.
- What's a good cadence for status updates?
Use it at work
Setting up meetings
- What cadence works for you?
- Let's start weekly and move to a biweekly cadence later.
Talking about releases
- We ship on a two-week cadence.
- Can we speed up our release cadence?
Updating stakeholders
- You'll get updates on a weekly cadence.
- Is a monthly cadence enough for the steering group?
Don't say this
Use "on a ... cadence".
Don't mix it up
| Term | What it is | Who writes or uses it | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| cadence | how often something repeats | managers, product, engineering | meetings, releases, updates |
| schedule | the exact dates and times | everyone | calendars and plans |
| velocity | how much work a team finishes per sprint | agile teams | measuring output |
Practice
Try it
4 quick exercises
1. You want to meet your manager every two weeks. What do you say?
2. We deploy to production on a weekly _______, every Thursday.
3. Which sentence uses cadence correctly?
4. Rewrite using cadence: 'How often should we send updates to the client?'
Say it out loud
Phrase 1 of 3
"We ship on a two-week cadence."
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More about cadence
Real examples(3)
- in sprint planning
"We release on a weekly cadence, every Tuesday."
- in a one-on-one
"Is a biweekly cadence OK for our check-ins?"
- with a client
"We'll send progress reports on a monthly cadence."
More mistakes(2)
Handle with care. Cadence means a repeating rhythm. For a single deadline, say date or deadline instead.
- ✕What is the cadence of the meeting room?✓How often do we use the meeting room?
Cadence is about regular repeating events, not objects.
- ✕The cadence is fast. (meaning busy)✓We release often / The pace is fast.
Cadence is about rhythm and frequency, not workload.
Other forms(2)
- release cadence noun phrase
"Our release cadence is every two weeks."
- meeting cadence noun phrase
"Let's review our meeting cadence."
Often used with(4)
- on a weekly / monthly cadence · the most common pattern
- release cadence · how often you ship
- set a cadence · agree how often something happens
- regular cadence · a steady rhythm
Similar words(3)
- frequency · more technical
- rhythm · more casual
- schedule · the actual dates and times
Opposites(3)
- ad hoc
- irregular
- one-off
Questions(4)
- What does cadence mean in business?
- How often something regularly happens, like meetings, releases or reports.
- What is a release cadence?
- How often a team ships new versions, for example every week or every two weeks.
- What is a meeting cadence?
- How often a recurring meeting happens, such as daily standups or monthly reviews.
- How do you pronounce cadence?
- Say "KAY-dens", with the stress on the first part.
